• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Minnesota man who killed teens in break-in charged with murder

Status
Not open for further replies.
Shouldn't have broken into the guys house. You come into someone elses house they should have the right to do ANYTHING they want to you. It's that simple. Could he have just shot them once and then called 911 yes, but its his house

Actually, no.

In this country, we believe in a judicial system, where a jury of peers decides the sentence.

This isn't Somalia or our lynching squad days.
 

Raiden

Banned
Shouldn't have broken into the guys house. You come into someone elses house they should have the right to do ANYTHING they want to you. It's that simple. Could he have just shot them once and then called 911 yes, but its his house

Oh what would Gaf do without one of you guys. Read the article, it is pretty insane and they were just kids, lets be real here.
 

mre

Golden Domers are chickenshit!!
Shouldn't have broken into the guys house. You come into someone elses house they should have the right to do ANYTHING they want to you. It's that simple. Could he have just shot them once and then called 911 yes, but its his house

You're right. He should have tied them up, raped them a little, and then put them in cages on his front lawn as warnings to other would-be intruders.
 
I'm aware if that, I read the op. The reason I made the comment is because america is the only county on earth that has people who think this is a valid way to resolve a situation. You know what we do in Canada? Call the police. Or if you're feeling really brave, get a bat.

Nobody asked what you did in Canada. Of course you should be used to that by now.
 
Shouldn't have broken into the guys house. You come into someone elses house they should have the right to do ANYTHING they want to you. It's that simple. Could he have just shot them once and then called 911 yes, but its his house
?
ibnBy7RhCnwvoP.png
 

KHarvey16

Member
I'm aware if that, I read the op. The reason I made the comment is because america is the only county on earth that has people who think this is a valid way to resolve a situation. You know what we do in Canada? Call the police. Or if you're feeling really brave, get a bat.

This just in: no murders anywhere but the US.
 
I'm aware if that, I read the op. The reason I made the comment is because america is the only county on earth that has people who think this is a valid way to resolve a situation. You know what we do in Canada? Call the police. Or if you're feeling really brave, get a bat.

Nah, if someone's in your house and you don't know what kind of threat they may pose, shooting them in self-defense is a valid way of resolving the situation when you may not have the time to call 911, or give the burglars the benefit of the doubt. This guy isn't being charged with shooting intruders - he's being charged with intentionally murdering them when they no longer posed a threat.
 

slit

Member
Shouldn't have broken into the guys house. You come into someone elses house they should have the right to do ANYTHING they want to you. It's that simple. Could he have just shot them once and then called 911 yes, but its his house

No, it really isn't.
 

Jacob

Member
Eh I am for castle law, and use of deadly force. But nah in this case it went into murder territory.

I have mixed feelings about the castle law, but pretty much this.

The man's actions as described in news reports are so far beyond what could be considered self-defense that I'm surprised anyone has tried to defend it, even on the Internet.
 

jgmo870

Banned
Smith attempted to shoot her again, but his rifle jammed, prompting Kifer to laugh.

Because that's what 18 year-old girls who were shot do instead of pleading for their life. That man is seriously disturbed.
 

pantsmith

Member
So I take it they have this grizzly account because he gave it to the police? Might have wanted to omit a couple of those details.
 

B-Dubs

No Scrubs
Shouldn't have broken into the guys house. You come into someone elses house they should have the right to do ANYTHING they want to you. It's that simple. Could he have just shot them once and then called 911 yes, but its his house

Are you kidding bro? There's defending yourself and executing someone and this more closely resembles the latter.
 

Borgnine

MBA in pussy licensing and rights management
Onion_relish shot out this thread's legs, and Dorkimoe gave it a good clean finishing shot to the head.
 

Karak

Member
Nah, if someone's in your house and you don't know what kind of threat they may pose, shooting them in self-defense is a valid way of resolving the situation when you may not have the time to call 911, or give the burglars the benefit of the doubt. This guy isn't being charged with shooting intruders - he's being charged with intentionally murdering them when they no longer posed a threat.

Agreed. I would for sure shoot to kill horribly if someone came into my fucking house like that.
HOWEVER, if they didn't die I wouldn't execute them. But I might poke them with butter knives a couple minutes while the police were on the way:)
 
Shouldn't have broken into the guys house. You come into someone elses house they should have the right to do ANYTHING they want to you. It's that simple. Could he have just shot them once and then called 911 yes, but its his house

There are always exceptions and not everything is ok. Just no.
 
I like guns and I believe in defending yourself and your property. But there is a line there just like with everything else, and this guy crossed it. If I was on the jury, I'd already have my guilty vote ready.
 
I like guns and I believe in defending yourself and your property. But there is a line there just like with everything else, and this guy crossed it. If I was on the jury, I'd already have my guilty vote ready.
Well, to be fair, the guy did defend himself and his property pretty well. He just fucked up by going right into committing straight up double homicide a few minutes later.
 

someday

Banned
I read about this earlier today and wondered if it would end up on Gaf.

I generally agree with the right to defend yourself in your own home, but do believe that he went well above that here. The article I read earlier though quoted his brother as saying that the man had been burglarized 8 times in the past and had lost quite a lot of stuff. I think he was just fed up and took it all out on these two kids.

From msnbc.com:

Smith's brother, Bruce Smith, told the Star Tribune of Minneapolis that the incident was the eighth burglary at Byron Smith's home in recent years.
The only report the Morrison County sheriff's office has for a break-in at the home was for one on Oct. 27. It shows Byron Smith reported losing cash and gold coins worth $9,200, plus two guns worth $200 each, photo equipment worth more than $3,000 and a ring worth $300.
 

sca2511

Member
Shouldn't have broken into the guys house. You come into someone elses house they should have the right to do ANYTHING they want to you. It's that simple. Could he have just shot them once and then called 911 yes, but its his house
Haha, what the hell.
 

Amakusa

Member
I would post a sign infront of my home that states, if you break into my home, I will lock you in my basement.... I have leather, whips, chains and handcuffs. Come at me bro!
 
I read about this earlier today and wondered if it would end up on Gaf.

I generally agree with the right to defend yourself in your own home, but do believe that he went well above that here. The article I read earlier though quoted his brother as saying that the man had been burglarized 8 times in the past and had lost quite a lot of stuff. I think he was just fed up and took it all out on these two kids.

From msnbc.com:

Smith's brother, Bruce Smith, told the Star Tribune of Minneapolis that the incident was the eighth burglary at Byron Smith's home in recent years.
The only report the Morrison County sheriff's office has for a break-in at the home was for one on Oct. 27. It shows Byron Smith reported losing cash and gold coins worth $9,200, plus two guns worth $200 each, photo equipment worth more than $3,000 and a ring worth $300.
I read about the previous "break-ins" and it made me think if those kid were even breaking in like he said. Clearly he's mentally unstable, maybe he imagined most of the break-ins out of paranoia and just went too far this time?
 
I'm from Minnesota
Between my father, grandfather, and myself, we own one AR15, three synthetic AK47 style assault rifles, and ~20 firearms including rifles, shotguns and handguns.
I obviously 100% believe in the right to own firearms
I 100% believe that one should be able to shoot intruders if they break into a home

This guy crossed a line when he went ahead and executed these people. If one was wounded, he should not have "finished them off" but instead have called the police.

I just drove through Little Falls yesterday. Pretty small town, but they're hovering around 8000 and are about 45 minutes away from St. Cloud, which is a pretty sizeable city. It's not like there were not any police around anywhere.

This guy messed up.
 

Jacob

Member
I generally agree with the right to defend yourself in your own home, but do believe that he went well above that here. The article I read earlier though quoted his brother as saying that the man had been burglarized 8 times in the past and had lost quite a lot of stuff. I think he was just fed up and took it all out on these two kids.

I saw that too but the AP is reporting that police only had a record of a single prior burglary at the house.

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/national_world&id=8898346

The only report the Morrison County sheriff's office has for a break-in at the home was for one on Oct. 27. It shows Byron Smith reported losing cash and gold coins worth $9,200, plus two guns worth $200 each, photo equipment worth over $3,000 and a ring worth $300. The Little Falls Police Department had no other records of burglaries at the home.
 
So I take it they have this grizzly account because he gave it to the police? Might have wanted to omit a couple of those details.

I assume forensics would have been able to piece together the events, but stuff like the girl laughing is a pretty weird detail to have.
 

Zee-Row

Banned
Because that's what 18 year-old girls who were shot do instead of pleading for their life. That man is seriously disturbed.

Thats pretty bad ass in a way , if someone was trying to kill me I wouldn't want to give them the satisfaction of being in fear for my life either.
 

Heysoos

Member
I read about the previous "break-ins" and it made me think if those kid were even breaking in like he said. Clearly he's mentally unstable, maybe he imagined most of the break-ins out of paranoia and just went too far this time?

Could also be that those other break-ins were real and pushed the old man over the edge.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom