[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by Edjkoz

This is sad. Had he used a stand his ground defense, he could have killed the person and got away with it. This isn't a gun issue but an issue with the law

Man jailed for 20 years for protecting his family in his own home.

You are right. It is legislators painting with too broad a brush and throwing fairness and common sense out the window to give prosecutors a tool in their war on crime. This tool was mandatory sentencing primarily related to the war on drugs.

[justjim]

It would be nice to know if the guy is still serving time or out on an appeal. By the way, it's been proven over and over again, thousands are in prison for punishment too severe or crimes they didn't commit. The "system" is far from perfect.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by justjim

It would be nice to know if the guy is still serving time or out on an appeal. By the way, it's been proven over and over again, thousands are in prison for punishment too severe or crimes they didn't commit. The "system" is far from perfect.

Sentence a

As of March 2014 he is still in prison.

[KayakerNC]

Evidently he was too cheap to hire a competent lawyer.

[redwitch]

He felt he had done nothing wrong and opted for a trial by jury. He had been offered probation and no jail time. He was not standing his ground. His daughter was not in mortal danger. He opted to fire his weapon rather than call the police or use less potentially deadly means to get his point of view across. The jury found him guilty. The judge's hands were tied due to mandatory sentencing.

It was this man's arrogance that put him into prison. It is the stupidity of mandatory sentencing that will keep him in prison.

A concealed should be fired only under two circumstances -- at a shooting range or to protect yourself or another from serious bodily harm. Warning shots are this side of stupid. Either shoot to kill or get rid of your gun.

[manaboutown]

What sort of father was he to allow a scumbag 17 year old boyfriend live with his 16 year old daughter in his house? This man made some very poor decisions.

[kittygilchrist]

Florida lawmakers approve 'warning shot' bill revising self-defense laws | Fox News

Revision in florida statutes eases mandatories for warning shots in self defense.

I signed a petition for his release after reading full report by cbs.
http://www.change.org/p/commute-the-...ing-his-family

[KeepingItReal]

Originally Posted by jblum315

What relevance does this have for TV? Took place in England years ago, reported by The Daily Mail, a scandal sheet?

Uh! Did we even look at the article, Lee Wollard, 59, from Devenport, Florida, was given the lengthy term after a jury found him guilty of aggravated assault, shooting a firearm inside a building and child endangerment in 2008.

On October 5, 2014, at 9:00 am, CBS Sunday Morning will air an interview Lee gave from prison. For any of you who have a chance to watch, please know that if you can raise awareness about the case based on what you hear from Lee, it would be an important act of compassion.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by kittygilchrist

Florida lawmakers approve 'warning shot' bill revising self-defense laws | Fox News

Revision in florida statutes eases mandatories for warning shots in self defense.

I signed a petition for his release after reading full report by cbs.
Petition � Grant clemency to a father serving a 20 year mandatory minimum sentence for trying to protect his family � Change.org

Thanks for posting this link and signing the petition.

[dplars]

His attorney picked the wrong venue. Who was the judge? Conservative or liberal.....take a guess?

[redwitch]

Originally Posted by dplars

His attorney picked the wrong venue. Who was the judge? Conservative or liberal.....take a guess?

Read the story. The judge had no choice. And you don't get to pick and choose your venue. Unless you can prove extreme prejudice or bias, you are tried in the county where the crime allegedly occurred. Cherry picking judge and jury is not that easy to do.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by redwitch

He felt he had done nothing wrong and opted for a trial by jury. He had been offered probation and no jail time. He was not standing his ground. His daughter was not in mortal danger. He opted to fire his weapon rather than call the police or use less potentially deadly means to get his point of view across. The jury found him guilty. The judge's hands were tied due to mandatory sentencing.

It was this man's arrogance that put him into prison. It is the stupidity of mandatory sentencing that will keep him in prison.

A concealed should be fired only under two circumstances -- at a shooting range or to protect yourself or another from serious bodily harm. Warning shots are this side of stupid. Either shoot to kill or get rid of your gun.

Well said, excellent post.

[jblum315]

I understand the judges hate the mandatory sentencing but they have no choice.

[John_W]

If you notice on the photo from the UK newspaper, there is a CBS logo in the corner. That story ran yesterday on the CBS Sunday Morning Show. So I knew about it right away from the headline. In the TV story they showed a large hole in the wall, where the 17 year old had punched the wall during the confrontation. They said in the story, had he just shot and killed the kid instead of firing a warning shot, he would of probably walked away with no crime or time.

His biggest mistake was inviting the punk into his home to live all because he didn't have a place to live and he was dating his 16 year old daughter. Really, he obviously didn't have a lot of common sense. That's even clear for rejecting the plea bargain and going through with a trial. The only reason I can think of, maybe losing his job if convicted of a crime. It never mentioned that, only that he wanted a jury trial instead.

His wife said the kid was very nice the first week and then it all went down hill. His daughter and the kid were sneaking out at night, so he tried to have him evicted from the home, but couldn't get him to leave. Maybe he didn't try hard enough, maybe he could of called the police. Next mistake, not being able to control his own 16 year old daughter. Now, he is serving 20 years and the kid is walking around free.

[KeepingItReal]

Originally Posted by kittygilchrist

Florida lawmakers approve 'warning shot' bill revising self-defense laws | Fox News

Revision in florida statutes eases mandatories for warning shots in self defense.

I signed a petition for his release after reading full report by cbs.
Petition � Grant clemency to a father serving a 20 year mandatory minimum sentence for protecting his family � Change.org

Petition signed today....it has a place to E Mail it to others if anyone desires to do so...