A Pennsylvania district attorney says a woman who shot and killed a home intruder will not face charges because of the Castle Doctrine state law.
Beaver Falls police said a woman was alerted by the sounds of a door slamming and glass breaking in her basement on Wednesday in the middle of the night at about 5 p.m.
She armed herself with her 9mm handgun and went downstairs to investigate and found a stranger in her basement.
“The door to her basement opened and there stands this guy who she had no idea who he was, and she ended up shooting him three times and killing him,” said Beaver County District Attorney Nate Bible to KDKA-TV.
The woman showed KDKA the small basement window that the alleged intruder broke in order to get inside of her home. She told police she had never met the man before.
KDKA asked Bible whether the woman did the right thing.
“I think so. In that situation from a legal standpoint, yes, she did nothing wrong,” he responded. “If someone enters your house, they are making that conscious decision. They are there to steal from you or hurt you in other ways. You have that right to protect yourself and use deadly force.”
Bible also said that the woman had a legal right to own the gun. She was questioned by police about the incident and then released.
Police later identified the alleged home intruder as 49-year-old Brent Alan Farmer.
KDKA asked Bible what people could do to protect themselves if they don’t have a gun.
“There are classes to learn self-defense, get a big dog to help you,” he replied. “Outside of having a firearm, anything can be used as a weapon.”
Beaver Falls Police and Beaver County detectives are still investigating the incident.
The city of Beaver Falls has about 9,000 residents and is located about 31 miles northwest of Pittsburgh.
Here’s a local news report about the incident:
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