In the aftermath of yet another incident where a legally armed citizen defended life and property with a firearm, a Florida police chief issued a stern warning for violent criminals.
Haines City Police Chief Gregory Goreck told a Friday news conference that “one should expect if you are brazen enough to enter into someone’s residence and it is not yours, with the intent to commit an unlawful act, there may be repercussions.”
The police chief specifically referred to a Friday incident in which a local resident with a concealed carry permit returned to his residence at 1:45 a.m. to find two criminals burglarizing his home.
The homeowner, who was accompanied by his girlfriend and their small puppy, walked in on two strangers in his kitchen. Of course, he reacted quickly. The intended victim fired five shots from a Glock 9mm at the suspect nearest him.
That unfortunate alleged criminal was struck by four bullets before both suspects fled. A short time later, officers with the Haines City Police Department apprehended 27-year-old Tyriek Tramaine Washington at nearby Boomerang Park, where he was hiding underneath a pavilion suffering from four bullet wounds.
Washington was located with the aid of K-9 officer Cash.
In his possession was personal property police believe was taken from the residence of the homeowner. Officers Noel Feliciano, Esmerelda Dominguez, Justin Vasquez, and Sgt. Nick Dublino rendered immediate aid to Washington and are believed to have saved his life.
Goreck explained that the mission of the officers changed suddenly. “Immediately at that point the officers, even though this was a felon who had been illegally inside someone’s house, immediately changed focus and changed gears and went from a search and locate and apprehend to saving this individual’s life.”
Washington was flown to Osceola Regional Medical Center where he was listed in critical but stable condition. He faces charges of burglary of a residence, which is a second-degree felony, and grand theft, a third-degree felony. Police reported his arrest history included burglary, theft, loitering and prowling, resisting an officer, and drug possession.
Investigators are still trying to determine the identity of the second suspect.
Chief Goreck warned that burglars and home invaders face extreme danger, especially in the Sunshine State.
“When a person breaks the sanctity of a person’s home, the average person would rightly conclude their purpose was evil,” he noted. “The homeowner had every right to take the action he did in this case on the circumstances.”
In this instance, the burglar is fortunate that he apparently escaped with his life. Goreck’s admonition is one that should be heard by criminals across the nation, and it should also serve as a wake-up call for law-abiding citizens to exercise their Second Amendment rights.
Law enforcement cannot be always everywhere. When this homeowner and his girlfriend entered his residence, it was just them and two home intruders. Without the presence of his legally concealed firearm, Friday’s incident would undoubtedly have ended very differently.
That’s what the burglars counted on. At that time of the night, they expected to either find the homeowner asleep or the residence unoccupied. What would have transpired if the kitchen encounter took place without the weapon?
It is the right of every law-abiding person to arm and protect themselves, and it is their duty to defend that right for themselves and others. Too many seek personal gain by attacking the constitutional freedoms that we all share, and incidents like this remind us how precious these liberties are.
