Portland Man Defends Home With Handgun Against Intruder: 911 Audio
In July 2007, Portland Oregon resident Leroy Hudson, 71, shot 26-year-old Brent Sweet in the head as Sweet "allegedly" tried to break into Hudson's home on Northeast Glisan Street. Mr. Hudson, his wife and his wife's even more elderly mother were all home at the time of the attempted home invasion.
The following audio of the incident was captured on the 911 call Mrs. Hudson made to the police while Sweet was breaking in to her home:
For those who don't hear the audio, things ended well for the Hudsons, but not so well for Mr. Sweet because Mr. Hudson shot him in the head with a .38 caliber handgun as Sweet was attempting to break in through the back door. Sensibly, the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office declined to file any charges against Mr. Hudson but (again, sensibly) did charge Mr. Sweet, who survived, with one count of first degree criminal trespassing.
Please note a couple of things. First, Mr. Hudson exercised extreme restraint and good marksmanship. He controlled his weapon and fired one round. He did NOT continue firing when it was clear he was no longer in danger. Second, the residents are a combination of elderly, African-Americans being victimized by a white hoodlum--so much for stereotypes! Mr. Sweet was 26 years old at the time and without their readily accessible firearm, the residents would have been at a considerable disadvantage against a young and determined home invader.
Note as well that even though Mrs. Hudson was on the phone to the police--and our city cops have a GREAT response time--this did nothing to get the young man off her back porch.
As the saying goes, "WHEN SECONDS COUNT, THE POLICE ARE ONLY MINUTES AWAY."
This is one reason why hand guns are legitimate tools for all law-abiding members of the public to own.
I wish the best of luck to Mr. and Mrs. Hudson after this ordeal, as well as the sincere hope that Mr. Sweet has an uncomplicated recovery and is able to take steps to turn his life around.