Miami Homeowner Shoots Man Found Naked and Strangling Dog In His Home

This is not exactly your standard police report in Miami. A homeowner came downstairs and found an intruder in his home and shot him. What was a bit less common was the fact that the intruder was naked and in the process of strangling the homeowner’s pet Rottweiler when he was shot.

The homeowner came down at 5 a.m. when he heard the dog barking. He fired twice and hit the suspect once in the leg. The man then tried to bite the homeowners, police, and medical staff. Obviously drugs are suspected.

What is interesting about this case is that a dog is considered chattel and torts law bars the protection of property with force calculated to cause serious bodily injury or death. However, even without the so-called Castle doctrine laws, homeowners have a privilege of self-defense and jurors rarely question such privilege when encountering a man in a home. With the Castle Doctrine, such homeowners are allowed to use lethal force as a matter of statutory law.

The homeowner opened fire twice, hitting the suspect in the leg once. The homeowner held the man until the police arrived. The suspect will reportedly be charged with burglary of an occupied dwelling with assault, animal cruelty, resisting arrest with violence and lewd and lascivious behavior.

Source: NBC