Don't mess with Texans
There is much more. There is also this other Dallas Morning News story about another new law which permits Texans to keep a gun in their glove box in their car under some circumstances.The shootings came fast, a bang-bang-bang cluster of cases starting in early autumn that quickly had police, prosecutors and the media wondering about the sudden impact of Texas' new castle law.
A business owner who lives at his West Dallas welding shop killed two men in three weeks as they tried to break in.
A 79-year-old homeowner in east Oak Cliff, awakened by his dog, struggled with an intruder before grabbing a shotgun and wounding the man.
A retired Army warrant officer managed to kill a gun-wielding robber at a Far East Dallas dry cleaners after his wife surprised the intruder and handed her husband their own 9 mm handgun.
Texas has long had a reputation as a shoot-first-ask-questions-later place, dating back to its frontier days.
But the spate of shootings begs the question: Did the castle law – which gives people the right to use whatever means necessary to protect themselves and their property without fear of civil liability – unleash a flurry of gunfire?
Perhaps just as important, has the law changed people's perceptions about fighting back? Are they more likely to shoot first even when safe retreat may be an option?
"I think the castle law has more citizens thinking about fighting back, knowing they're protected from being sued later," said Dallas homeowner Dennis Baker.
He shot and killed a burglar in October after seeing the man enter the garage where he stored thousands of dollars worth of tools.
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None of these property owners was charged. Police referred a few cases to the Dallas County grand jury, which declined to indict. In others, police determined that the shootings were justified.
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...The author of the car carry story seems dubious, but most Texas have thought that they could carry a gun in their car all along. Why do you think trucks have gun racks?
Nicknamed the "Carjacking Law" by some, it is designed in part to give law-abiding drivers the right to carry a gun for protection.
...Under the new law, someone committing any crime other than a minor traffic violation can be charged for having a gun in the car.
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Advocates say the law is made for folks like Keith Patton. The 52-year-old geologist lives in Katy, just outside Houston.
One night he was on his way home after a day of work and several hours at a martial arts school where he was an instructor. As he drove his red Ford Explorer through central Houston, police officers pulled him over for what they said was an illegal lane change.
That day Mr. Patton, an avid hunter and shooter, had purchased a handgun from a friend at work. It was stowed under a gym bag by the back seat.
As the officers approached, Mr. Patton realized his wallet and driver's license also were on the back seat. He rolled down his window and – careful to keep his hands in plain view – let the officers know about the unloaded gun.
"They summarily asked me to exit the vehicle, asked me where I'd been, where I was going, handcuffed me, arrested me and put me in the squad car," Mr. Patton would later tell a committee of legislators.
Harris County prosecutors dismissed Mr. Patton's case after he convinced them he was taking the gun home from a legal purchase. But by then, he had spent 27 hours in custody and paid a couple thousand dollars to free his car from an impound lot and hire an attorney.
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I think the castle law and the car carry law will further decrease crime in Texas. If nothing else there will be fewer recidivist burglars and car jackers.
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