the property threat thing rings a bell. a texas PIO family had their son about to go and join the marines. he went out with his girlfriend another PIO..got into a fight with her and dropped her home early...later he went out drinking with buddies and got stoned and mad...came shouting back to the girls house yelling threats....the girls father goes out to investigate the commotion armed with a gun...he sees a threat and fires , killing the lad . he was the only son of the couple. parents were of my state so I got to know through email lists.
http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas ... 650430.php
Man not guilty in Marine reservist's death
Verdict backs his claim he acted in self-defense when he shot daughter's boyfriend in '05
PEGGY O'HARE, Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle Published 6:30 am, Saturday, February 2, 2008
An engineer who said he was acting in self-defense when he shot and killed a man who was dating his daughter was found not guilty of murder Friday.
The defendant, Hardeep Grewal, 41, closed his eyes and bowed his head after hearing the verdict, then began sobbing and hugging his family members tightly.
Relatives of the slain man, Nitin "Nathan" Sarangapani, 24, remained composed in the courtroom, but were visibly upset as they left, saying nothing could assuage their loss.
Grewal had testified that he was protecting himself when he opened fire in the dark outside his Champions-area home on Sept. 25, 2005, striking Sarangapani once in the chest.
The incident happened just weeks before Sarangapani, a Marine reservist, was due to leave for Iraq.
Grewal apologized for the shooting as he left court Friday, but expressed relief at his acquittal.
"Thank God. That's all I can say," Grewal said, his eyes red from crying. "I'm very sorry it happened."
Sarangapani's family was not there to hear his apology as they had left minutes earlier.
"We've already lost everything we have," said Sarangapani's father, Ram Sarangapani. "We lost our son. What could be worse than that?"
Grewal, he added, "knows what he did."
Defense attorney Nicole DeBorde said the jury evaluated every piece of evidence before reaching its verdict.
"Now that the entire story has come out, they were able to see for themselves that it was, in fact, self-defense," she said.
Grewal testified he had received threatening phone calls at his home in the 5900 block of Coral Ridge on the night of the shooting and later heard someone banging on his front door, yelling. He said he called 911 and went outside on his second-story balcony, then down to the ground to confront the person. The power was out because of Hurricane Rita.
Grewal said he fired three warning shots from his semi-automatic rifle, then fired at a person who appeared to be pointing something at him.
Prosecutor Spence Graham offered a different motive for the shooting, suggesting Grewal did not like Sarangapani calling his daughter late at night or giving her alcohol.
Graham also said the slain young man was unarmed.
"My argument was the defendant didn't have to shoot this young man," Graham said. "Our position is (Grewal) didn't have to leave the house."
