Shoplifting Suspects Arrested, Woman Who Shot at Them Could Be, Too

Concealed pistol license holders must feel they or others around them are in imminent danger to fire their weapons under Michigan law. (Photo via Flickr)

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Two men shot at in the parking lot by a bystander after allegedly shoplifting from a Home Depot store in Auburn Hills Tuesday have been arrested, and the woman who flattened the tires of their getaway vehicle with her legally carried pistol could face charges as well.

The two suspects, both of Flint, were ages 52 and 46. The names of the two men, who could face felony retail fraud charges in connection with the theft of items valued at more than $1,000, were not released by police Friday, the Detroit Free Press reports.

Related

• Customer at Home Depot Fires on Alleged Shoplifters
• Customer Opens Fire On Bank Robbery Suspect

The woman who fired the gun holds a valid concealed pistol permit and has been described by police as cooperative. A charging decision will be made once the investigation is complete, they said.

The woman, 47, of Clarkston, reportedly opened fire on the suspects in the Home Depot after store security officers were unable to stop the men, who allegedly pushed a cart of stolen merchandise into the parking lot of the store on Joslyn Road.

Experts say legal questions surrounding the woman’s actions could spell trouble for her if she winds up in court trying to make the case that she was justified in firing her pistol.

In a news release, Southfield attorney Neil Rockind, who doesn’t represent the woman, said Michigan law requires that CPL holders must feel there is an imminent threat of death, great bodily harm or sexual assault, either to themselves or to others.

“The defense would need to prove that the woman was acting in good faith, yet from the information currently available, there is no indication that she or others were in imminent danger,” Rockind said.

“It’s my worst nightmare as a CPL instructor,” Doreen Hankins, owner of Detroit Arms, which offers CPL classes, told the Free Press. “You have to know the entire situation before you pull that handgun out. And I don’t see that a shoplifter at Home Depot fills any of those criteria.”

Rick Ector, a firearms trainer who runs Legally Armed Detroit, told the Free Press using a gun is “truly a tool of last resort.”

Tell Us

• Do you think the woman was justified in firing her pistol? What do you think about Michigan’s gun laws in general?