A Georgia man stopped at a gas station around 6 AM this past Monday and entered the store. When he returned to his vehicle, he found a man in it. It is unclear if the suspect was attempting to steal the vehicle or steal something from inside the vehicle.
A confrontation started between the two men, and the suspect stabbed the victim multiple times. Another man witnessed the stabbing and then followed the suspect to a nearby apartment complex. Those two men got into a confrontation, and when the suspect lunged at the man with the knife, he drew his firearm and shot the suspect in self-defense, hitting him at least once.
The stabbing victim passed away from his wounds on the way to the hospital. The suspect was arrested.
“Obviously, we don’t encourage anyone to get that involved, but if the circumstances is that an individual is coming toward him with a weapon, he does have a right to defend himself,” said Deputy Chief Charles Hampton. Jr via 11 Alive.
I’m sure there will be people on both sides of this. Some will say that the witness should not have followed the suspect and injected himself into the situation. Then there will be those of you that say the suspect got what he deserved. We often talk about whether or not you should put yourself into a confrontation that you aren’t part of. Personally, I think following a suspect that just stabbed someone isn’t a good idea. Had the suspect stabbed the witness, he could have been severely injured or killed over a confrontation that he put himself into. Obviously, he had a right to shoot the suspect in self-defense, but he’s lucky it went his way. I encourage you to read the article below about defending strangers.