Wife Hit During an Exchange of Gunfire Between Intruder and Homeowner; Police Find Suspect Hiding Inside Home

Last week Police went to a house in Draper, Utah, after callers reported hearing gunshots inside their gated community. A homeowner had gotten into an argument over money with a guy named John Warr earlier in the day. Warr left but later in the evening returned and made a lot of noise when he broke in through the house’s back door.

“He left the house” Lt. Pat Evans said. “Later, one of the occupants in the home heard loud noises and glass breaking. He went and got a handgun himself. And John came around the corner and actually fired round off at the person staying in the house.”

The resident said he heard “two loud noises and glass breaking,” so he grabbed his gun. When Warr came around a corner inside the home, the two men exchanged gunfire, and according to the police report, the intruder then “retreated out of the house.”

One of the shots grazed the resident’s wife, and by the time police showed up, the couple was already on the way to the hospital. The responding officers ended up finding Warr “covered in insulation” in an unfinished part of the home.

“When they arrived, they found spent shell casings inside and outside the home,” Lt. Pat Evans said. “They found a rear glass door that was broken and shattered. They eventually found a man inside the home named John T. Warr.”

If you get into a confrontation with someone and the attacker leaves, unless there is a medical emergency, stay indoors because you have the upper hand along with some cover. Plus, when you walk out that door, you could find yourself in an ambush. There is also a remote possibility people might view you as a vigilante out for justice if you run into the attacker outside. You know you were trying to “escape,” but can you convince the district attorney that was your intention?

Once you step outside that door, you have given up your tactical advantage, so hunker down and wait on the cops.