In Texas, Apparently You Can Legally Shoot People You Think Steal From You

Wow. Just Wow.

That seems to be the consensus all over the Internet, except among certain circles in Texas, apparently, over a jury verdict that acquited a guy named Ezekiel Gilbert of a murder charge.

A Texas jury said under the state's laws, it was OK
for this guy to shoot an escort because she
wouldn't have sex with him.  

Our buddy Ezzie found an escort on Craigslist --Oh Boy! -- who was available for the low, low price of $150.

With any bargain, you get what you pay for and Ezzie quickly learned that the $150 he paid the escort didn't include sex.

So Ezzie did what any red blooded American would do when they feel like they were cheated out of their hard earned cash.

Ezzie shot the escort, Lenora Ivy Frago, 23, in the neck, leaving her paralyzed. She died seven months later.

According to San Antonio Express News, Ezzie says he's really, really sorry, because he just meant to injure Lenora, not kill her. He is a law abiding man, he seems to say because his defense was that under Texas law, it is OK "to use deadly force to recover property during a nighttime theft."

I guess Ezzie was smart enough to hire the escort at night. If he wanted some afternoon delight, he might have run afoul of the law.

This verdict seems to make it open season on people who are perceived to be stealing stuff. At least after dark in Texas.

The prosecutors in the case said the law was intended for law abiding citizens, and it doesn't cover trying to make somebody do something illegal, like prostitution. The implication here is even prosecutors might think it's OK to shoot somebody for stealing something at night, even if it isn't worth much.

Follow this law, and this jury verdict to its logical conclusion, I guess it's OK to shoot someone in Texas after he steals a penny from your coat pocket, as long as the theft occured after the sun went down.

What about other forms of theft?  Can you shoot a banker if she altered your mortgage to make you pay a bit more?  Can you shoot members of a legislature if they raise taxes, and you don't think the tax increase is fair?

What if you think somebody stole from you, and you shoot him, but it turned out you just misplaced what you thought was stolen? Are you still OK legally?

For his part Ezzie had this to say, according to the San Antonio Express News

"I sincerely regret hte loss of life of Ms. Frago...... I've been in a mental prison the past four years of my life. I have nightmares. If I see guns on TV where people are getting killed, I change the channel."

Poor baby. Four years of Ezzie's life stolen because he "innocently" shot someone to death. Maybe he could shoot someone else to make himself feel better. It might even be legal in Texas