Carmichael man being called "hero" for firing back, defending family from shooter
CARMICHAEL - The Sacramento County Sheriff's Office said 33-year-old Alonzo Brown tracked his girlfriend on her phone to a Carmichael apartment complex and eventually shot several rounds into a unit he thought she was in. Instead, he wound up shot.
It happened on the 8600 block of Fair Oaks Boulevard in Carmichael at around 1:00 a.m. Sunday.
The family who was inside the unit when Brown came to the door did not want to be identified but spoke with CBS13. The couple was asleep inside, and their son and daughter-in-law were cooking in the kitchen when everything happened.
"We thought he was going to come through the window," said the wife. "I mean he kicked the door and couldn't get in."
Sergeant Amar Gandhi with the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office said Brown was looking for his girlfriend at the complex.
"He used his phone to track her to this apartment complex on Fair Oaks," said Gandhi. "As creepy as that is, he did that."
Gandhi said the family did not know Brown or his girlfriend. It started with Brown knocking on the door with a gun. He then proceeded to kick the door and then walked over to the bedroom window.
"He saw me and we made eye contact and the next thing I know I am jumping out of bed because the glass is breaking," said the wife.
The wife told CBS13 that Brown fired multiple rounds through their bedroom window, by then her husband had gotten out of bed and was also armed.
"He is randomly shooting into our room and my husband shoots back four times in a tight circle," said the wife.
She said they found at least three bullet holes on the spot she had been laying in.
"You cannot just let him come in the house with a gun," said the husband who shot back at Brown.
California is not a "Stand Your Ground" state, so did the husband have the right to fire back? The Sacramento County Sheriff's Office said yes, you can pursue an attacker when there is imminent danger.
"Brown is the bad guy here, let's not hide from that," said Gandhi. "That resident's a hero. Obviously, he defended himself, he defended his property."
Others living in the complex told CBS 13 they are now fearing for their own safety.
"I don't think it's safe for our kids anymore," said Jade Washington who heard the gunshots. "My life has never felt like it is threatened as it is here, and it is supposed to be nice."
The family who encountered Brown is thankful to be alive.
"It was a good thing that I had a gun," said the husband. "Just imagine if there was no gun."
The Sacramento County Sheriff's Office said Brown is known by police to be violent in the past and the gun they recovered from him was illegal. He is expected to survive his gunshot wounds and will be booked in jail on multiple charges including for the shooting, attempted burglary, and other weapons charges following his release from the hospital.