Man acted in self-defense in deadly shooting at a Carmichael apartment, deputies say
CARMICHAEL – A shooter is not facing any charges after a man was shot and killed inside an apartment overnight in Sacramento County, deputies said.
Deputies responded to the Sutter Crossing Apartments on the 5900 block of Sutter Avenue in Carmichael where they said they received a report from a man that a person entered his bedroom and assaulted him while he was sleeping.
The man who called said he got a firearm and shot the person inside the apartment, deputies said.
"At around 2 a.m., we got a call from someone inside an apartment saying that he had shot someone who had come inside his home," said Sergeant Amar Gandhi with the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office.
The caller told deputies that a woman who was there with the man, who was her boyfriend, identified the person who was shot as her ex-boyfriend. The man shot died at the scene.
"New boyfriend had a gun, legally obtained, registered to him, and actually shot the ex-boyfriend," Gandhi said.
Gandhi said both the new boyfriend and girlfriend were cooperating with the investigation. They did not arrest anyone because Gandhi said investigators determined that this was a case of self-defense.
"If this gentleman was presented with a lethal threat that he did not trigger in any way, then he's entitled to defend himself and kill that intruder," said local attorney Michael Wise.
Wise said in California you are able to stand your ground, and inside your home, you have even more protections when it comes to self-defense.
Gandhi said the gun that was used was legal and registered to the man who pulled the trigger, but even if it had not been, Wise said it still would have been justified.
"Ironically you can still be charged for illegal possession of a firearm if you're not allowed to possess one, but the actual use of deadly force to defend yourself is still justified even if you use a weapon that is not registered in California or if you're not allowed to possess one," Wise said.
Investigators could not give any details on if the ex-boyfriend was ever violent towards the girl in the past.
He has not been identified.