Burglar Shot After Trying To Break Into Army Veteran's Home
BALDWIN HILLS (CBS) — Burglars messed with the wrong senior when they decided to break into Jack Goodwin's Baldwin Hills home.
The 87-year-old retired postal worker was in bed, listening to the Laker game Tuesday night when he heard a rear window in his house breaking. Goodwin got out of bed, picked up his gun, and walked down the hall. When he saw intruders at his window, he raised his gun and fired.
"When I saw them breaking the glass, I was, man. I got kinda -- it was either me or them, then," Goodwin said.
Goodwin happens to be an Army veteran who was a platoon leader for a rifle company stationed in Okinawa during World War II. His discharge papers labeled him a marksman.
When asked if he was a good shot, Goodwin said, "deadly."
"I'm not bragging, but I was deadly," Goodwin said, after a chuckle.
Goodwin believes burglars tried to break into his home because he lives alone and they believed he would be an easy target.
"I knew one thing -- they were gonna deal with me," Goodwin said. "Cause if you've got enough nerve to break in somebody's house and they're home, they've got enough nerve to kill you see. There's no if or ands about it."
The intruder Goodwin shot was hospitalized in critical condition. A second intruder is still on the loose. Police investigating the break-in and shooting say they have no plans to file charges against Goodwin.
Goodwin says he has no regrets about how it all went down and probably would do it again the same way.
"I could run, run out the front door probably," he said. "But you don't know who's out there either. You just have to go down with the ship."
