The Milwaukee, Wis. District Attorney’s office “made the right call” in deciding not to file any charges against a 64-year-old man who fatally shot one of five youths who attacked him in a gas station April 3, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA) said today.
Milwaukee Assistant District Attorney Karen Loebel made the announcement after reviewing the evidence from the Sunday morning shooting. The older man, from Yorktown, Ark., had stopped at the gas station, apparently to ask for directions. Kendall Moss, 20, reportedly tried to rob the man, and an altercation erupted in which Moss and several youths beat and kicked the victim before he pulled a gun from under the front seat of his van and fired.
“This was clearly a life-threatening situation in which the victim, a visitor from another state, could have been gravely injured or killed,” said CCRKBA Executive Director Joe Waldron. “Various published reports said the victim was being punched, kicked and even choked. He was apparently in the hospital recently, and certainly was in no condition to defend himself against a band of young thugs, all of whom are reportedly related and at least some of whom may have prior police records, according to one report.”
Moss and the other youths, ages 16 and 13, who have not been identified because they are juveniles, reportedly took a van belonging to their grandmother, who lives in Racine. They were in Milwaukee on a joy ride, and may have been trying to steal the van their intended victim was driving, according to at least one published report.
“All the evidence appears to make this a random, violent crime,” Waldron noted. “It’s just the kind of crime that Wisconsin residents should be able to defend themselves against. However, Gov. Jim Doyle used his veto pen to nix a common-sense concealed carry law. His highly-publicized veto sent the wrong message to criminals and would-be thieves that people in Wisconsin are there for the picking.
“It is sad that a young man lost his life over this,” Waldron stated, “but the fact remains that he initiated the attack, and was joined by his companions. The victim had no choice but to defend himself, and if there is one thing positive about this incident, it is that the Milwaukee District Attorney’s office did a good job and made a common-sense decision that recognizes the right of self-defense.”