Font ResizeCity police and the York County District Attorney's Office are still reviewing a June 28 case in which a man intervened in a fight in York and shot and killed a York man.
Authorities have called the shooter "a good Samaritan" who tried to diffuse a road rage melee, and they say the shooting could be ruled justifiable. A woman who was punched and others involved in the fight told police the man saved their lives.
But experts in firearms and personal safety reacted to the man's actions with a range of caution to criticism. Stepping in to help someone in danger is commendable, they said, but they urged people not to take the law into their own hands.
To help or not to help
"This is different from helping someone change a tire," Ken Cooper, a firearms expert from upstate New York. "You are taking a huge risk when you involve yourself in something like this."
A National Rifle Association certified firearms instructor, Dr. Bruce Eimer, wrote in an e-mail that deadly force is warranted only to protect innocent life from death or grave bodily harm. In an article, the clinical psychologist wrote, "If you are going to keep or carry a gun for self-defense, in addition to being well trained in marksmanship and tactics, you should be well educated about the circumstances under which the use of deadly force is warranted legally and morally, so that you can be judicious."
Washington, D.C.-based police consultant Bruce Mendelsohn doesn't argue with
"Something like this did not have to happen," Mendelsohn said about the York killing. "If you see something going on, call the police. You do not want to take matters into your own hands."
The road rage melee
According to city police, witnesses saw Douglas Allen Need weaving in and out of York traffic and driving wildly. At some point, he cut off a car with two women and a baby inside.
The people in the two cars confronted each other in the 400 block of East Philadelphia Street in York. The fight turned physical, and Need hit one of the women, police said.
A family member from a car driving behind them tried to help them fight Need but was punched, police said. Need was yelling and threatening the women's lives, police said.
Need and his passenger were arguing and fighting with the people from the other car, police said, when another man in another vehicle stopped to intervene.
Police said the man was armed and told Need to back off. The man fired at least one warning shot. At some point, Need approached the man "aggressively" and was shot, police said. The bullet severed Need's femoral artery. The 42-year-old died at York Hospital soon after his arrival, police said.
Leave it to the pros
Mendelsohn said police officers are trained to cool down a volatile situation such as the road rage fight, and they are trained in how to deal with its aggression.
"I have no doubts that (the shooter) thought he was doing the right thing," he said. "But bringing a gun into a tense situation can only make things worse."
Cooper said the man might have been justified in using deadly force against Need, but criticized the man for firing a warning shot, which could have hurt someone other than intended target.
Former Newberry Township Police Chief David Duffy, who now works at a department in the suburbs near Philadelphia, said as it is with police officers, deadly force should always be a last resort.
State law encourages people to try to escape a situation safely, if possible, instead of using deadly force.
"Citizens have an obligation to try to retreat," Duffy said. "You want to help, but you need to be really careful doing that."
All the experts agreed that someone who does intervene this way opens him- or herself up to a number of possible consequences, including criminal prosecution or even death.
"I don't fault the civilian for wanting to help," said Cooper, the firearms expert. "However, when you take a human life, you can be held accountable."
Local authorities expect to have a decision about whether criminal homicide and related charges will be filed against the shooter, whose name was not released, this week.
"Why do good people go to jail? It's because of cases like this," Cooper said. "What may seem like common sense to you may be against the law."
