CHEHALIS, Wash. -- The Lewis County sheriff says an Onalaska homeowner shot and killed a man last night in what appears to be an interrupted burglary.
But Sheriff Steve Mansfield says a number of questions remain for investigators, and they're not speculating whether the shooting was justified.
The 59-year-old homeowner told police he took a life to protect his own. He says the home he's been renovating had been broken into at about 5 p.m.
He planned on spending the night there in case the burglars came back.
At about 9:45, a man and a woman pulled into his driveway in a pick-up. When the owner opened the garage he saw the two holding flashlights.
The property owner opened fire, killing the 56-year-old man. The 31-year-old woman who had been in the pickup ran away, but later talked to deputies and was released.
But did the couple intend to break into the home? Did they pose a danger? Were they armed?
Those are some of the questions investigators are trying to answer before deciding if the homeowner was justified in shooting and killing the man.
"Is there a relationship here? Did they have a reason to be there? Did they have a right to be there? Were they invited there?" said Lewis County Sheriff Steve Mansfield.
Mansfield says property owners have the right to use deadly force if there's a genuine fear for their safety.
Neighbor Vicke Escue said she thought the homeowner did the right thing.
"If you're out there, breaking into someone's home ... if they come to my house, we have a gun," said Escue.
But another neighbor, who wanted to remain anonymous, said she thought the homeowner overreacted.
"A life should not be lost over walking on someone's property," said the woman.
She hopes the police take a close look at the case because her mother once had a run-in with the homeowner.
"Her and my sister were walking down there one day because we used to live there. He came out and threatened my mom and said he'd shoot her," she said.
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