Holly MatkinHermitage, TN – A Tennessee father shot a stranger who allegedly tried to break into his two-year-old son’s bedroom on Tuesday morning, according to police.
The incident occurred at an apartment complex located at 3501 Andrew Jackson Way at approximately 7:50 a.m. on April 12, WKRN reported.
Police said the tenant was inside his apartment with his son when the break-in occurred, but that his son was not in the bedroom when he confronted the intruder.
The father grabbed his gun and shot at the suspect at least nine times, hitting him at least twice, investigators said.
Police responded to the scene and found a broken sliding glass door at the apartment as well as a broken window in the toddler’s bedroom, WKRN reported.
The critically-injured suspect was rushed to Vanderbilt University Medical.
His prognosis was not immediately released.
Investigators said the motive is unknown and that the father and the suspect did not know one another, WKRN reported.
Neighbor Peter Olson said he heard a commotion in a nearby apartment shortly before the gunfire rang out Tuesday morning, WSMV reported.
Olson said the armed tenant had every right to protect his family and property.
“I hope he does not do an hour of jail time because he was defending his house,” he told WSMV.
Olson said he and his family recently relocated to the area from Miami due to concerns about violence, only to have a shooting occur near their new place.
“It’s very scary because my children sleep right there. All it would’ve taken was for a stray bullet and you know, I don’t like that at all,” he told WSMV. “You hear about it all the time – a stray bullet hitting someone – and I mean, that’s my world, my children…So it’s like, ‘what do we do now?’”
