SANTA ROSA COUNTY, Florida — A Florida Sheriff is garnering praise and criticism after holding a press conference encouraging residents to shoot and kill intruders, “saving the taxpayers money.”
Last week, Santa Rosa County Sheriff Bob Johnson held a press conference announcing the arrest of Brandon Harris. According to the Sheriff’s Office, Harris was a local “frequent flyer” with previous arrests for a home invasion and several thefts.
Sheriff Johnson said that Mr. Harris “can’t get the picture that crime doesn’t pay.” On April 19, authorities said that Harris was involved in several break-ins. According to the Sheriff’s Office, one homeowner fired a shot at the would-be intruder.
In referencing the homeowner using their weapon, Sheriff Johnson said, “I guess they think they did something wrong, which they did not. If someone is breaking into your house you are more than welcome to shoot them in Santa Rosa County. We prefer that you do actually.”
Florida, like Ohio, is a “Stand Your Ground” state. In April of last year, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed the controversial bill into law.
Critics of the stand your ground law say it “opens the door to vigilantism.”
Recently in Ross County, a homeowner shot and killed a Marine veteran. Earlier this month, deputies were sent to the area of Anderson Station Road in Chillicothe after numerous homeowners called 9-1-1 to say a person was banging on their doors screaming for help.
One dispatcher told responding deputies that they believed the man going house-to-house was possibly overdosing. Eventually, the man knocked on the door to a home in the 200 block of Anderson Station Road. The armed homeowner told law enforcement they thought Knotts was trying to break in.
According to the family of Knotts, he was suffering a mental health crisis. That case, officials say, remains under investigation.