Homeowner mad half-naked intruder won't face more serious charges
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BELLEVUE, Wash. -- A homeowner is mad that a half-naked man who was caught inside his home in the middle of the night won't face more serious charges.
John Bennett says he was awakened a few weeks ago by an unusual intruder.
"I saw a guy's naked butt going down the hall and I said, 'hey!' Bennett said.
He says the man was nearly naked, wearing only a T-shirt and Bennett's socks.
The intruder had made himself at home, so Bennett grabbed a pistol.
"I turned around on the landing and I said, 'this is a loaded .45. You're not leaving here until the cops get here," he said.
Bennett held 41-year-old Johnathan Blake at gunpoint for 20 minutes until police showed up. They arrested Blake for first degree trespassing, but Bennett feels like the officers gave him the brush off and wonders why Blake wasn't charged with the more serious crime of residential burglary.
"This is the guy handcuffed on my floor -- they couldn't charge him with theft," Bennett said.
Bennett says Blake stole from him by drinking his water and soda.
Bennett admits his garage door was up. Washington state law says a person commits residential burglary only if there's intent to commit a crime, or if the person enters or remains unlawfully. Bellevue police say it came down to officer's discretion.
The police report shows the officer didn't believe Blake had any intention of committing a crime. He told the officer he was just cold and tired and needed a place to sleep.
That is no excuse for Bennett and his family.
"He was in the kitchen eating snacks, while we're asleep, he could have killed us!" Bennett said. "Something should have, more than being arrested for trespassing, should have happened after this."
Police and prosecutors say there's a lot of gray area in cases like this. But we're learning Bellevue police have now opened an investigation to see if this was handled the right way.
John Bennett says he was awakened a few weeks ago by an unusual intruder.
"I saw a guy's naked butt going down the hall and I said, 'hey!' Bennett said.
He says the man was nearly naked, wearing only a T-shirt and Bennett's socks.
The intruder had made himself at home, so Bennett grabbed a pistol.
"I turned around on the landing and I said, 'this is a loaded .45. You're not leaving here until the cops get here," he said.
Bennett held 41-year-old Johnathan Blake at gunpoint for 20 minutes until police showed up. They arrested Blake for first degree trespassing, but Bennett feels like the officers gave him the brush off and wonders why Blake wasn't charged with the more serious crime of residential burglary.
"This is the guy handcuffed on my floor -- they couldn't charge him with theft," Bennett said.
Bennett says Blake stole from him by drinking his water and soda.
Bennett admits his garage door was up. Washington state law says a person commits residential burglary only if there's intent to commit a crime, or if the person enters or remains unlawfully. Bellevue police say it came down to officer's discretion.
The police report shows the officer didn't believe Blake had any intention of committing a crime. He told the officer he was just cold and tired and needed a place to sleep.
That is no excuse for Bennett and his family.
"He was in the kitchen eating snacks, while we're asleep, he could have killed us!" Bennett said. "Something should have, more than being arrested for trespassing, should have happened after this."
Police and prosecutors say there's a lot of gray area in cases like this. But we're learning Bellevue police have now opened an investigation to see if this was handled the right way.
Too bad the comments in the old commenting system were detached from the old KOMO articles. We hashed this all out back when the story first appeared.Â
Wow! seems like the responding officer doesn't recognize residential burglary when he sees it. TWENTY Minutes when you have an intruder at gunpoint? WTF?!! The homeowner could have shot and killed this intruder - If LEO's aren't going to uphold the law, maybe we should consider this before calling them.Â