Armed burglar shot in one house, held at gunpoint in another before police arrive

A Jacksonville burglary suspect picked the wrong two houses to break into last week in Arlington and it got him a trip to the hospital on his way to the Duval County jail. Alejandro Antonio Carlson used a knife to break into a home last week at 3:30 a.m., but when the 33-year-old homeowner heard her dog barking, she went downstairs and fired a round of birdshot at him, according to a report in the Florida Times-Union. Bloodied and injured, Carlson broke into another home, telling the women inside “they’re after me” and urging her to call police. The woman’s husband, a senior citizen who had triple bypass a year ago, held Carlson at gunpoint in a side room of the house until police arrived. Carlson was taken to the hospital and is now in jail, charged with Jacksonville armed burglary and assault in Jacksonville. Neither the woman who shot Carlson with birdshot, nor the man who held him at gunpoint will be charged with a crime. Given the publicity to the Stand Your Ground laws in Florida, many people might first think that law is the reason they are justified in their actions.

But it’s the Castle Doctrine that protects both homeowners in this case. It’s essentially the original Stand Your Ground law, but it only applies to one’s home. If someone breaks into your home and there is a threat of danger, a homeowner can take reasonable and necessary actions to remove the person from their home. The law has been on the books for centuries and Stand Your Ground basically extended the right to respond with deadly force to more situations, including those outside of the home. In this case, Carlson was clearly not invited into either home, and was there in the middle of the night after using a knife to enter the home. In the second home, he pushed a door against the woman when she tried to corralled him and then shook off her husband who tried to grab him, the newspaper reported. While the news reports don’t indicate that he intentionally tried to injure either of the homeowners and he tossed the knife on the kitchen counter after entering the second home, the husband is still well within his rights to keep a gun aimed at him until police can respond to the scene.

Carlson did not get out of either home with any cash or any of the occupants’ belongings, but the fact that he bruised the arms of a 68-year-old woman inside of her own home presents an uphill climb in terms of negotiations. If you or a loved one needs a Burglary Attorney in Jacksonville or the surrounding area, call The Mussallem Law Firm at (904) 365-5200 for a free consultation. Our Duval County violent crimes lawyer is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.