Self Defense in Austin
She was outside her apartment when a man scaled her fence. She ran inside and grabbed her Smith & Wesson .38 caliber revolver. Then she went back outside. 
She was tackled from behind, and the fight went to the ground.
She shoved her revolver in her attacker's face. "First I tried to point it up in his face so that he would see that I had a gun so he would take off running," she said, "But he didn't." The two continued to struggle on the ground. The attacker blocked his victim's nose and mouth so she could neither scream nor breathe. She fired three shots. "It was very difficult for me to do," she says. Her attacker fled before police arrived.
Half an hour later, Christopher Benavides showed up in the emergency room of Brackenridge Hospital. He had a gunshot wound to the face. Police were notified. Benavides had a prior record of criminal trespass and mischief. He confessed he had planned to steal her cell phone to sell for cash. He now faces charges of assault and robbery.
The victim was not charged.
She was tackled from behind, and the fight went to the ground. She shoved her revolver in her attacker's face. "First I tried to point it up in his face so that he would see that I had a gun so he would take off running," she said, "But he didn't." The two continued to struggle on the ground. The attacker blocked his victim's nose and mouth so she could neither scream nor breathe. She fired three shots. "It was very difficult for me to do," she says. Her attacker fled before police arrived.
Half an hour later, Christopher Benavides showed up in the emergency room of Brackenridge Hospital. He had a gunshot wound to the face. Police were notified. Benavides had a prior record of criminal trespass and mischief. He confessed he had planned to steal her cell phone to sell for cash. He now faces charges of assault and robbery.
The victim was not charged.
Labels: Self Defense, Women and Guns
posted by Xavier at 1:55 PM
25 Comments:
She shouldn't have shot him like that.
Shouldn't have gone back outside.
I agree. Three inches to the right, and two inches up would have optimal.
Yes, she should have shot him in the back of the head, at least twice. It's a crying shame he lived through it.
"He now faces charges of assault and robbery. "
He's lucky he still has a face...
Beth, you're right, she should not have shot him like that, but when the guy is struggling to try to kill you, it's sometimes difficult to punch his x ring nice and neat. Hey she did the best she could which was clearly good enough.
whoa, whoa, whoa. Did she notify police? If she did not, that's completely against my philosophies, but hopefully that aspect or the altercation was simply omitted.
Beth, I completely agree with you. She SHOULD have shot him so that he wasn't able to get up and run.
I also object to the graphic using the word "victim". Obviously Ms. Burgos wasn't willing to be a victim.
Mr. Benavides is obviously a victim. Of poor victim selection.
Good job Ms. Burgos . I'm surprised the Austin P.D. has not confiscated her firearm due to shooting a suspect.
I'm having trouble understanding the comment from Beth.
Beth,
How should she have shot him?
Beth-
"Shot him like that"? What do you mean??
Oh Beth...so she should have shot him....where?
Are you feeling sorry for the perp?
There are two kinds of people in our society. One kind thinks that the human is basically a "good" person. And all you have to do is "understand" that person. We must accept them because the white anglo saxon eeeeevvviiiilllll society has purposely kept the "colored" people down! (funny, you never seem to hear the Asians complain...)
Please note; all that was said with a ton of sarcasm.
Actually Beth, humans have an evil temperment. They are selfish, egocentric and greedy. Most humans would rather be lazy and not work.
All of you folks that think the perp in this story was unjustly harmed....GET A REAL LIFE!!!!!
This perp was just acting out his humanistic, greedy, self centered CHOSEN lifestyle.
And he got bit!
More power to the people! Those people that are willing to take their own safety in their own hands. And not wait for the cops to arrive and "chalk" an outline of their body on the sidewalk.
God bless you Beth...I hope you never have to make a decision like this lady did....
Steve
Beth: so, should she have simply submitted to rape and murder? Not your decision to make, Ma'am.
My only complaint about her shooting was her failure to completely empty the revolver into the perp.
Her instincts are good, but she needs a bit more training.
It's great that she was armed and able to defend herself from someone who was obviously intent on breaking into her home.
HOWEVER.
She should not have gone inside, gotten the gun, and gone back outside to struggle with the guy. That was asinine and she's lucky that SHE is still alive, especially considering he apparently took her by surprise after she stepped back outside.
She *should* have grabbed her gun and then phoned police to inform them of a break in. Instead of grabbing the gun and running outside.
She is lucky she's not dead and that she is living in Texas. In many other states, grabbing the gun and running outside would have been viewed in a realm other than self-defense.
Yikes! She sure lucked out on the outcome of that. She shouldn't have gone outside. Its too bad he got away but she almost ended up giving a loaded 38 to a critter and taking whatever he felt like dishing out.
Glad to see I'm not the only one who thought the proper way to shoot a goblin should have been something like this:
2 to the chest
1 to the head
By the way, this is what I'm teaching my 20 something year old daughter and my wife.
God Bless Texas....Even the Women are Men
I guess Beth has a higher fence.
She shouldn't have tried to scare him. Firearms are not magic wands, and cannot prevent harm just because you posess one. She should have shot him immediately when she was in danger. As for not going back outside, I have gone outside on many occasions to investigate some noise and always with a firearm. I don't want to wait scared in my house while a possible attacker makes his plans.
actually I hope beth DOES face something like this in her lifetime. also recognises reality can be harsh and you need to provide for yourself
I'm with Arn, guns are nto magic wands. Either someone needs shooting or they don't. If they need shooting, bloody well shoot them.
Ah, Beth the troll is back. Welcome Beth. Absorb some intelligence while you lurk.
Too bad she didnt kill him.
God bless Texas.
Think I'll stay here a little longer...
If Ms. Burgos does not have a Texas CHL, I hope she gets one. This could've happened to her on the streets of Austin as easily as at her apartment. The .38 you carry, and somebody (her Dad preferably) tell her to get a pump action 20 ga. shotgun for the apartment home defense.
Done.
The attacker has told the detectives that he had seen her at the pizza stand 20 minutes before the attack. So he is admitting a little but not all the story. He slammed her head to the ground while he had his hand over her nose and mouth. He took the cell phone out of her hand and tossed it in the tall grass 10 feet away as she went into a dark tunnel she could see a bright light she prayed for God to help. Her friend could hear her screaming for help, she was on the phone with her friend at the time of the attack. Society can only hope he will turn to God. This could happen to anybodys child in the Walmart parking lots or fallowed home from a pizza stands. I think the girl in this case thought the best way possible. I would like to thank her for taking a bad guy off the streets so that he will not come after me or my kids. After talking with the victim it sounds like more then just a cell phone robbery gone bad, he did not want her cell phone. Why did he toss the cell phone and proceed to cover her nose and mouth so she could not breath?... I will be buying a gun for my protection since the crime rate is going up. If someone trys to take away my air I will shoot without thought.
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