80-year-old man says he fatally shot fleeing burglar despite her plea that she was pregnant
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}An 80-year-old man says he shot and killed a fleeing woman whom he had caught burglarizing his home, despite her plea that she was pregnant.
"She says, 'Don't shoot me, I'm pregnant — I'm going to have a baby,' and I shot her anyway," Tom Greer told KNBC-TV.
Greer said he walked in on the woman and a man who had broken into his house in Long Beach on Tuesday night.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The pair tackled him, Greer said, then continued ransacking the house, breaking into a safe while he watched.
He said he was able to get to his gun, a .22-caliber revolver, and the pair ran when he showed it to them.
He said he tried to shoot both of them but was only able to hit the woman.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The lady didn't run as fast as the man, so I shot her in the back twice," Greer said. "She's dead ... but he got away."
He spoke to the TV station outside his house while wearing a sling for a shoulder injury he suffered in the struggle.
Deputy Police Chief David Hendricks confirmed at a news conference Wednesday that the man shot and killed the woman after apparently interrupting a crime in progress. It was not immediately clear whether any charges would be filed against Greer. Police planned to hold another news conference Thursday evening.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Los Angeles County coroner was performing an autopsy and would confirm if the woman was pregnant, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reported.