Man mistaken for intruder fatally shot by best friend

[left-of-center2012]

DINWIDDIE, Va. -- A man mistook his best friend for an intruder outside his Virginia home and fatally shot him, authorities said. Matthew Sharpf and his family were asleep in their home Tuesday night when Jonathan Hankins showed up unexpectedly, Sheriff’s Maj. William Knott told The Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Hankins, who apparently went to Sharpf’s house in Dinwiddie County for a visit, didn’t announce who he was while outside Sharpf’s home, Knott said. The men, both 37, had been best friends for years, Knott said. Hankins “came banging around to the door and the side of the house,” Knott said. “I don’t know whether it was to shock him, or whether it was a joke or prank.”

Sharpf went to the door with a handgun and saw the silhouette of a person outside, Knott said. A shot fired through the front door struck and killed Hankins, he said. “I don’t think he intended to shoot,” Knott said of Sharpf. “The gun discharged; it may have been an accident.”

Although the incident remains under investigation, Knott said there are no signs of a quarrel. Sharpf was charged with voluntary manslaughter and released on an unsecured bond. He was arraigned Thursday and a preliminary hearing was set for July 26.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/man-mistaken-intruder-fatally-shot-best-friend-78221318

[exboyfil]

1. Is shooting through the door castle doctrine?

Voluntary manslaughter?

Well if the cops like you, then you must not have done anything wrong.

“I don’t think he intended to shoot,” Knott said of Sharpf. “The gun discharged; it may have been an accident.”

[Merlot]

6. Yup, it was a "gun discharge" alrighty then.

[3catwoman3]

2. If you go to the door with a gun in your hand, is it much...

...of a stretch to presume that you are at least willing to use it?

[Hoyt]

3. Hope he gets convicted. Shooting someone outside your home is

just wrong in most cases.

[SoCalDavidS]

5. Not In America

He'll probably do the snowflake routine, and say how sorry he is.

I'd say it's 50/50 whether he gets convicted of anything.

[Arkansas Granny]

8. "I was skeered!" I'll bet he pleads to a lesser charge and gets off relatively unscathed.

[drray23]

10. it is in Virginia.

You can not claim self defense if you shoot a person through your door.

[SoCalDavidS]

4. Mistakes Happen

Time to find a new best friend. Perhaps at the local shooting range.

[dem4decades]

7. I tell all my friends to call first or I might shoot them, don't you?

[Hassler]

9. Something fishy about this story.

[Jim__]

11. Should an IQ test be a prerequisite to buying a gun?

[Sneederbunk]

13. If it is, gun sales will go down dramatically.

[Deuxcents]

12. We need more guns!

No permits. No instructions. No background checks. Shoot at shadows. Shoot kids in cars. Guns, n more guns is what we need. It’s maddening.

[Sneederbunk]

14. Manslaughter? Why isn't he getting the Amber Guyger treatment?

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

15. Ah, yes. Another shining example of how guns make us safer.

Parents have shot and murdered their own children in similar circumstances.