N.C. Woman Cleared of Charges After Shooting Knife-Wielding Man

Police in Wilmington, North Carolina say a woman won’t face any criminal charges after fatally shooting a man earlier this month after determining that the deceased was the initial aggressor. 

Authorities say 36-year-old James Timothy Scott approached the woman and two companions a couple of weeks ago in the woods near a Wilmington neighborhood. Scott was allegedly armed with a knife, and the woman told police that he threatened to kill her, which is when she drew her gun.

Just before 11 a.m. on Feb. 13, officers responded to a reported shooting in the woods near the 600 block of Barclay Hills Drive, according to a prior news release. Upon arrival, life saving measures were performed on one man who had been shot.

Despite revival efforts, the patient died as a result of his injures, according to the prior release. Three suspects were initially detained in connection with the shooting.

Audio from a 911 call placed that day provide more insight into what led to the shooting. 

“We were sitting at our camp eating breakfast and this person that’s been coming up and causing problems came up and started demanding money and got up and grabbed, or tried to grab, the female that was at the camp and she pulled out a gun and shot him,” the caller said. “This isn’t the first time that he been up here causing problems.”

The 911 caller told dispatchers that the armed citizen was still at the scene, and was distraught over having to defend herself with lethal force. While it’s up to the local prosecutor to officially decide if charges are warranted, the Wilmington PD has already come out and said that the investigation showed the woman acted in self-defense, so it would be downright shocking if the D.A. decided to pursue a criminal case against the woman. 

This isn’t the only incident where a woman exercising her Second Amendment rights was able to defend herself from an attacker that’s made headlines this week. In Alachua County, Florida, the local sheriff’s office has determined that a shooting at a home last Sunday afternoon was also a justified use of force.

ASO Captain Chris Sims told Alachua Chronicle that the shooter, an adult female, lived in the home where the incident took place and was transported to ASO Headquarters for an interview. After interviewing the suspect and several witnesses, both from within the home and from neighboring homes, detectives concluded that the shooting was an act of self-defense. Crime Scene Investigators also collected several items of evidence that provided a more clear picture of the events that preceded the shooting.

Detectives also consulted with the State Attorney’s office, which agreed with their preliminary conclusion, before releasing the woman. Detectives are still investigating the incident and will provide a final report to the State Attorney’s office for review.

The sheriff’s office hasn’t released any details about the circumstances of the shooting, other than to report that the armed citizen was a resident of the home where the shooting took place. Who was shot and why remains unknown, though we’ll hopefully learn more details in the days ahead. 

Whether in the woods, at home, or out in public, we have the right to protect ourselves with deadly force if necessary, and I’m grateful that these women were exercising their Second Amendment rights when their lives were threatened. It’s a shame that they were forced to defend themselves with a firearm, but if they didn’t have a gun the outcome in both of these incidents could have been far worse.