San Francisco Examiner, San Francisco, Calif., 2/22/00

Monday, May 1, 2000

Awakened by noises at his back door early one morning, an 83-year-old San Francisco widower resolved to protect himself with a handgun purchased for exactly such an eventuality. As an intruder armed with a tire iron approached his bedroom, the elderly homeowner retrieved the gun and pulled the trigger for the first time in 30 years. Bought in 1948, the .38-cal. Smith & Wesson revolver had gone largely unused for more than half a century. It finally became the man's only hope of self-preservation, proving deadly reliable in a pinch. The shot ended the confrontation and the invader's life. The homeowner said later, "I never thought I would kill another person. I just wanted to stay at home and mind my own business."

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