Fatal NC shooting may have been self-defense: "The man police have accused of murdering a teenager Thursday night may have fired his gun in self-defense. Edward Lee Harris, 31, was charged with the murder of James Tony Lee, 18, in front of a townhouse complex near St. Augustine's College, police reported. But Sharon Artis, a spokeswoman with the state medical examiner's office, said Friday that a preliminary autopsy report indicated that Lee was involved in a home invasion robbery when he was shot. A second man, Brian Lee Cannady, 19, of 608 Culpepper Road in Raleigh, has also been charged with attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon. A police report listed the victim in the robbery attempt as Edward Lee Harris. Police have accused Cannady of using a handgun to try to take an undisclosed amount of cash from Harris. The warrant also states that Harris' life was "threatened and endangered" during the attempted robbery. Raleigh police spokesman Jim Sughrue declined to discuss the shooting or why Harris had been charged with murder if he was defending himself. Officers arrested Harris on Friday. He also was charged with possession of a firearm by a felon. Harris finished an 11-month sentence for second-degree murder in January 2006, according to state records. Lee and Cannady have lengthy criminal histories"


California: DA rules Barraza shooting was self-defense: "District Attorney Candice Hooper and Sheriff Curtis Hill released a statement Thursday saying no arrests will be made in the October shooting death of Robert A. Barraza during a confrontation on Valaire Drive. The actions of the shooter, referred to as a "victim" throughout the press release, have been ruled as self-defense... The confrontation began Oct. 14 when the shooter - whom authorities never have called a suspect and whose name has been left unreported - heard noises and approached the front of his home, according to the statement. There, he saw an acquaintance involved in a fight with several people who had been attending a party on the same street. He attempted to break up the fight and was shot in the back during this attempt, the statement reads. He then went into his home, retrieved a Glock 9mm and a shotgun, handed the latter off to a friend while instructing him to defend those in the home if anyone entered, and then went out the east side of his home to confront the assailants who had been shooting into the home for the entire time he was inside, according to authorities. The assault had, by then, moved to the east side of the home, and the shooter ordered the assailants to leave his property, the statement reads. At this point, Barraza aggressively approached the shooter, who again ordered him off the property. According to the press release Barraza "responded in a negative manner and appeared to reach into his waist area as if attempting to retrieve a weapon." The shooter fired his weapon once, striking Barraza, who then fled."


IL: Wilmette shoots down '89 handgun ban: "Wilmette village trustees voted Tuesday night to strike the village's 1989 handgun ban from the books in the wake of last month's U.S. Supreme Court decision to overturn a Washington, D.C., ban. Village officials suspended enforcement of the ordinance shortly after the June 26 ruling and said it would probably not withstand legal challenges based on the court's reasoning in the ruling, which said outright gun bans are unconstitutional.The proposed ordinance to repeal the local ban was passed unanimously late Tuesday night."


IL: Chicago continues to enforce gun ban: "Chicago Police will continue to enforce the city's handgun ban and firearm registration laws while lawyers fight the pro-gun lobby in federal court. The National Rifle Association and the Illinois State Rifle Association filed federal lawsuits to shoot down Chicago's gun laws after the U.S. Supreme Court voided the District of Columbia's handgun ban last month.City Corporation Counsel Mara Georges told a City Council committee Thursday that she's prepared to fight those lawsuits all the way to the Supreme Court."Chicago's gun ordinance was not invalidated by the . . . decision. Three prior Supreme Court decisions have found that the Second Amendment does not apply to states and municipalities," Georges said. "The decision did not change that case law."