Sounds like Mr. Pontolillo rid the world of a scumbag who preyed on others again and again. And this is bad ... why?

(If you don't think burglary constitutes "preying," you've clearly never suffered one.)

The man used what little rights we have left as citizens to defend himself and his residence.

Maybe the next robber in that area will think twice about what home he is going into.

Relyling on the timely arrival of the police for personal protection can be fatal. MD needs to enact a castle domain law, similar to the one signed into law by Ohio's Democrat Gov. Strickland, that allows the use of deadly force inside the home, which also includes your personal vehicle. The law also immunizes you against a civil suit brought by the criminal as well. Baltimore has way too much crime, and criminals running loose. I'm sure Pontollio was in fear of his life when he confronted the intruder who then came after him.

Just remember kids, when seconds count, the police are minutes away.

Ashish has it right, once you've been burglarized, any sympathy you might have evaporates. As does any willingness to let it happen again. Did Rice deserve to die? Answer me this, did he deserve to be free with such a lengthy criminal record? Perhaps it was the very authorities we are supposed to call that failed him. If he had been incarcerated, he wouldn't be dead.

Andy, I'm pretty sure your little "editorial" was crafted to attract controversy and comments, and for that it has worked, as I am commenting on it, but seriously, couldn't you have toned down your word choice a bit?

"hacked to death with a razor-sharp sword"? Seriously? Are you honestly trying to spin this to create an image of this student standing over the home invader chopping him into bits? That's irresponsible, and you deserve any journalist's credentials removed for that sensationalism, or perhaps you just need to consider a career in the tabloids.

"was protecting a few possessions worth precipitating an event that will change the rest of his life? " Perhaps not, but I also pose a question for you - is writing a sensationalist "opinion piece" in order to garner controversy worth damaging any credibility you may have?

DIAL 911 AND DIE!

Give the young man a Badge of Courage.

Not because he faced down a criminal and won. But because he now may have to face a CRIMINAL Pat Jessamy. She has more feeling for the dead criminal than she does for a man who protected his property.

This story should also be a reminder to all who possess swords.

BE SURE THEY ARE RAZOR SHARP.
If this mans was not, he may have been on the losing end of this battle.

Ha, ha...

Donald D. Rice controlled his own destiny. He could have easily avoided his own death.

The sad part of this is that the young man had to arm himself to protect his own home. While my heart goes out to the family of Rice. It is the Actions of Rice himself that precipitated his own death. RICE CAUSED THIS. your insinuation that this could have been handled differently is correct, RIce could have gotten public assistance or even (gasp) a job, instead of simply taking from others. I have more respect for a begger.

Call me unseemly, but I'm one of the people who is completely for the glorification of the incident. What this all truly belies is the fact that the majority of people I've heard opinions from are frustrated with the justice system. Donald Rice had been released from prison the Saturday before and had already been arrested 29 times before. Why was this man free to roam the streets in the first place? The justice system failed the people of Baltimore, and is it not the duty of the people to do what is right when the laws will not? Don't try to garner sympathy for the criminal by saying he was "hacked to death" with a sword. Jack the Ripper hacks people to death. Charles Albright hacks people to death. You might even pass off Hannibal Lector, but a college student defending himself in his own home? Spare me your hyperbole. Save your sympathy for Donald Rice's family who have to suffer through burying a man who got precisely what was coming to him. With his criminal record, it wasn't going to be long before he finally ran into someone who wasn't going to wait for the authorities to give him a slap on the wrist and send him to bed without dessert. You know the old adage: Those who play with fire get burned. I for one am glad that a criminal is off the streets for good and that my tax dollars won't be wasted on his court proceedings. The only tragedy here is that Mr. Pontolillo has to deal with the fact that he killed a man, and I hope to God for his sake that his conscience is clean knowing he did nothing wrong.

Your comment about waiting for police or relying on them, is a joke. Even in the best of times, their response times are on the order of 30 minutes minimum.Remember the case this summer of the nanny who was robbed( while walking an infant!!) and the police took HOURS to respond? Are we a nation of sheep, helplessly standing by watching ourselves being victimized, only to feel helpless with inadequate police protection, only to be re- robbed again and again? The reason for positive public outcry in this case is that the people have had enough, and they aren't going to take it anymore!

President Roosevelt once said "Your rights end where my nose begins". Once a person decides to invade anothers home he/she accepts the risk that the act might be deadly regardless of their intentions. The victim cannot read the mind of the invader. The victim only knows his life and or property is threatened. This is why home invasion is not only illegal but inheritly dangerous. Did this invader deserve to die? No but he accepted that risk (and in this case lost the bet), when invaded another's home.

It's interesting to me that, at the same time the state is "scouring budgets for every last nickel of savings," the Maryland Energy Administration was able to send its employees to Sweden for a conference.

You can't be serious. These street thugs continue to steal, rape and murder people and you don't expect them to stand up for themselves. Maybe you are ready to surrender but I am not. Someone breaks into my house and I hear them, the chances they are going to walk away alive is not very good.

Studies by the FBI have shown that criminals are more afraid of the armed homeowner than they are of the police. Look at this guy, he has been convicted of 29 crimes in his 49 years and God only knows how many he was never caught or how many he was not convicted of but he still only gets an 18 month sentence.

Good riddance to this scurge to society and hopefully more like him will learn from this lesson.

http://news.aol.com/article/student-kills-intruder-with-samurai/670061

Rice's criminal history includes more than two dozen arrests for burglary, breaking and entering and auto theft. According to court records, he was charged in 2007 after he pulled a gun on a police officer, though prosecutors placed those charges on hold because the officer was on military leave.

-----------

This man had pulled a gun on a police officer before, so let's not pretend that this was a shoplifter caught red-handed. That there was loss of life in this instance is implicitly tragic, but to expressly mourn the victimizer blurs the line between right and wrong. Self-defense is ultimately the responsibility of every individual, and shirking this responsibility at the request of police will only increase our reliance on them.

if you live in the city, and don't live in the right neighborhood, and call 911 or 311 for police, you would get a sword too.

The real tragedy is that Mr. Rice's death at the hands of the JHU student was preventable. If the penal system in Maryland was geared to rehabilitate, and not merely warehouse offenders, then perhaps Mr. Rice could have chosen another path during his long criminal history. Instead, without intervention, his path led to Mr. Pontolillo's garage.

Rehabilitation is part of prevention and, in Donald Rice's case, the state failed 27 times.

At least it saved a bullet.

We can always count on the Sun to take the side of the criminal instead of the victim. Do yourself a favor, keep your opinion to yourself once in a while, maybe your subscriptions will stop going down the tubes.

I completely support this kid for standing up to criminals...If more people took actions into their own hands we would have less criminals

Sir do not worry about what this paper publishes..you have the support of the community

My Glock responds at 1400ft per second when the police take 10 mis. on average

Why is it that we can die and kill for our country but when it gets personal so many start whining if a thief is killed?

Tell you what, Andy Green...when a thug attempts to rob YOU and lunges at YOU, YOU handle it differently. Mr. Pontolillo handled it his way, and I am just fine with how he handled it. Oddly enough, so are the majority of folks speaking up about this. We're tired of this crap!

Police tell people not to take matters into their own hands. That's fine, but it was in the hands of the justice system (which includes the police) over TWO DOZEN times prior to this event. Obviously, the justice system couldn't properly dispatch Mr. Rice. Rather than focus on Mr. Pontolillo, why not take a look at a justice system that failed to rehabilitate Mr. Rice 27 times?

Mr. Green, we should all lay down and allow this city become an even bigger embarrassment to the country. When Mr. Rice broke into a home in the middle of the night he accepted an inherent risk which is that he may be injured or KILLED.
This city is over run with criminals such as Mr. Rice who make this city a place that people want to move out of.

It appears Mr. Pontolillo feared for his life when he first heard the noise and then grabbed the sword. Pontolillo then walked to where the noise was coming from. I just wonder what did he expected to find? I presume a burgular.

Congratulations to Mr.Pontollio!!!!One less thug to have to deal with, it's terrible that some folks are too damned lazy to work! Maybe
we all should buy swords! Mr Pontollio was achiving an education. The thug already had a criminal history!!!!

How ridiculous are you? Of course killing another human being is not a solution, but who are you to question how to handle an intruder in your home? The lowlife got what he deserved, and it's bleeding hearts like you that helped get him out of the Baltimore jail to allow him to even enter into the student's house.

For me, there's not one drop of sympathy I would offer to the criminal.

If in that situation, I would have no quarrels using one of my five firearms to resolve the issue. When you have been in multiple life vs. death situations like I have, you don't think about the other person's feelings. You protect yourself at all costs. Period.

Andy,

You got this one part right. The young man in question seems to have acted within reason. He cut off the deceased's hand...not his head. I think a reasonable person can assume he wasn't trying to "hack to death" the intruder.

However, the vitriol and hate directed toward the deceased sickens me. The man is dead. He was a career petty criminal, not a mass murderer. Please save your justified outrage for the truly evil.

Next time you face a crook invading your home, let's see how you react. With fear I bet. Do you think the student wasn't scared? Was he suppose to ask if the crook had a gun. It takes seconds to pull a gun out and shoot. I think that would have beaten a sword. Call the cops....It most likely would have taken over 15 minutes to arrive. Our neice was murdered while delivering the mail in a "neighborhood" known for guns being shot. It took only seconds for her to be killed and longer than that for help to arrive. Her murderer had a long criminal history too.When someone is in the act of comminting a crime, they deserve everything they get. Do you think they are feel good , huggy people? Next time anyone that thinks that kid should have called the cops for help first , needs to take his place.

You're kidding us Andy right? Do you nitwits on the editorial board even live in the same city?

If you want to depend on the BPD for protecting your property and self go ahead.

That's a risk you might be willing to take. Based on the crime statistics of Baltimore it would seem as though, that those who depend on the cops for their safety instead of taking responsibilty for it themselves are the ones taking the real risk.

I do not want to live in a society that permits a person to use vigilante justice to sentence someone else to death for stealing, despite what Batman might think.

Bravo for your bold editorial on this so called "self defense" murder. John Pontolillo was impetuous and too eager to settle a score with a burglar, who he probably sensed, had returned to rob his apartment. Donald D Rice, the intruder, a recidivist times galore, was not in Pontolillo's house, but in an outside garage. Where was the need for Pontolillo to go looking in this garage without calling the police first? The scenario could have played out differently. Donald D Rice could have been armed and could have shot Pontolillo, killed him or hurt him grievously. Other vigilantes have shot fleeing robbers in the back. Vigilantism gives self defense a bad name. It blurs the line between the lawless and the law abiding. Johns Hopkins University was not too happy with this outcome. Rightfully so. It wants its students to show restraint, use forethought and call law enforcement whenever possible before taking drastic action against criminals. The truth shall make you free is the Hopkins' motto. The killing of Donald D Rice, with a samurai sword, is not a truth that will ever make John Pontolillo free.

ANDY GREEN, WHILE I DISAGREE WITH SOME OF WHAT YOU HAVE SAID, I DEFINITELY AGREE WITH THE FACT OF A LIFE CHANGING EVENT. HOWEVER THE RIGHT TO DEFEND ONES LIFE, FAMILY AND HOME SHOULD NEVER BE FORGOTTEN. GRANTED THE THIEF MAY HAVE STOLE AND LEFT W/O HARMING ANYONE, BUT COULD THAT BE ULTIMATELY DETERMINED IF YOU WERE NOT THERE. ANY JOB HAS HAZARDS. IF YOU WORK IN A REFINERY, YOU CAN GET HURT OR KILLED. IF YOU WORK AS A COOK YOU COULD CUT YOUR FINGER. IF THE CAREER YOU CHOOSE IS A THIEF, WELL, YOU CAN SEE FROM THE STORY IN QUESTION, THERE ARE HAZARDS THERE TOO.

THERE ARE DIFFERENT STYLES OF SWORDSMANSHIP. IT WAS VERY UNFORTUNATE FOR THE CROOK, THAT HE HAPPENED UPON SOMEONE WHO USES KATANA, RATHER THAN RAPIER, OR JIAN. THE GENTLEMANLY STYLES ARE MORE DISABLING BEFORE FATAL, BUT CAN BE JUST AS FATAL.

I AM A MEDIC. IF YOU HAVE A HEART ATTACK, CALL 911 AND I WILL SHOW UP W/ A DEFIBRILLATOR AND YOU HAVE A 20% CHANCE OF SURVIVAL. GET SHOT BY A CRIMINAL, CALL 911, AND THE MEDIC CANT GET TO YOU UNTIL THE SCENE IS CLEARED BY POLICE. ALSO A TRAUMA ARREST (HEART STOPPING) HAS LESS THAN 1% CHANCE OF SURVIVAL.

YES MOST UNFORTUNATE WHAT HAPPENED. BUT IN AMERICA, WE HAVE THE RIGHT TO BEAR ARMS, AND OUR SLEEVES ARE ROLLED UP.

MY comment is for the writer. Next time maybe you can use even more exciting words to try and help your cause, Like POW - ZAP - or BOOM to try to make a person in the wrong seem a little less guilty. Come on no matter how hard you try, OK. Lets try this, No matter what color you paint a Lemon it's still going to be sour.

Unfortunately as it sounds...The student should be charged with aggravated manslaughter. The fact that he heard a noise in "A SHED OUTBACK" decidedly plucks a sword from a wall...walks downstairs, walks outside across a courtyard, to then inflict a deadly force on the intruder shows malicious Intent to kill. in these temporal intervals...he had numerous choices at his disposal; and yes, calling our useless police department for enforcement is one of them. It will be hard to claim self defense, since he was duplicitous, along with the criminal to create the heated confrontation and the death that ensued. Don't get me wrong.....We all (I included) silently cheered at the report of a mugger slain in our crime-ridden city. But the DA's office is now faced with an enigmatic dilemma. I think the student's case is compounded given the fact that the house was robbed earlier. A good DA will prove that he was out for blood to avenge his laptop and X-box when he acted to kill the buglar. Yes, Yes, I am not a bleeding liberal...but the law exists to protect us all citizens. The potential "slippery slopes" created by this scenario if not charged, will mean I can shoot some kid trespassing on my lawn as long as I believe he is there to rob me. Thank God! we are not in Saudi Arabia where laws are put into the hands of citizens. Meaning I can stone my lover to death in a public square cause I believed I was cheated on. Trust me..there are days I want to. BUT FOR THE LAW!!.

This is hilarious. I was looking for the editorial board and I found the comedy page. I can't stop laughing... Sure we should all hang around and wait for the police and let Mr. Burglar help himself to our belongings. Great idea. (Um, maybe you need a THIRD opinion.)

"John Pontolillo, who grabbed his sword and ran toward the sounds of an intruder in his garage instead of calling the police"

"Instead of calling the police" makes sense except in a place where violent crime is out of control like Baltimore.

Human being? What is so human on that creature? Boy saved money for robber's next vacation in prison

Mr. Pontolillo's a hero and should be applauded for his bravery. He should have cut the other hand off also.

I don't advocate violence, but it seems to me that someone who was arrested 29 times for burglery...finally got his just due. I hope the JHU is released because he was clearly defending his life.

Two things, First the guy had a long record of this and the report said he lunged at the homeowner. Eventually it would have been someones wife or kid that got between this guy and the door and an innocent would be injured or worse.
Secondly the home owners choice of weapon is actually a very good one for defence. I have firearms but I also have children in the house and bullets go through walls.
Therefore I keep a Katana beside the bed as well! In a dark house that I know well and the intruder problably doesnt a blade is safer for everyone but him.
Also with many profesional thugs today body armor is worn,
Suprisingly it offers protection from bullets. A good sword point? Not so much.

Too bad he didn't cut the burglar's head off and mount it to a stake in front of his house as a warning.

Obviously prison didn't rehab the miscreant.

Good Riddance!

Two things worth a closer look: 1. The predator was not "hacked" to death as you write. Sounds good but you're wrong. One or two swings of a sword as the police indicate is not "hacking". Look it up.

2. You presume that this incident will negatively impact Pontolillo's life. Why do you pretend to know this? It may positively impact his life. He'll have the satisfaction of looking back and knowing he did everything in his power to defend his life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness...the founding fathers would have been proud!

So Sun editors, how about some truth telling here???

I agree with you Andy Green. That poor burglar was probably just getting his life back together, and needed a little something to get started with.

It is always better to let someone enter your home, and take whatever they need or want from you instead of confronting them. The man stuck in a life of crime was the real victim here. That kid didnt have to confront him or even stop him over 'property', and now we have another death in Baltimore. He was going to hopkins and most likely has more than he needs anyway.

Im glad we dont have a silly castle domain law. I think it is archaic and mediaeval to think that just because someone comes into your house you can attack/kill them. Just leave and call the police, thats the best answer.

By Maryland law this kid is the real criminal. He went after, attacked, and killed a man that hadnt done anything serious. He should have just let him go and call the police. Had he just ran from his house instead of getting sword, this brutal brutal murder never would have happened.

Maybe if things like this happen more often these pieces of dirt might actually try to do things the honest way like the rest of us.

If any party is at fault for Donald Rice's death, it is the state of Maryland. They failed to prevent a habitual criminal from continuing to pursue his life-long practice of risky endeavors, which resumed just days after they released him from jail.

Given Mr. Rice's 29 prior convictions, it's fair to say that he was "addicted" to crime; it was a "disease". Did the state cure him of his disease? Obviously not. They instead turned him loose and allowed him to suffer a relapse.

Only this time, the relapse had fatal consequences.

From what I have seen the effect of a gunshot wound can be as horrible as a sword cut. I have such a sword in my bedroom closet but it is a souvineer I brought back from WWII. I do not own a gun, have no plans to defend my possessions and evade any and all physical confrontations. (I have a couple of battle stars which I could not evade but refer to myself as a "devout coward".)

However, I have a good and highly respected friend who has been buglarized three times, has now joined the NRA and has bought several guns. He and his wife now regularly practice shooting. They are very private people and it is my impression that their reaction was primarily due to the invasion of their privacy.

As being a former Marine, being taught to protect and defened all that is good, More power to him. As Americans we should act on our rights. We were given the right to bear arms for a reason. Why should he have to live thinking he done such a wrong thing!?!? What he protected his property and himself?! Look at it this way, if you step into a lions cage I doubt that you are going to be greeted with a lick on the hand! But im sure our society would judge the lion and have it put down for the attack. So maybe its the idot who walked in the cage that caused it. Dont mess with the Lion and it wont mess with you!!!

In Oregon where I live 240,000 carry concealed weopens permits. all person to person crime dimishs greatly when stories like the sword are published on the front page of coast to coast blogs. firearms are the answer not swords. If the burgaler is trying to get away make sure you shoot him in the head! Dead men tell no tales.

If he hadn't have been breaking in, he wouldn't have been killed.

In my state this would be perfectly legal. They shouldn't even think twice of punishing him. SELF DEFENSE!

I'm not sure why this subject keeps appearing in the news. I personally don't care what the local laws are when it comes to an intruder in my home. That person will be dealt with accordingly. We write our opinions about this subject looking to see if it's OK to have your home invaded, defend yourself if necessary or worse case, have something happen to our children that are in the house. The answer is NO! We don't know what the person is doing in our home, but he does and he's not being honest. We HAVE to protect ourselves or can expect the bad seeds out there to continue doing what they are doing. I would have no problem doing exactly what John P. did....yes I have a few samurai swords, a gun collection and a nice knife collection. I pity the fool who enters my home and thank you John for putting some fear in some of those that were thinking about doing the same thing...tonight.

When a man is robbed or murdered, it's just a byline on any news website on the net. When a criminal scumbag is cut down by someone defending himself and his property, it's headline news. Personally, I don't think anyone in America who has worked hard for what they have gives a Damn about a career crimnal who got what he deserved. And furthermore, if someone came at me with a gun or, God forbid, a freaking sword, I think my first instinct would be to RUN LIKE HELL. Unless that individual was trying to rob me or worse in my own home, in which case I would shoot the bastard.

May your wife and kids meet an equally felonious person in tight quarters while you are away from home. And since you do not have a sword in your domicile I wish them the best of luck.

It is people like you who make the world unlivable for people like us. You deserve to confront men like this criminal until one day you lose the battle.

I am constantly amazed at how people on the east coast, even more so on the west coast, seem to think it should be illegal to protect one's own property and life. Maryland is now without a lifelong criminal. Mr. Pontolillo should be getting award, not having a major newpaper villify him. People, particularly the news media on both coasts, seem to have embraced the "entitlement" society so completely that they forget that normal, law abiding, working people actually have rights also.

Get over yourselves and drop this ridiculous editorial idea. And I would add, why do you possibly think that this is something that "Mr Pontolillo will have to live with for the rest of his life?" Wouldn't bother me one iota.

I don't think those criticizes this student are truly capable of empathy for his situation. He did not know this intruders intentions (was the intruder there to kill, rape, rob, abduct?), if the intruder was armed(with a knife, a gun or who knows what else?), or even if the intruder was alone (perhaps his colleagues in crime were hiding around the corner)? And he certainly was not priveleged with the time to set and think "now what will the consequences of me carrying and potentially using this sword be?" while the intruder with unknown intentions and means of harming him was rushing towards him as he was backed in a corner. Could he have called the police and waited for who knows how long, or fled? Sure, at to what end, who knows, but his reaction was within the realm of normal actions to take and it was the intruder who created the circumstances.

White people killing black people for no reason. Nothing new here. Time for the black man to rise up and take the power, put the whites in chains.

If Baltimore had more people like Pontolillo that are not afraid to deal with the lawlessness, maybe the criminal element would not feel so free to do as they wish. Maybe this will cause some home invaders and other criminals to think twice before attempting to steal from others. This Op/Ed piece is a prime example of why this city has become such a garbage pit. Blaming someone for defending their property instead of calling the police who will get around to your call whenever they feel like it (if at all)??? Please. Wake up Pollyanna.

First the free parking was taken away and now this. Money is always saved at the expense and the inconvenience of the consumer. I will miss the paging at BWI. The silence will be deafening the next time I go there. Every place has a characteristic atmosphere and we are gutting this systematically. Besides I don't think it is as yet time for the paging system to die. Not everyone carries a cell phone. Little kids don't and there is nothing like a good shout out to parents to come and get their lost toddlers. People do forget their cell phones or their chargers and they could use the paging system too. Paging is also helpful to locate airport employees, to announce arrivals and departures and to issue warnings about airport security issues. 8 smart polyglots lost their jobs as a result of this stinginess and your gloating is unseemly.
Tired of the unfriendly skies.

Andy people in this city are just sick and tired of crime and being victims of crime. This jabroni was arrested 29 times over rhis career. And he was a free man when this incident occurred. I place blame at the feet of this liberal justice system in Baltimore where under the liberal and blind Pat Jessamy we strive to protect the rights of the criminals first. If this man was on my property and I felt threatened and my children were with me in my house I would have no problem ending his life. His choice, hemade that decision by invading my property. And of course an assist to the state of Maryland for failing to do their job. How about a follow up on the deceased police record?

Mr. Pontolillo did what needed to be done, no glorification, he defended his home and I take no issue with a man or woman who defends their sanctuary, perhaps if more criminals realized they may die partaking in such activities, then the crime rate would drop.

End of story

Yes it is true, it should not have ended this way but the victim had the right to defend himself, if he would have waited for the BCPD to arrive, they would have came and probably found him and his roommates tied up or something much worse. I have seen the so called timing of 911 when it is has come to my brother and one time the EMTs actually got lost only having to come three blocks from the fire station. So i say this, more people should learn to protect themselves, especially if it will save their lives.

Hey! Ya!, can I keep the head for show and tell???

Wow. How can you even think about criticizing the kid's actions. Waiting for Baltimore police to come to help is like waiting for the Amtrak train. It's going to come when it's too late. The kid reacted quickly and prevented himself from getting hurt. End of story. Baltimore is now free of one more piece of vermin. Only a couple million to go...

There can be only one!

You can't always choose the consequences for your actions. You make choices...like to rob someone....you take that risk. I feel bad for the student. He shouldn't have to defend himself on this.

Of course the uneducated would make comments like marcus's. Always blame racism. What a tool. Please go join Mr. Rice in hell. You don't deserve any better.

whether the situation could have been handled differently?

you mean back in court to be re released and rob again?

Many years ago (when I was in my 20's), I believed that ALL individuals had rights regardless of their actions and that extreme forms of punishment for those who committed crimes were cruel and inhumane. Within the last two decades I have both witnessed and experienced the bi-products of a decaying society created by the arrogance of the legal profession (that of course includes the politicians at the state and federal levels). It is because of the actions of these so-called responsible pillars of the community that I have found myself shifting away from the naive liberal that my parents (active in the peace movement of the sixties) were so careful in raising and running madly towards the vocal extremist hidden deep inside of me (card-carrying member of the NRA). With that said, I can say with little regret that Donald D Rice may not have gotten his just reward for a lifetime of crime. The feelings of violation and mistrust that he created by taking people's belongings and being unwelcomed in their homes cannot be adequately expressed into words. Even long after the crimes had been committed, these feelings will fester and influence your judgment of others. There are some of you out there who will say that they are just possessions and that they can be replaced. Try replacing the emotions and the connections that were created by a coin collection that took you, your father, and your grandfather decades to complete. Others of you may feel that John Pontolillo should have waited for the police to handle the matter. For most police officers the matter is handled by simply filling out a report and turning it over to the insurance agent when a claim is being made. Recovery of personal property is rarely, if ever returned to the rightful owner. And lastly, for those of you “practicing liberals”, standing on your soap-boxes, and shouting out to the heavens that “the punishment did not fit the crime”. Well let me say that you are right. The guilty Mr. Rice got off easy. His reign of terror and life of torment is over for himself and for others. He can now rest comfortably in whatever after-life he believed in (once forgiveness had been granted). The innocent Mr. Pontilillo on the other hand must now live out the rest of his natural life carrying the heavy burden that the police, the lawyers, and society did not take upon themselves.

This article looks like it was written by a true anti gun-peta loving democrat! This student is a hero. The writer asks if it is worth protecting the few possesions he has?? Was he supposed to let this scum in to harm him? Way to go samurai!

Lets not forget the Hopkins student that was killed after being awoken by an burglar recently. That kid never had the chance to call the police.

Did the Sun editorialized if that situation should have been handled differently?

Andy, you could not be more correct about Mr. Pontolillo. He clearly should have hidden under his bed unprotected and simply hoped that an unknown intruder (with unknown intentions) would take what he wanted and leave quickly. On a related note, I look forward to reading your defense of Neville Chamberlain and the 1938 Munich Agreement soon.

Having been at Hopkins when an innocent student was literally "hacked to death" by an attempted burglar, I have no sympathy for the plight of this criminal. Let's not pretend that home invaders are harmless. I can only think of how different things would have been in Chris Elser had a samurai sword. Well done John! I'm sure my sentiments are shared by anyone who was a Hopkins student in 2004.

Unfortunatelly we live in a world where criminals get to many chances to hurt innocent victims. It is also most unfortunate that you Mr. Green are so oblivious to the crime problems in this country. With your kind of rational criminals will always flurish

Hacked to death? I guess he could have just hacked his hands off for stealing again and again and again....
Why should he have waited for the police? So, that we can give him three square meals a day, medical care and tv time??? No thanks. We are supporting enough criminals!

I feel this guys was totally in the right. The police never respond fast enough, and if they do and don't catch the guy all they tell you is "well, if we do catch someone, we can try to match some prints, but no promises" I don't have a gun in my house but I do have several archaic weapons including swords, and I would not hesitate to pick one up if I though someone was in my home. I wouldn't hesitate to use it either if I felt my life or that of my family was in danger. Yes, that young man with a sword will have to live with this forever. I hope he would do the same thing again, given the same situation, I know I would.

RECITIVIST! GAME OVER!

Maybe this brave young man was worried that if he called the Baltimore City Police, they may be tied up with a false raid and marriage proposal!

I'm a gonna git me one of them swords too, to go along with my shotgun. I don kilted me some burglers. See ya in Charm City! Ya'll come on in, we'll keep the lights on fer ya!

although i hate jury duty.. i will definately go if i'm picked for this trial. I will make SURE he is not convicted!!

and who cares about Rice anyway? Thats what happens when you choose to be a crimminal. enuff said.

Oh yea, In addition to my earlier posting......
THE LAW EXISTS TO KEEP OUR INDIVIDUAL MORALS IN CHECK.
We live in a civil society bounded by the rule of law.
One can argue that the burglar (a career criminal) chose to disobey the law, but the legal system is to blame for not doing due diligence. If we all need to take the laws into our own hands, I bet you guys screaming "Hurray to the JHU student" will be the first whimpering in a corner fetal-style screaming for mommy once you run out of your glorified bullets because central booking chose to open its doors. -see Somalia for reference.
I think the kid should be duly charged since his life was not in immediate and imminent danger when he yes, "HACKED" the burglar to death. We live in a civil society where all our varied, personal and individualistic morals collide...which is where the law comes into place. Being buglarized does not give you the freedom to kill; however, self defense does! and crazy as it sounds...confronting a dude in your garage, outside, next to an alley removes you from claiming defense of your life...but defense of your X-box! How will you feel if next time I see you suspiciously standing next to my car I get to shoot you in the face cause my house was burglarized earlier? can someone say...Anarchy?!!
THE LAW IS REASON, FREE OF PASSION.

Thank God for the student that the burgler was white. If a white student had killed a black man who was unarmed, there would be hell to pay! Marches, and calls for the student to be prosecuted and the obvious racism and social injustice of the "cold blooded murder". Now that would have given you so much more sensationalism to write with!

To kyle and your comments -"That poor burglar was probably just getting his life back together, and needed a little something to get started with." and "He was going to hopkins and most likely has more than he needs anyway." - Wow! I couldn't believe you were saying those things. There are numerous other options for released criminals to get back on their feet, and stealing from another person is not one of them. I am blessed to have many things in my life but started with nothing and worked very hard on my own and did not have to STEAL from someone else to get them.

As to Marcus and your comment "White people killing black people for no reason. Nothing new here. Time for the black man to rise up and take the power, put the whites in chains." This is exactly the type of road blocks that this country is facing in acheiving equality! There was indeed a reason and it was not based on race. Why should you feel the need to even bring this up??!!

I agree....to glorify this murderer is insane. It's just one more instance of the racism we see in America today. A white person murdering a black person is hailed as a 'hero' among other whites. In reality he should be locked up for murder. This was a vicious act..and Mr. Rice did not deserved to be butchered and massacred like an animal. As many in the media have pointed out, the fact that we now have a black president has only emboldened the racists in our society. I think we will continue to see an increase in hate crimes unless we take drastic action now. A good first step would be to send this murderer to prison forever.

Not to paint everyone with the same brush - some steal to buy drugs. This may have prevented another drug transaction in YOUR neighborhood - where innocent and not so innocent people get killed. Where do some of the drugs come from - Packistan/Afghan? To support terrorism - kill our soldiers? Follow the money trail for once. Or have someone steal your car or computer etc. Talk about feeling violated without being raped....

Let's see if I follow this right. JHU student hears a noise in his garage. Picks up his sword, goes outside his house to get to the garage. Enters garage. Finds Mr. Rice. Gets lunged at and uses sword.

Why did this student go out to the garage? Property isn't more valuable even a scumbags life. Obviously, Rice was a piece of crap but he didn't deserve death for breaking into unattached garage.

JHU student may end up with a charge. At worst. At best, it doesn't say much for his judgement to out to the outbuilding in the first place.

" A white person murdering a black person is hailed as a 'hero' among other whites"

What a load of crap. This was no hate crime Leroy. It was a student attacking a robber. A career criminal gets killed while attempting to rob yet again and you equate it to a hate crime. The student is no hero, but the burglar is no victim. Yours is the most racist post I've read here Leroy.

I would have hacked his head off. YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO PROTECT YOURSELF. It doesn't matter what all of these idiots say. This government is going to spend itself broke anyway. When the police department is out of cash, what are you going to do? Do you think the cops will work for free?

Don't be scared to take back your rights. If your state doesn't support you and uses crime as a tool of oppression MOVE! Lets see how they function without our tax dollars.

comment by Leroy...you have got to be kidding! Until now, I never read the articles close enough to know whether the man committing the crime was black or white? But, I had already made up my mind that people have a right to defend themselves, their families and their property when attcked by an invader or criminal. This student responded out of fear of loss of his own property or possibly his own life. He didn't plan for this criminal to invade his home and he certainly didn't preplan what race or color the criminal would be. I feel very sorry that the young man has been placed in such an awful predictment by the criminal, but the criminal did not belong on the property and did not have the right to invade the young man's home. There's no glorification of this event, people are just fed up with criminals, fed up with the broken justice system and can't rely on the police. If the story read that young JHU students were killed today by an unknown assailant who enterd their apartment garage, would you call the event racist? Would you say one for the criminal, which by the way must be black, good for him, another vicious crime under his belt! Is that what you might be saying?

comment by Leroy...you have got to kidding! Until now, I never read the articles close enough to know whether the man committing the crime was black or white? But, I had already made up my mind that people have a right to defend themselves, their families and their property when attcked by an invader or criminal. This student responded out of fear of loss of his own property or possibly his own life. He didn't plan for this criminal to invade his home and he certainly didn't preplan what race or color the criminal would be. I feel very sorry that the young man has been placed in such an awful predictment by the criminal, but the criminal did not belong on the property and did not have the right to invade the young man's home. There's no glorification of this event, people are just fed up with criminals, fed up with the broken justice system and can't rely on the police. If the story read that young JHU students were killed today by an unknown assailant who enterd their apartment garage, would you call the event racist? Would you say one for the criminal, which by the way must be black, good for him, another vicious crime under his belt! Is that what you might be saying?

Midas,

A college kid hears his property being ransacked (for the second time in twenty-four hours) and he grabs what he has on hand and runs out. Witnesses say that the kid was only trying to defend his stuff and that the sword was for his own protection. Nobody expected a sneak thief to become aggressive...but the intruder did. The student only used the sword WHEN FORCED TO PROTECT HIMSELF.

If you knew the student you would know that he is NOT who you paint him to be.
And the police and witnesses also disagree with your slanderous and imaginative recreation of events.

You should be ashamed of yourself for making baseless accusations about John and his motives. Your half-baked "analysis" is pure hogwash.

The author writes that the intruder "didn’t deserve being hacked to death with a razor-sharp sword", but is that an any easier death than bleeding out from a gunshot wound? Granted, it's a very unusual method of home defense (though, surprisingly, not unheard of), but should Pontolillo's actions be subject to greater scrutiny because he used an unusual weapon?

The imagery of death by sword is visceral and raw, and makes the reader imagine the death much more personally than would a gunshot. Nevertheless, if the slaying of an intruder is justified, does the method matter? Had Pontolillo used a pistol instead, the rest of the country would never have heard of this incident, and this editorial would never have been written.

Other reports do indicate that according to witnesses, Pontolillo ordered the burglar to leave. Instead, Rice charged him. If true, that would likely constitute a reasonable assumption of a threat to his life. Regardless, Mr. Pontolillo will now likely face sizable legal fees, even if Rice's family doesn't sue him in civil court. All because Rice felt he had to steal someone else's property just days after finishing a prison sentence for doing the same thing. I'm actually surprised he didn't encounter an armed homeowner the first 29 times.

Glorifying the killing of the burglar is wrong. However, I do think the college kid who did this handled the situation just fine. You can't expect the residents of this city to call the cops every time they hear a strange noise in the house or the garage. You also can't expect the cops to respond to such calls, especially in a city where resources are stretched so thin. People investigate strange noises in their houses and apartment buildings all the time and out of common sense they normally bring a weapon with them. Most people use a bat or, in my case, I use a framing hammer. Donald Rice just happened to rob a house where the resident had a sword and he was obviously willing to fight for his loot. If Rice didn't want to be involved in a physical altercation he should have stuck to burglarizing in the day time when no one is home. Since he did it at night he risked getting into a physical altercation and judging from his rap sheet he probably wanted one. It's HIS fault for being there, not the student's.

GOOD JOB JOHN HOPKINS!!! SAVED US TIME AND MONEY

Stan Smith - This situation is an exact example of how a city functions without tax dollars... Innocent people who try to stick through the tough times are victims of others who are products of the system.

Lots of people who don't understand that the real world often is dangerous like to parrot the phrase "violence is not the answer". Well they are wrong. Violence is always a potential answer. Sometimes it's not the right or best answer.... but sometimes IT'S THE ONLY REASONABLE ANSWER.

Sure, the criminal deserved severe punishment, but now Mr. P has actually killed someone and cannot escape that before God. There may have been some other way of dealing with it, which would not have required such a brutal act. This will surely scar him emotionally and spiritually for the rest of this life. It's very sad.

Aw!! Lets feel sorry for the poor burglar who made a conscious decision to invade someones private domain to kill, steal or destroy and payed the ultimate price for his stupidity!

A man has the right to protect his home and its occupants with whatever manner he has at his disposal, whether it be a gun, a sword or stabbing someone in the neck with an ink pen. Do NOT be appalled because he used a sword to protect himself and his home, BE appalled at the fact that lawmakers, in essence want use to let the invading burglar scum to have free reign to kill, steal or destroy and then wait on the police to maybe and by chance recover property, which generally results in no recovery. Lawmakers, how does that play out? "Oh! Hi there Mr.Burglar. What would you like to steal today,or are you going to kill today or are you going destroy me and my home? Welllll, thats Ok, I'm not suppose to be an American and protect myself and family or take any action. You go ahead destroy me by killing my wife and then steal my car to get away." Yeah right!!, I don't think so!!

If a criminal chooses to commit a crime he should be prepared to face the consequences of his choice which in this case was his death. The criminal should have no rights as far as being able to sue the victim because of injury or death during a crime. Don't pay the criminal because their to stupid or lazy to get what they want by hard work and gets hurt or dead during a crime.

Don't be sad the burglar got killed, be mad because he chose to kill, steal or destroy.

Did Rice deserve to die? A better question, did Rice have the right to break in and kill, steal or destroy?

As in any profession there are certain risks one must understand. If you are a bridge worker - you face falling off the bridge, if you are a politician - you face scrutiny and humiliation, if you are a burglar - you face incarceration and ANY backlash from your vicitims. The buglar choose his profession, and now must deal with the consequences of his choice. This was not some 15 year old kid stealing a bike for the first time. This was a man who had 29 prior convictions (not to mention all of the times he didn't get caught doing something!) He had plenty of chances to turn his life around and didn't. I don't see how our society can't benefit from his dismissal. I believe that if more "victims" would start standing up for themselves, this city would have a little less to worry about.

Seriously? So, you have never grabbed the closest weapon you could find and walked around the house when you heard something? Most people have done it many of times and the result has been a mouse or imagination or whatever. Just so happens that this time it was an intruder who attacked the resident. Leave it to a Sun employee to have compassion for the intruder and attack the victim. No wonder no one reads or buys your paper anymore.

Obviously the writer has never been robbed. I say good riddance to bad rubbish. He just got out of jail on Saturday for stealing and the only thing he could think to do is find someone else to rob? He's what I call GOOD AND DEAD.

Reply to MIDAS

Are you an idiot or you act like one???

Because you don't even have any idea what the guy went through...im happy his dead so we don't have to pay for this kind of people that stay in jail and later we pay the rest (with a life)when they are out in the society.

Letter To the Editor:

Although to some extent I agree that two wrongs don't make a right, and an "Eye for an Eye, leaves the whole world blind", I must agree with the majority of commenters here whom have described at length their feelings of the greater scheme of situational violence within the city, and around the Baltimore county area.

What choice are average citizens left with in defending their own freedoms and right to life when repeat offenders are victimizing innocents all the time? I agree that there need to be better rehabilitations for offenders, and that a great weight of this death falls on the shoulders of the obviously ineffective justice system.

However, I also agree with posters whom have pointed out that your columnist Mr. Green obviously has shown a complete disregard for the plight of innocent individuals, the fear at which the victim must have felt in that situation, and the resulting death of a well-known felon, that has plagued the area for some time.

As someone else said Mr. Pontilillo should be awarded for his bravery in routing out Mr. Rice, and striking fear in the hearts of other violators that continue to dwell in these areas.

If the justice system is unwilling, or incapable of performing their role adequately within society, then private citizen's need to take culpability, and defend themselves in any way they can. Any less, and we could guarantee total chaos would ensue. Checks and balances are in place to protect everyone, but when those checks fail, then it is up to us as citizens to maintain that precarious balance.

Mr. Green should do himself a favor and study some Criminal Justice, Sociology and possibly Psychology, to better understand the context of this situation, and at least get his facts straight with regard to whom the victim really is in this case, and that is the society which we live in, in-general.

To Mr. Green; your time would be better spent writing opinions about how the Baltimore Justice system has failed this society we live in, as opposed to the private citizens eeking out a living, and acting on their own to defend it.

-avery

This student didnt go out to his garage to kill this guy. He went out there to stop him and hold him for the police. Only a nut, or a career criminal wouldnt obey a person holding a sword on them. I have no doubt that the victim had no choice but to defend himself against the attacker.

What a typical article from the Sun. I can see the "think tank" working to come up with something evil-sounding to describe the sword. "Hey guys, there wasn't a gun involved, so we can't use our standard adjectives 'Military style, semi-auto, or assault weapon', so let's come up with some new ones....I got it...razor sharp!" Give me a break. This kid deserves a medal of honor for taking out a career criminal while defending his Life, Liberty, and PROPERTY. We have GOT to stop sympathizing with these criminals, and treat them as they are...CRIMINALS

Shame that he got blood on his sword. I hope it didn't stain.

You're not serious are you? How dare you try to defend a dirtbag career criminal!If you or your rag had any self respect, you would be questioning why the career criminal dirtbag was on the street and not in jail where he would be safe. What happened to the"3 strikes" laws? He had 29 arrests for burglary, he was sentenced to 18 months in Dec 08? You should question why he was released after only 9 months.
This student did society a favor, we could spend the next 30 years paying room and board for Mr. Rice. Instead we just bury him.

Stop calling this guy a hero. Just agree he did what he had to do and then leave him to the rest of his life. I would have done the same thing, and I would encourage all people to learn to properly use violence in defense of ones self and property.

Also: Don't rejoice at the death of the burglar. It is unseemly and dancing on his grave reduces us. It reduces what happened to simple talking points.

A civilization must sometimes use violence to defend itself. Never rejoice in that. Understand it and never shrug from it, but it should never leave one feeling anything but hollow.

Here is the problem with this whole situation. The student was robbed earlier and upon hearing noises coming from the garage, armed himself with a sword. He then went into the garage and confronted an intruder. At this point the student has the chance to retreat to his home, lock the door behind him and call the police. The student chose to stay and continue the confrontation. At some point, as the student has said, the intruder lunged at him and he was forced to defend himself using the sword against the intruder. This caused the death of the intruder. One could argue that the student made up his mind after the first break in that he was going to handle the situation himself and if it came down to it the sword will be his protection. If I was a prosecutor this would be the route I would take to prosecute the student. The students actions were more detremental to the intruder then the intruders actions to the student. After all, the student had a very large sword and a way out. The intruder would have to go through the student and the sword to get to the door to leave.

My gut reaction to all of this is good, one less criminal in the world. My intellectual reaction to this is the student had an easier way out then the intruder.

I guess if Zach Sowers defended himself against the black kids that ultimately killed him, he would be a racist too. I guess Marcus and Leroy think that because SOME white people are racist and slavery USED TO BE legal in the U.S., whites deserve what Zack Sowers got. Hopkins students live in fear because they are preyed upon by thugs in this town, which is what Rice was. This kid took one swipe with this sword in fear. But I guess he should have assumed that Rice wouldn't beat him to death like Zach Sowers did when he handed over his valuables willingly.

Yes he did deserve to be"hacked to death with a razor sharp sword" as you put it, which I must say I doubt. He was probably impaled on a dull replica of a samurai. Regardless, who cares what Rice's family thinks, the only thing that matters is he threatened the life of another human. Breaking into a home, armed or not, is a threat to life and well being. As many have said before me, Rice took his own life into his hands when he broke the law. The only thing that's sad is that he lived as long as he did with the long record he held.

How can you write this editorial and not feel lame? He got what he deserved. Maybe criminals would think twice if people were more empowered to protect their own.

comment in reply to mack:

you need glasses. the robber was a black man.

for you, marcus and any other black people attempting to defend this n'er do well:

oh...and by the way, i am black, my comments previous to responding to you speak for themselves. i havent spoken to another black person today who wants to protest over this idiot being killed while committing a robbery. stop painting with a broad brush. any person, in my view, black or white, who is offering a defense for Mr. Rice is a "danged fool" as my grandmother used to say.

One of the worst cases of suicide I have ever heard of. Too bad so sad for the thief. My home is insured by Mossberg. A 6 shot pump12 guage riot gun with 3 inch magnum 00 buckshot always eliminates the intruder. I do not care what the law is. I refuse to be a victim of fuzzy brained Liberals.

Well, this is the first I heard of the dead mans race. Or the brave student fro that matter.

Anybody reading this, does it matter to you what the race of either party is?

Only Mr. Pontolillo will know whether he had to kill the intruder. It sure is nice to sit back and judge the situation as a journalist and say that we shouldn't praise this individual for killing another person, but on the other side of this we should praise him for having the courage to do what it takes to defend himself. Had he not been armed, he may be dead or hospitalized himself. I doubt Mr. Pontolillo is walking around bragging about how he ended another human's life, but because of his quick reaction and courage he at least has a future. If every burglar in Baltimore was terrified of breaking into a house and being stared down by a shotgun, a handgun or a samurai sword, that would make it too risky of a business for many of this city's criminals.

The editor is correct, this was a tragedy. I think Mr. Pontillo should recieve state-funded therapy for such a traumatic experience.

When seconds count, the police are only minutes away.

I don't think the burglar was looking for property, he was probably looking for health care.

RC - BRAVO!!!

I believe in law and order, I also believe that it is my duty to protect my family, myself and our property. When a thief takes something of value from a person he steals a portion of that person's life. If the stolen property was purchased by the victim, then that victim had to work so many hours of his or her life in order to earn the money to purchase this item.

If I was the one who killed the thief, I wouold feel bad that I had to, but I would not have had to had the thief not tried to rob me.

The police do a good job, but they can not sit in your living room with you 24/7 it is our responsibility to protect ourselves. I am white and I would defend myself against a white person as fast as I would a non-white. If more criminals were dealt with by the victims, there would not be so many victims. My home and property are sacred to me and if you intrude on my sanctuary then be prepared to be dealt with before the police arrive.

I am not advocating vigilantyism (?) but I am advocating protecting yourself first and then calling the police. Make criminals think twice before intruding on other people's lives.

Three cheers for the student who was brave enough to confront that dirtbag. Criminals need to fear consequences of their actions. While the police do what they can they can't be everywhere at once. A citizen needs to have every right and opportunity to defend themselves and their property. How could that student not feel threatened when there was a stranger on his property and we was just robbed a short while prior to that incident.
Good for him!

I have no problem with taking someone's life if mine or my family's life is in jeopardy.

I am a social worker that sees the victimization of folks everday in this city.

Andy doesn't believe in ordinary Americans standing up for themselves; he would rather us depend on the police.

The same police that allowed the Dawson family to get firebombed by the people that truly run the city.

Andy has no problem with disempowering citizens, and that's exactly what he does when he demonizes a person that protected their self.

Mr. flyifrvfr

Thanks for your comments.
You could not have said it better!!!!!
Just hope the prosecutor has a backbone to go to trial.

Finally someone reasonable!

Do any of the self-defense detractors here have any CLUE what residents of Charles Village have been going though?

Nightly car break-ins, burglaries, brazen assaults, muggings, and don't forget the occasional home-invasion/rape. The animals from Penn Lucy, Waverly, and North Ave know that the "rich college kids" are back in town and come to Charles Village to prey on them. They're easy pickings.

Why are there people who are so intolerant of people defending themselves and their property? The idea that the police are your sole means of protection is a joke. If any of you had an actual ENCOUNTER with one of these animals, you'd wish you had a weapon on you.

This kid shouldn't have had a sword, he should have been carrying a pistol or shotgun, and the police should have shaked his hand and dropped the carcass in the 33rd ST. median as a warning to all the other savages.

@"Ashish M" It's bad because Pontolillo has to live with having killed another human being. It doesn't matter how bad Rice was, or how much Rice brought on his own demise. Even if there was nothing different Pontolillo could do, in the back of his mind, for the rest of his life, he will struggle with having killed someone's son, brother, or father. That's not really fair to him since he was only trying to protect himself and his belongings, something most people would consider reasonable.

This dirtbag with 27 convictions, some that included violence and guns, got what he deserved!

I used to live directly across the street from the house where this happened when I was a student at JHU. Our house was also burglarized (stolen laptops, cameras, playstations, etc), and it was a very upsetting experience. However, I absolutely do NOT think that this kid did the right thing.

Unseemly is definitely the right word for a lot of these reactions. I think if people were actually forced to think about what happened and the consequences, they would realize that this is not something to be happy about. We are not Saudi Arabia - we do not cut off people's hands for stealing. I think(/hope) that no one would actually advocate the death penalty for burglary.

That being said, I am not about to say that this kid was criminally liable without knowing more about what happened. It is a very difficult issue, and one that seems to be right at the borderline of the law in Maryland. If he was attacked and this was the only way he could defend himself, it was a tragic event, but not criminal. If he went out to the garage to confront a suspected burglar and killed him as he tried to escape, that seems undeniably wrong. But like I said, I have no idea what happened that night.

One thing is clear in hindsight, though: He should NOT have gone outside his house armed with a sword looking for someone. He put himself and anyone else that was in the area at risk. What if it had been me walking my dog in the alley (as I often did) that startled him?

One man died unnecessarily and another is going to be haunted by this for the rest of his life. This was a tragedy, and people should think about what happened for 2 seconds before glorifying it.

In response to giving Donald Rice what he deserved -- I doubt John was aware of the intruder's criminal history before he acted; he was only reacting to the occurrences in the last 24 hours.

But that's not to say I don't approve of his decision to serve him justice. Having been at Hopkins for two murders of students, one premeditated, the other a random act much like this one, I know what it's like to feel the need to defend oneself in that neighborhood. I have several friends who were robbed while walking home at night, and I still remember how terrifying it was to witness a mugging outside my apartment building.

I think the real issue here is that Hopkins does not provide upperclassmen with adequate housing. We all had to face the decision of either the security of an apartment building across the street from the library, or the frugality of a row house closer to Greenmount. It's a shame that JHU doesn't make that choice easier for us, and I think the university should do everything possible to defend John from any charges he faces.

This story touched me very personally. I am a Johns Hopkins alumnus and I lived on the 300 block of East University from 2006-2008, in a very similar row house I'm sure.

My house was burglarized three times while I lived there. Each time I was home but in another room. Each time electronics were stolen, including a lop top that contained a 35-page term paper on the history of slavery and industry in Baltimore (yes, I'm still bitter!) But something much more was taken from me by those bastards, and anyone who has ever had their home burglarized knows exactly what I'm talking about.

A burglary, or any type of violation of personal security, is a terribly damaging experience no matter the outcome. It is impossible to feel secure after that. I’m no idiot either—we always kept everything locked up. The guy broke the door down the first time and managed to jimmy the windows unlocked the other two times, while we were in the middle of contacting our landlord to get bars installed.

The cops investigating the break-ins to my house informed me that under Maryland law I would have to attempt to retreat from my own home if another intruder broke in, instead of attacking him, unless I could prove that I feared for my physical safety, so I was glad to hear that the student said the guy came after him.

In my judgment no matter what the exact circumstances this guy got what was coming to him. The fact is you take a risk when you enter someone's home. And when you do it over and over and over again you multiply that risk. As anyone who remembers some of my other posts will remember, I'm no hard-liner either, but these situations are quite clear: only one person was there illegally, stealing property.

Keep in mind that two Hopkins students have been MURDERED by intruders in very similar situations in the past five years. Another was raped in her dorm room in 2006. Every student knows these stories and has seen the photos of the victims who never had the opportunity to complete their education--especially those who live off-campus.

Those burglaries really changed/shaped my worldview. Hell, I bought my first gun after it! For the rest of my life I will never sleep without a weapon nearby, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't lay in bed at night in that house on East University after the burglaries, fantasizing about wrecking the next would-be thief with a blunt object or shotgun. I literally cried out in joy when I read the story yesterday. Justice Served!

As a side note, you really need to check your facts. There is no way that sword was "razor sharp" and he didn't hack the guy to death--read your own story. You reported that he was killed with one, maybe two swipes of the sword, which were defensive according to all four witnesses (aka the victims if you ask me). Secondly, he did call the police, but they had not arrived yet. Was he just supposed to sit there and wait and see if he would come into the house again?

And a final issue, Rice should have been in prison. If he was sentenced to 18 months in prison in December of 2008, *why* was he set free in September of 2009? Barely 10 months of an 18 month sentence for a habitual, repeat offender? The person or board who made the decision to release Rice 8 months early made a huge mistake. Instead of taking the student to task for defending his property, we should examine the prisons (filled with nonviolent drug offenders) early release system and their obviously faulty decision.

Great work stoking conversation, but I really hope you reconsider your position before press time.

The only question I have is why would anyone ever buy a copy of the Baltimore Sun? A once great newspaper, now a rag!

In reply to: B. T.,

Reading is obviously fundamental, and apparently, optional.

If you actually bothered to read the editorial, you will see that the victim was in his home, in his garage as a matter of fact, when he defended himself, (on his property) from a burglar that was stupid enough to return to the house on what may have been his second attempt to get more of his personal property, at which point the victim (Mr. Pontollilo), grabbed what weapon he could to confront the burglar, from which we know the resulting death of the suspect (Mr. Rice) ensued.

The real legal question involved which may lead to the victim's arrest in this matter is whether or not it is considered reasonable that he defended himself in such a manner, and, if, as someone else pointed out that he planned specifically to act in the way he did as a direct result of his previous burglary, as a form of retribution, which at the very least would be criminally negligent homicide, or manslaughter, but this is up to the State Prosecutor to decide, not average citizenry.

I love the way the author assumes that Mr. Pontolillo's life has been changed forever. While I'm sure he is traumatized, it's wildly arrogant to assume he's feeling some horrid degree of remorse. Perhaps he even feels good.

The attention to this event does not belie the "tragedy" of the situation but that people are fed up with crime in Baltimore. My son was brutally assaulted recently whne several juveniles attacked him with a hammer. The detective on the case won't even talk to me anymore. I wish I had been nearby with something to defend my son.

to Paul,

I don't see how Mr. Pontillilo has to live with anything? I'm not even sure why he should even give it a second thought actually? He acted within the scope of what he deemed reasonable at that moment in time.

With regard to concern for Mr. Rice's next of kin, the least I can say is that entire affair is another case of "Darwinism applied".

-avery

As people that were not in the situation, I find it quite hard to stomach the notion that blaming the kid for not calling the police quite absurd. I wonder how many people killed in home invasions decided to hide and not call the police. These houses are small and there would no escape for this young man if the intruder had come in his room to steal things. As I am sure we can agree, that most of the valuables are not in the garage, but in bedrooms, especially in college kids homes. We do not know what the intent of the man that broke was. Was he there to just steal something in the living room? Since the house had just been robbed, maybe all the goods were gone from the living room. If the kid had just stayed in his room and called the police, no one can say for sure the man would not have been up in his room a minute later, before the police ever arrived. There are so many factors that are unpredictable and this kid did was instincts told him to. I do not believe he should have ANY blame or ANY of his actions questioned because he and all his roommates are alive and to me, that is all that matters.

I don't think Andy Green meant for his editorial to be taken seriously. It's only intended to get normal people all stirred up.

Good job Andy, it was funny!

As far as I know there was a case where the man electrocuted the burglars by running some electricity on the roof of his store and got assault charge. I dont remember that correctly because it was one of the cases in High school law class. This is also similar situation. A human is human but has no right to trespass into others property. I dont praise Mr. Pontolillo for his act because any other could have been used to stop Mr. Rice.

One last thing...Ponts (the victim) will not be prosecuted. Jessammy will know that this is not a winnable case. No jury in the world would convict him of anything.

confronting an intruder with a weapon does NOT prove intent to kill. Only intent to detain. How do you know he wasn't simply intending to get the guy on the ground until police arrive?

He confronted the criminal, the guy lunged at him, and he responded with deadly force. ALL WITHIN HIS OWN PROPERTY. His own home.

It is perfectly within everyone's legal rights to confront an intruder in your home with a weapon, even in Maryland.

When Mr. Rice took it upon himself to take illegally from another, he assumed the risk. One assumes he planned only to steal again; but, he may have killed Mr. Pontillilo. This is supposed to be a land of law. Mr. Pontillilo has the right to defend himself & property. Law abiding citizens have the right to defend themselves. A friend at age 21 40 years ago was robbed & killed leaving a college dance; if he had a sword or gun, maybe he would be alive today with his own family. Good for Mr. P!

To Rach H:

"I agree....to glorify this murderer is insane. It's just one more instance of the racism we see in America today. A white person murdering a black person is hailed as a 'hero' among other whites. In reality he should be locked up for murder."

Yes. Clearly this was a HATE CRIME. Any time a white person raises a hand to a black person, that makes them a card-carrying member of the the National Alliance. Conversly, any time a black person injures a white person, that has NOTHIGN to do with race. Okay. Thanks for clearing that up.

"This was a vicious act..and Mr. Rice did not deserved to be butchered and massacred like an animal."

Yes he did, because he WAS an animal, as demonstrated by his actions. John Pontalillo was attacked by an animal and was forced to put it down. The end.

"As many in the media have pointed out, the fact that we now have a black president has only emboldened the racists in our society."

Really? You found a way to bring this up, HERE? You must be completely neurotic. In your crazy world, everything - EVERYTHING - must be about race. That's sad. Sounds like you have some "hate" of your own to deal with.

"I think we will continue to see an increase in hate crimes unless we take drastic action now. A good first step would be to send this murderer to prison forever."

What about the BLACK man who shot and killed BLACK kid who was stealing a bicycle out of his yard a few years ago? Remmeber that? The guy was AQUITTED! No one breathed a word! Where was your outrage then?

It's easy for a Monday morning quarter back to comment about a situation when all the facts are presented neatly in front of them.
He only had the fact that somebody forcefully entered his home. His instinct to react and protect his life was right on. Live by the sword die by the sword!!!

Constitutionally every American has the right to defend his or life and property. I bet, if B'more police searched intruder Donald Rice's living space
they'd probably turn up Mr. Pontolillo's missing items from the previous robbery.

I'm sorry the man had to lose his life but he deserved what he got. More power to the Samurai Student for fighting back - instead of just allowing himself to be another victim of crime in America.

I only wish that sweetheart murdered at Yale had
a gun to defend herself...

"Detached reflection cannot be demanded in the presence of an uplifted knife." - Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

This kid is an example for all Americans that we need to protect our rights, because there's always someone within our midst who would be more than happy to give it up to purchase an illusion of safety.

If the DA decides to bring charges, we need to set up a defense fund and a political cashbox so we can kick the idiot out of office.

The INTRUDER had a choice not to "break and enter" but he did, again and again. The intruder also had a choice not to attack the armed defender. But because he did attack, he forced this fatal outcome on himself. The student did what anyone would do in his place- he fought for his life. Defending oneself is a reflexive reaction without time for thought. You imply that the homeowner should know the "just right" way to respond to a dangerous intruder-and make no mistake- any intruder is inherently dangerous. (What about him pulling a gun on a police officer?) How can you possibly suggest this professional criminal is the "victim"??? The criminal is fully responsible here- don't imply otherwise.

Your kind of attitude is responsible for the ridiculous laws that would prevent people from protecting their lives in their own homes. With laws like the ones in MD that require you retreat if someone breaks into your home, there is no need to hang a sign on your door welcoming any criminal. It's implied!

Isn't that the appropriate punishment for stealing - having your hand cut off? Bravo to the JHU student. People of Baltimore, take back the city!

This is a use of force by Mr. Pontolillo, in which the suspect Mr. Rice, was killed.

The preliminary investigation has shown that Mr. Pontolillo's use of force was justified. While we do not know what the outcome of additional investigation will be, I guess that the completed investigation will affirm the preliminary investigation, that the use of force was justified.

It may interest some of you to know that among the crimes that Mr. Rice had been arrested for, were assault type crimes, including, resisting arrest. Mr. Rice was clearly a dangerous man.

Now a note for those not clear on this. The police were called. Mr. Pontolillo chose to confront the suspect, Mr. Rice. That choice is legal. Mr. Pontolillo reports that the suspect attacked him, and he reacted against the attack. Again, this is legal. Mr. Rice died as a result of his criminal actions.

Personally, I believe that any criminal who attacks an armed citizen assumes the risk of being killed. After all, why would a criminal perpetrator attack, an armed citizen? To disarm and harm, and perhaps kill the citizen is the only logical answer.

Yes, I feel that an armed citizen is justified in using deadly force against a criminal who attacks him or her.

Please remember that Mr. Rice made the decisions that led to his demise. He made the decision to commit burglary, a hazardous profession at best. He chose to attack an armed citizen, a fatal, criminal mistake.

Thank you,

John Rentz

Mr. Green,

Well, I must say if it was your intent to cause a discussion with your choice of words - congrats, you did it!

I do think you choice of saying the intruder was "hacked to death" was over the top. It does not sound like he was hacked, but rather attacked after he lunged at Mr. Pontolillo. I doubt Mr. Pontolillo was trying to kill him. What would have happened if he did not swing his sword? Maybe he would have suffered death himself.

It is truly sad that a life was lost and I feel for Mr. Rice and his family. However, on the other side, Mr. Rice knew that his actions may cause unintended consequences. Or at least he should have. Obviously the system was unable to help Mr. Rice change his life. So, in a way society has failed. Criminals remain criminals and in the end everyone pays the price.


Regards,


Dale Coats

Opinions like yours, Mr. Green, empower criminals, increase the crime rate, overwhelm the police force's capacity and ultimately turn victims into criminals. I live in Hollywood where, believe it or not, the police are easily seen at the turn of a corner and private security companies swarm the neighborhoods. Clearly the police where Mr. Pontillo live are not as well funded, else the area would not be the ripe orchard Mr. Rice was attempting to harvest when he kicked the bucket.

I personally am baffled by the fact that a criminal in the act of committing a crime has any rights at all. Can any sane person actually support the position that Mr. Rice, at the time his hand was severed, had more of a right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness than his victim?

And by the way, you exaggerate terribly with the expression "butchered and massacred like an animal". That was WAY over the top, son. He wasn't butchered, and he wasn't massacred. The first term implies that which takes place in a slaughterhouse where livestock is processed for human consumption. The second term is ordinarily used in descriptions of warfare. Rice suffered wounds that he could have avoided by not having been there in the first place and not lunging at his victim. He took a huge risk in continuing a career in burglary, and a further risk in attempting to physically attack his victim who was carrying a sword. Clearly, Rice was a risk taker. Had he had more education, he might have become more the Madoff type and still be alive. It was Rice's risk taking that led to his demise. Ergo, he did it to himself. End of story.

Why are you not outraged that Rice was in that young man's garage? Do you favor criminals? Are you a criminal? Do you seek to enhance the rights of criminals in order to afford yourself additional protections as you commit crimes against other people?

Please ignore Leroy. He's an internet troll who is just trying to incite a race war on this blog. He made similar comments when Zach Sowers died.

Everyone has been talking about how the police failed to do their jobs when it came to handling Mr. Rice. This could not be further from the truth. The Baltimore City courts are who failed to protect the citizens of this benighted state from Mr. Rice. If you review all of this late scumbags court appearances, on this web site: http://casesearch.courts.state.md.us/inquiry/inquiry-index.jsp you'll see, as I did, that all of Mr. Rice's cases were handled in BALTIMORE CITY and he received VIRTUALLY NO punishment for any of them. Then he made the mistake of searching for new, and greener pastures for his criminal enterprises and entered Baltimore County where he received his 18 month sentence.

What we really need to do is to clean house from top to bottom in the BALTIMORE CITY judicial system. Get rid of them all from the highest ranking judges to the lowest ranking clerical employees and replace them with people who have common sense. The Baltimore City judicial system is completely BROKEN and must be replaced.

I used to feel that if someone stole from me they must have needed it more than I. That is until my home was broken into 13 times in less than 12 months. You have your home and personal safety violated once is traumatic enough. Thank God I live in a state with a castle law and allows honest law abiding citizens to obtain a carry license. Because the next time someone threatens my home my property my family or myself at the least they're leaving in handcuffs and at worst in a body bag. And I'll live with the guilt if need be.

My house was ripped off and personal items taken; they weren't expensive things, but sentimental, like earrings from my deceased mother. Six weeks later, in mid-afternoon, I unlock my back door, walk through my kitchen and here comes a SCUZZ-BAG from out of my bedroom. In 1/4 of a second I knew I could AND WOULD kill him with my briefcase if I had to! Such rage and anger welled up in me! I growled from the depths of my bowels (and hell), "GET OUT!!" and looked him in his eyes while I pointed to the back door. I kept my eyes on him as he passed within 2 feet of me and then he started running out the door. Later in my bedroom was a bag(mine)with a camera and some other stuff which hadn't been taken in the LAST robbery, piled on the bed so he could just carry it like luggage. Being robbed twice, with just enough time in between for my insurance check to arrive and for me to have just replaced some of the first stolen possessions, I was FILLED with rage! I had EARNED my own money by the sweat of my brow to be able to afford these items, had sacrificed to buy it, or dear friends and family had gifted me with my little treasures; then this cowardly, lazy, parasite TAKES WHAT ISN'T HIS!! and that ticks me off!!! I swear that if my briefcase hadn't killed him I was a few steps from the kitchen and I would have gotten the baddest serrated- edge knife I could find and slit, poked, jabbed it anywhere it would go in---and he could tell by the look on my face that I would do it! I'm 5 ft tall, AND I KNEW I WAS MORE POWERFUL THAN this lazy, law-breaking, bottom-dweller.)This time he got away with NOTHING of mine. (The police arrived in 20 min). In a split second, not everyone knows WHAT they'll do. I was mad as hell, no room in there for fear. Peace and love to all.

While death should never really be glorified, even for a person who is harmful to society, the tone of this editorial is not representative of reality. What would happen if the situation was reversed and the intruder killed the student? Would the Sun stand by Mr. Rice then with a tale of how society failed him? (In fact, Baltimore County has failed society and Mr. Rice by rereleasing him into the world where he immediately resumed his criminal career) When will responsibility be placed on the criminal? When does the criminal stop becoming the victim? For decades urban decay has rotted Baltimore from the core outwards. Finally, to combat this rot, a young citizen defends his castle, against wrong, and is now threatened with charges and an unfair editorial. Yes, it is sad that Mr. Pontolillo will have to live with this for the rest of his life, but I imagine it will be a life of productivity and meaningful living, not malfeasance and waste.

And yes Mr. Green, the situation could have been different. Mr. Pontolillo could have stayed inside and waited for city police, who would have handed him an incident report and done little else. Meanwhile, Mr. Rice would still be on the streets, getting ready for his next crime. Perhaps it would have been your house or car that he entered next. Perhaps Mr. Rice would have brought a gun next time. Please explain how that would be a better outcome, Mr. Green.

I agree that the punishment might be considered excessive, but when a person is foolish enough to break into a stranger's house, it can get really bad. Sorry family, but you should have figured it was going to end like this. I can guarantee that you would not want me to catch you breaking into my house. I will shoot to kill. The good news here is this is one career criminal that will not cause another person harm. He could have continued for years more.

I was a student at Hopkins when Chris Elser and Linda Trihn were murdered. Granted, one was not a random case, but I think this incident speaks volumes for the security issues that upperclassmen at Hopkins face when living off-campus.

While murder clearly is not something I condone, it seems Mr. Pontolillo had no intent to kill Mr. Rice. If that were the case, why not just stab Mr. Rice in the chest or throat?

Also, Mr. Rice is a grown man -- 49 years old with allegedly 20+ offenses against him. When you are of that age with that many counts against you, you HAVE to know your actions have consequences you have to take responsibility for.

I understand that overcrowding in Baltimore City jails is a problem and while that is an entirely different issue, we see the results of what happens when repeat offenders slip out too early.

One less scumbag roams the streets of Baltimore this evening. I feel sorry for his family but not for him. A 29 time repeat offender and he only served 9 months of an 18 month sentence. He should have been sentenced to 18 years and served them all. Way to go Patricia Jessamy, the only one to blame besides that recidavist piece of garbage is you.

If they are unhappy with the tone of reaction to this story, editorialists should at least fully explain why their position on the issue is so fundamentally different from the 90 percent of the people posting here. Your editorial is ignoring a fundamental disgust with the level of crime and the ineffecacy of the policy. Please also address this.

Ronald B. Rice has been a menace to society for most of his adult life. Good riddance to some very bad rubbish.

Will thug-hugger Jessamy persecute the true crime victim? Her threat to use a 'wiretap law' specifically crafted to protect corrupt politicians in the 'ACORN Sting' demonstrates that she is unfit for any public office.

Why is Baltimore so thug friendly?

Andy, why don't you fall on a sword to atone for your pathetic opinion. I'm speaking figuratively, of course, unless this is the 29th stupid thing you've said in your life.

Anyone in your home should be free game. The should know the risk upon entering...and they do that is why they sneak in. OUR JUDICIAL SYSTEM IS SO WACKED. I was in court one time and watched the defendant lie til the cows came home and he won. Crooked men..crooked cases.

Why SHOULD have it been "handled differently"? What is wrong with the outcome? A career criminal who hadn't been out of jail more than a week for his prior conviction has been removed from the society that he terrorized for the majority of his life. The student defended himself, as was his right. If the Baltimore police were dependable and the courts reliable, then perhaps dialing 911 could have been an option. But until our police and justice system prove they are capable of performing the duties they have been entrusted with, citizens will continue to pick up the slack. If there were more people willing to defend themselves, perhaps situations like this wouldn't occur as frequently.

Why *didn't* he deserve to get chopped up? The wages of sin are death. The man just got out of jail for theft. You take your victims as you get them, and this time he got a victim with a big knife. Would you feel better if the guy was shot instead of chopped? This guy had a second chance *and more* and threw them away. He finally learned his lesson. If he isn't the one who stole the other stuff, whoever did now has a strong incentive to return them.

Don't start nuthin', won't be nuthin'.- Will Smith in Independence Day

The city needs to confiscate the weapon and let the matter drop. They *ought* to leave the body hanging in the town square, but that won't happen. I'd contribute to a cleaning fund. I'll bet the roommates aren't late with the rent anymore.

re the comments made by Opie, Anonymous1, Midas, Kyle, Marcus, LeRoy and any other apologist or race monger I may have missed.............the vast majority of this city's (and close metro area) violent crime is within the black community on each other. Second might be by black members on other rainbow and white members. Far off the Bell curve somewhere in the third deviation is violent crimes committed by white members on black members. If this student was a black JHU student, this event wouldn't even get much press coverage except to the extent it was 'JHU' related. Whether black or white, our citizenry should have no hesitation to defend itself against criminals especially within the confines of our residences. We should not have to entertain thoughts about peer mediation requirements when confronted with a potentially violent invasive situation. I don't intend to and I wouldn't expect any of the rest of Baltimore to have to. Let the police come and fill out administrative forms afterward.

I have been a victim of a home burglary and i still do not believe the situation was handled correctly. The burglar was in the GARAGE and he went looking. What this student did can be justified as hacking because that's exactly what happens when a weapon of this caliber comes into contact with the body. HIS HAND WAS HACKED OFF!!

I'm originally from Baltimore now living in Olathe, Kansas. I'm proud to say my hometown is Baltimore, Maryland. However stories like this tarnish the city's image...and editorials like this remind the rest of the country why we should be scared of liberalism! When visiting my family we no longer go to Baltimore City...Harbor Place, Aquarium, Zoo, etc...you are truly taking your life in your hands. Why would a student with the credentials choose Hopkins after hearing a story like this????
Gov. O'Malley, Mayor Dixon, law abiding citizens, Baltimore Sun...WAKE THE HELL UP!!

The criminal justice system can't be trusted, they keep releasing criminals into society to victimize people who refuse to fight back. What would have happened if the first victim of Phillip Garrido carried a sword to defend herself? Instead you have bleeding heart liberals defending low lifes, reminds me of the story of the homeless activist lawyer's daughter who was recently murdered by a homeless guy just release from jail in Los Angeles.

If more people defended their homes and property, there would be a whole lot less crime.

I cannot put into words the relief I feel after reading through the comment posts pertaining to this piece. Thank you, fellow citizens. I would like to take solace thinking this "editorial" is just more contrarian banter from an armchair liberal with no capacity for pragmatic thought; everything just gushes from the heart with no rationality! I love people. I want to trust in them. I want to give them the benefit of the doubt. Unfortunately, I have to deal with the REALITY that evil is rife among us. Do you hear that, Mr. and Mrs. “Progressive?” Some of us deal in reality, not pie in the sky, “if I show I care enough about him he won’t put a bullet in my head mentality.” Yet concurrently, I grieve for the human condition that fosters the milieu that nourishes such an event.

States Attorney my, *ss. Potential criminal prosecution! Damn if we are not at the trough of the slippery slope we started sliding down with the onset of liberal appeasement, social promotion, and relativistic morality.

Yet, that is why I am so relieved with the other responses. I thought I was alone. I’m pretty psyched I am not. Although, one may not presume to know it in the myopic worldview of Baltimore and Maryland for that matter, but the people are governed by their consent. The ultimate responsibility lies with us to enact change, so that the threat of prosecution is not even entertained in such a circumstance. Stop the appeasement! The left has had the reigns to this city and state for 50 freaking years. Why does the urbanite complain about the deprave state of this city, yet continue to vote in the same exact people, proxies, and men and women of similar dispositions?! It is truly ignorance and close-mindedness in action. Wise up.

Damn I am psyched I am not alone. Thanks for the comments!

Peace.

Criminals feed off our societies leniency. Whatever happened to three strikes and your out! This guy just got out of jail and hes was a repeat offender... how many times does it take for someone to get locked up before it dawns on them that what they are doing is wrong... If you ask me (and your probably not) the dirt bag got what was coming to him. There is no victimless crime. What makes you think Mr. Pontolillo is going to sit around for the rest of his life regretting his choice? I think he did the right thing...even if Mr. Rice didn't lunge at him. Mr. Rice invited the situation. I think more people should take a stand... Maybe then we would have less BS to deal with. Nuff' said!

In my legal worldview, as in if I were king, a criminal would have zero rights once they had entered someone's property and taken any action that would bring about harm to the persons or personal property on it. Period. A criminal's rights should end at the property line... oh, wait, it actually is that way in several states, where they have far lower crime rates. Just think about that statement: They have far lower crime rates.

That means this situation happens far less often in those areas where people are fully empowered to use whatever means necessary to protect themselves and their property, and the criminals are not protected and coddled by the judicial system and liberals in general. There, people are threatened less often, and people threaten others less often. Fewer people, in total, die or are injured, whether that be the criminals or their victims. Less property has to be reimbursed via insurance, so rates are lower. Less taxes are forced out of citizens to pay for law enforcement that can never protect any citizen all the time regardless. Law-abiding citizens are more relaxed, less afraid, and they and their families are happier, and therefore more productive and contributive to society.

Fact: Less people die, or are permanently injured, due to crime. That's a number. It has no opinion or emotion or political viewpoint. It is one of those few objective absolutes, of which this proposed editorial is considerably lacking.

"being hacked to death with a razor-sharp sword. And the student, John Pontolillo, who grabbed his sword and ran toward the sounds of an intruder in his garage instead of calling the police"

Subjective terms or unverified data used: "hacked", "razor-sharp", "grabbed", "ran", "instead of" All potentially false, used in the name of yellow journalism (or excused as editorial, sorry). Fortunately, I diverted early from Journalism into subjects that require Critical Thinking courses to graduate.

Just a couple for fun: How do you know the sword was "razor-sharp"? Do you know that he "grabbed" it, or did he maybe gingerly pick it up by the handle, being as quiet and careful as possible, it being a "razor-sharp" weapon and all? Are you sure he "ran" toward the "sound"? I mean, is it possible that he was afraid, knowing that burglars kill people in his neighborhood, and that instead he "walked", if not "crept"? And aren't we slyly inserting a pre-bias in making an assumption of some guilt on his part, to say he did one thing "instead of" another, both of which are equally legal and valid under the law (hopefully Maryland hasn't removed people's rights even that far)?

It's been mentioned before, but I am still astounded that daily newspapers are in confusion as to why they are going out of business. Evolution does happen, if slowly. We are onto your game. You lose when you sensationalize and spin, thinking that will sell papers. It doesn't. Or at least for not much longer.

Returns me to my Journalism classes 30 years ago... My professor started the first class with the statement that only two newspapers remained in the country that were not "yellow" (The Wall Street Journal and The Christian Science Monitor). Nowadays, I imagine WSJ is the last one, because if you don't report facts about people's money, you go out of business.

Apparently, not so about any other subject.

Tomorrow's editorial? It's already been written for you -- www.johnpontolilloisabadass.com

How sad. This is a tragedy for everyone involved. The criminal paid dearly for his stupidity - with his life, but that's a chance he took every time he decided to commit a crime.

The student will probably not recover from this for a very long time, if ever. Taking a life, "justified" or not, has to be life changing, and not in a good way. He'll certainly leave school, and leave Baltimore (what parent would want their child to live here after this). There will be a terrible cloud hanging over his future and he'll probably struggle with this for the rest of his life.

What do you want to bet the sale of swords goes up dramatically?

This editorial is ridiculous. Self defense in the face of a mortal threat is never wrong, especially in one's home. Good for Mr. Pontolillo for protecting himself.

if i had a subscription to this paper,i would drop it now.

I lived in Maryland for a few years during the early 90's. Even then the area around Johns Hopkins was very bad. The student should be commended for defending himself. Frankly, Baltimore is a terrible place. Some nice people, but Baltimore was then and I am sure is now a grim, nasty city. We lived in Severn and EVERY house had an alarm system due to Pioneer City being just down the road.

Well, I might question Mr. Pontolillo's choice of weapons. The katana isn't the best choice in close quarters...he could have struck a wall or ceiling. No, the best close quarter weapon would have been the wakizashi-the smaller companion blade which is designed for use indoors. And lopping off a hand doesn't have the same deterrent effect as posting a severed head in the front yard with a sign in big red letters declaring "NEXT!"

This whole sword reportinf and editorializing in the BSun has a massive bit of hypocracy in it. The main part of the story is about the guy with the sword and the whole issue of should he be charged with something (NO, he should not). It's going to be referred to the DA. At the end of the story there is mention of a similar earlier incident where an off-duty police office chases a robber for blocks and then shoots him. Where is the editorial castigating the OFF-DUTY police office for not stopping to call the ON-duty police. And why is it OK for the police to chase down and shoot some poor misguided crook yet there some question when a person in their own home and property does the same. I am sick and tired of this double standard where the cops can kill people with hardly any questions asked yet if a citizen in fear of their life dares to defend themselves the whole justice system trys to screw them.

I don't know what the big deal is.

Rice was given the exact same punishment by Pontillio that the Maryland justice system gave him - a slap on the wrist.

I mean, in this case, it took his hand off at the wrist, but the penalty was the same!

If I understand the situation correctly, the criminal lunged at the student, knowing full well that the student was armed with a katana.

I do not celebrate the death of the criminal, but he did attack the student. And if the situation is understood correctly (and it probably is), he did have the opportunity to surrender. That's all he had to do - drop to the ground, put his hands behind his head, and wait for the police to come and arrest him.

Mr. Green:

As you note, John Pontolillo will spend the rest of his life grappling with the fact that he killed another human being. While some may condemn his actions or theorize about alternate outcomes if he had responded differently, it is worth considering the possibilty that Mr. Pontolillo's life may very well have been saved by his actions.

Donald Rice was a habitual criminal. Jail did not deter him from repeated offenses. He once pointed a loaded gun at a police officer. There is no way of knowing his intentions when he lunged at John Pontolillo in the garage, but his actions were enough to inspire fear in the student.

The tragic murder of Hopkins undergraduate Chris Elser in 2004 serves as an important counterpoint and reminder of how this scenario might have unfolded differently. Those who are celebrating the outcome of this event do so out of relief that self-defense was an option for Mr. Pontolillo, cheering that he did not become another casualty of the crime in our city.

The language of this article is reprehensible, it makes inappropriate judgments on a case that has not been resolved or even adequately investigated.

I regret that anyone dies, but habitual criminal, persistent and insistent criminal, versus student... I am not rooting for the criminal or seeking to blame the kid.

If someone breaks in to my house I'm certain I can live with killing them if it means me and mine stay alive.

Mr. Green,
Could you post your home address?
Some folks are running low on cash in this economy, but are afraid to break into just any home for fear of being killed by the homeowner. You can help them!

he broke into the man's house at night.that means he broke when it was likely and obvious that someone would be at home..

he gets hacked up for stealing and breaking and entering

remember in some countries, the time of day a break/entering takes place influences the length of sentence.

you have to ask yourself.---what do i expect can happen if i sneak into some persons house at night while they are most likely home.- sleeping..etc.

hmm.....
its like the guy who walks out onto a shooting range....yeah the death could have been avoided and it is tragic...but whos to blame?

its also common sense to assume that a person will over react, become emotional, aggressive and fearful when realizing someone broke into their house.

its tragic, but also the criminal fault because he should have anticipated that in a country were possessing fire arms for self defense is legal----breaking/entering/ is dangerous and risky
This guy was an experienced criminal with prior convictions.
if he lacked the common sense to realize what sort of reaction his crime could trigger, than he at least had experiences through which the risks would be made clear to him.

This is just the sort of liberal drivel that I expect from this pathetic newspaper. This incident is REAL easy to analyze. There's a hero, and there's a scumbag. Fortunately, the hero wins this one!! I hope Mr. Pontolillo has no problems living with what he did. He protected himself and prevented the scumbag Rice from violating others........Look at the responses from this article, does this give you people a CLUE as to how out of touch you are with reality and real people? Yeah, probably not!!!

Dear Sirs,

Your opinion on the sword killing seems on point to the extent we should not consider the protection of property sufficient justification for killing someone. The public reaction (apparently one of thinly-veiled approval) shows that we may have a low regard for human life, but also that our community is viscerally frustrated with crime in the area.

The details of the events that led up to the killing will surely continue to develop, and no doubt the media will be there to disseminate them. But given your editorial influence over public opinion, one would hope for a more careful exposition of the facts on your part. By guessing what, "perhaps," Mr. Pontolillo thought in the moments before he encountered Mr. Rice, and suggesting that the student might have been out to defend his property in the event that police arrived too late to do so for him, you are not adding anything meaningful to your news coverage.

Rather, you are engaging in irrelevant speculation that could distort the discussion, or improperly influence a pool of potential jurors if a trial ensues in the future. Only Mr. Pontolillo knows what he saw and thought before taking against Mr. Rice with a sword.

I don't think MR. Rice was African American. White I think. Besides the point. New facts are coming out that don't look so good for the kid from Hopkins. Cops had come to the house and he and his roommates went out in the yard to do their own "canvass" apparently. WIth a sword. Rice wasn't in a garage but crouched in the corner of the yard. Rice I'm sure felt threatened and reacted. I doubt JHU kid will get indicted but doesn't sound much like self-defense or defense of property.

It's the responsibility of every citizen to protect themselves and their property. There is no Constitutional mandate that says the government will protect you from criminals. This student did what everyone should do, confront the criminal. If enough of us did, there would be little incentive to try and victimize others.

Listening to a neighbor witness account of what he heard makes it pretty clear that murder was not the student's intent. His only fault may have been to personally investigate a noise in his yard/garage or whatever. However, last I heard it is not illegal to inspect your own property or to bring a weapon to defend yourself in case of confrontation. So far it is apparent that he was trying to hold the suspect until police could arrive. The suspect decided attack the student for whatever reason and if that is the case the student had little other option. The situation could have been avoided, but that does not mean it wasn't self-defense. If there were a law that said you had to avoid all possible situations in which you could end up injuring or killing someone they would have to ban driving.

If any party is at fault for Donald Rice's death, it is the state of Maryland. They failed to prevent a habitual criminal from continuing to pursue his life-long practice of risky endeavors, which resumed just days after they released him from jail. He was not rehabilitated, nor was he rehabiliatable, given his 29 prior convictions. They put Mr. Rice's life at risk knowing that he would go back to his criminal ways.

Likewise, the state of Maryland failed its law-abiding residents by releasing a habitual criminal who was all but certain to return to his life of crime. Sooner or later one of his many victims was going to take the law into his own hands, since the state showed no interest in seeing justice served.

I guess John Pontolillo should've just hid inside a "safe room" all night after calling police, hoping the burglar would go away on his own accord.

The sad irony is that the police become more jaded and indifferent because of the justice system's practice of "Catch-and-Release". Criminals are undeterred and increase in number and frequency of the their crimes. The cops are overwhelmed and can do little in the face of mounting lawlessness.

Residents are left little choice but to flee the city (and many have), sit there and take it and wonder when their life will be the next thing stolen from them, or fight back.

Congratulations, Maryland, you could have rightfully kept Mr. Rice in jail for his sake and the sake of the free society, but NO! You chose to release him, knowing full well that he would return to his old ways, putting both him and his victims at risk.

My house was robbed when my 21 yo daughter was only 8 or 10. She had nightmares from the incedent then and she still has some semi-irrational fears, like walking the dog at night, to deal with now. Don't tell me that this entity, I refuse to call him a person, didn't get what he had coming to him.

i personally think destiny brought these two together. Rice wasn't going to stop, he was a career criminal. He chose his path and seems to have had a good run. I'm more interested in Pontillo. What kind of upbringing has he had? Why did he have a samurai sword? Was he trained in some sort of marshal art? It would seem he was prepared to use the sword and by the description of the cut, he knew how to use it. I wonder how many times he had gone over similar senarios in his head, as many of us do. But then to be presented with the opportunity to use it and to actually use it.... I mean this young man is a student of one of the worlds best universities. He knew what it meant to grab that sword! There are a lot of us who would like to think that in a similar situation we would be able to confront the intruder, all intimate like that and be able to take a swing. I also don't like the "hack" reference. There was no "hacking" involved, this was a perfect slice. After they realized the mortal blow I wonder what was going through each of their heads? Pontillo: Oh my god, I did it, and it worked. Holy s#%t, look at his neck... and his wrist and all that blood. (I mean there must have been a ton of blood all squirting and spurting.) Then Rice: Holy s#%t, the mother f%&c#r did it, he really did it, look at all that blood. I'm not gonna make it. I don't think Rice thought he would use it so he called his bluff. Pontillo was so scared, but now he knows he will not falter. The majority of us would not have had the courage to do what he did. I know there's a lot of big talkers but please...
One more thing, for samurai to be killed by the sword is an honor.

I don't think anyone cares if he was sliced or diced...
One less predator on the streets and countless future victims spared.

It's crap like this that is ruining america. That student was a MAN. You defend your house. If he didn't want to risk his life, he shouldn't have tried to rob him. It's as stupid as a thief suing for being hurt for tried to steal a car.

This wouldn't be a big deal if he had a gun and shot the guy.

2nd amendment, the right to bear arms. Doesn't say guns only. I own a bokkan, and you know what that was used for? To kill thieves without spilling blood on the carpet. If someone tries to break in, they are forfeiting their safety. Period.

"Oh, by the way, Mr. thief, do you have a weapon intended to *gets shot*"

And that's my two cents. Swords ftw.

We're sick of crime, but as usual, The Sun takes the namby-pamby approach.

Good riddance to the intruder. Get tough, Sun!!

Sure, police always suggest calling them rather than "taking matters in to your own hands" and while that's not bad advice, when it comes to self-defense, defense of home, property and person, it's ultimately a very individual decision. In truth people die every year following the same advice - not taking matters in to your own hands. It's interesting, police have no advice as to how to defend yourself when an intruder lunges at you. As for me, I wouldn't stand around waiting for the police to tell me what to do if that happened. There is no step-by-step for this. It is uniqely an individual decision regarding how to respond. I support this student's decision under the facts as I understand them. A dangerous decision brought on by a dangerous situation.

BradJ: So legalistic your colloquy on your use of legal terms of art "aggravated manslaughter" and your feckless analysis of how to handle such situations. Here's more law for you: this studen had every legal right to 1) arm himself, 2) investigate the garage or shed without police approval, or yours, and 3) to defend himself if he felt threatened with bodily harm by someone secreted on his property. Reading your take, one could mistakenly assume you're supposed to cower in the corner awaiting for 1) the cops to arrive or 2) for an intruder to injure or kill you. Your analysis fails both legally and in the real world.

1) It's interesting how quickly people determined there was NO racial component involved. Like they know exactly what happened. Perhaps there was some racial animus, perhaps not. Why presuppose either way? Why not, oh I don't know, think about it? Hmmm...

2) It does not sound like civilization to hear people cheer over the death of another. It's pretty nasty, actually. Especially for someone they don't know at all. How do you think the Rice family feels? Despite his crimes, I feel pretty confident they still love him and considered him an important person in their lives. Where is the compassion for them? The majority of posters are devoted to what seems to be a pro-gun, pro-vigilante agenda, and that's disgusting.

3) Why aren't there many posters talking about the obvious question posed: Why does burglary warrant slaying? The point posited by not a few of the posters here has been on of "finally, good riddance, a robber has been taken off the streets"...well, the tough question you've all been unable to answer is why is the killing of any old robber or even a career thief justified in and of itself?

Reading these comments two things occur to me. In order to have a chance to convict, the DA needs to stock the jury with thugs. Any normal citizen is going to stand up and applaud.

So unless you can guarantee a jury of criminals, who will defend their right to rob, the DA will be wasting the taxpayer's money prosecuting this case. Why waste just for the sake of waste?

I really am amused and frightened by these pseudo-lawyers commenting on here.

People asserting that you "have a right to defend yourself" and so forth and this false idea that this will deter crime because criminals will think twice.

First, while you do have a right to protect yourself, that is typically defined as in your own home when feeling afraid for your life. As pointed out in the news article (for those of you who did not bother to read it completely) this is the tricky bit for the DA, because the boy went out to an unattached garage, with a weapon. The argument that he was afraid for his life doesn't hold much water, because it's a fantasy to state he was investigating OUTSIDE HIS HOME with a weapon because he was afraid. He wasn't going into another room with a weapon, he left his immediate domain to enter an unattached garage where he suspected a crime was taking place. This is NOT what the 'self-protection' laws were created to protect.

Second. You have to be real naive to think "criminals will think twice." These crimes are typically impulsive in nature, with very little consideration of consequences. It is very unlikely these petty thieves are going to consider this and be deterred. What *MAY* happen is they may look at this and think they better carry a gun, because this student would likely be dead if Rice had a gun...as some of you pointed out defending the death of Rice. It is far more likely this will make things more dangerous for law abiding people and highly unlikely it will make it safer.

Regardless of the sympathy one may feel for the killer/so-called potential robbery victim in this case, the police have a duty to enforce the law. "Justifiable killing" is still killing, and killing is still illegal. The young swordsman should be charged with and tried for killing another human being. If any of you sympathizers are lucky enough to be picked for his jury, then you can argue the "merits" of the homicide in the jury room. As long as we live in a society, we need to obey its rules. That's why we have 'em, to protect us from being damaged by our fellow citizens. You can "do" whatever you feel like doing, but breaking the rules means you have to take responsibility for your actions. The justice system is there to help you with the personal responsibility thing, in case you don't understand it. If you don't like the rules - make some money, buy some land, and move to Utah on a compound somewhere. Then you can kill all the people you want (and maybe f*kk a few kids if that's what you're into).

I find it hard to beleive that anyone with any common sense would think the the criminal deserves any sympathy at all. Can someone really think that this student should have just crawled in a closet and called the police? This piece of garbage would have just taken what he wanted and never been caught. Mr Pontililo might not have convinced every criminal to stop, this dirtbag sure will not be causing anymore misery. Next I guess I will read that it is the states fault. If they would have just given him more money in a welfare check, then he could have sat at home smoking crack and wasting away to nothing. I mean, we certainly can't expect him to get a job or something, it is way to demeaning.

Sounds like this "Second Opinion" came a bit too soon. Maybe it should have been "fifth or sixth opinion" until after more details were known. According to the newest story in the Sun, the student apparently told Rice not to move after discovering him, but Rice attacked the student, upon which time he was slashed with the sword.

You all still want to mourn that scumbag? The Sun editorial board should be ashamed of themselves for siding with a repeat criminal over an innocent student protecting himself. Maybe this paper going bankrupt is a good thing.

Excuse me, but who is bdc? I wrote the response that begins "Opinions like yours, Mr. Green, empower criminals, increase the crime rate, overwhelm the police force's capacity and ultimately turn victims into criminals." and ends with questions to the author. I did not write the short blurb about ignoring someone named Leroy. Perhaps that was another "Joy"? I am certain I did not use "bdc" as my name. How very odd...

I agree with the author that the majority of comments glorifying the death of Mr. Rice is unsettling, to say the least. That being said, I think the JHU student did nothing wrong by defending himself the way he did.

What's interesting to me is that there are currently thousands of children in this city that are being brought up with similar morals to Mr. Rice. Right now, I bet everyone posting nasty comments about Mr. Rice has sympathy for a 5 year old being raised by crappy parents and who will eventually attend crappy schools, because at 5 years old, it's not his/her fault. However, the average person will actively do nothing to help or change the prospects of that child or the many others in similar situations, and in 20 years, when one of them commits multiple crimes and maybe suffers a similar fate to Mr. Rice, the sympathy will be gone and the nasty comments will return. I wonder if Mr. Rice had any children? Let's all ignore that idea, though, it'll be easier to demonize them when they're older.

I don't have much sympathy for Mr. Rice and I don't think Mr. Pontililo should be prosecuted. Incidents like this make me think about all the problems in Baltimore and wonder what can possibly be done to fix them. Apparently it makes most people want to celebrate....

It is crap like this editorial that has forever removed the possibility of me buying a subscription or even a single Baltimore Sun. We have seen this person write things that boggle the mind as to how anybody smart enough to write could believe what he is saying. A career criminal who has pulled a gun on a cop breaks into someones home and when he is the one that is injured or heaven forbid killed, the Sun prints idiocies like this. HE broke in, he died, oh well. If anything should have been done different it is that the guy shouldn't have broken into someone elses property.

To all of you people that sit on those tall white horses and claim that the kid who traveled to one of best schools in the country located in one of the most dangerous cities in the country, is the one who is wrong here. A burglar returned to enter a house that he had already entered earlier that day. So dialing a phone would have stopped him? Perhap upon entering the home the scumbag picked up the sword and upon confrontation with the residents proceeds to hack the young man to pieces and then his housemates for being witnesses?

Would that have been your preffered outcome? Just like the poor young Hopkins girl that was raped and killed a few years ago?

This guy came back to rob that house again and he died for making a poor decision. Thats life.

Mr. Pontililo placed himself in harms way to protect his friends and defend his property.

Is he a hero? Maybe yes maybe no.

Would I feel safer with that guy as a roomate? You betcha!

I think you are right John Pontolillo should not have hacked this guy to death.. What he should have done is just nicely and carefully severed both his arms..... and then he should have poured salt and pepper into his cuts... then he and his friends should have stripped him naked and then paraded him throughout the town.

It should be “justice” itself that should be brought to trail.... not Mr Pontolillo. It is the so called Justice Dept who let loose this maniac scumbag. There is nothing here for glorification... This is the common people seeing that justice has been done.. Finally, that was wrong has been righted. Just as long as the authorities keep on letting such people loose..... it is them to blame.. not John Pontolillo. How come they are not on the trial.

Mr. Pontolillo belongs in jail. When did the theft of an Xbox deserve the death penalty? We only have Mr. Pontolillo description of the events and the neighbors' report of blood curdling screams. These events must be thoroughly investigated and those who dispense vigilante justice punished.

Carol H Gaithersburg

The Hopkins student did what he had to do and the criminal made his choice a long time ago. Anyone CONVICTED of 29 crimes (how many did he get away with) and then released 3 days earlier after serving 6 months of an 18 month sentence just had his luck run out. Too bad the student will have to have this on his conscience for ever, but he does not deserve to be prosecuted. Comment to Carol H of gaithersburg....come on down and live in Baltimore City for a while haha you wouldn't last a week. I live here and in the same neighborhood as the incident. It's about time that we stand up for ourselves.

um..... why didnt he deserve this?

You break into a persons home, you lose the right to your personal safety. If he had been shot and died later this would never have even made your radar. 'home intruder shot' no story. Just because he used a LESS deadly weapon you think he doesnt deserve it? you break into a persons home, you better not be surprised that when you lunge at the home owner you get a shot to the face... or sword to the arm

The notion of criminal protection is ludicrous. The police respond to an event after it is over for the most part. Do not punish those who protect themselves amd their property!

"Posted by: John Bechtel | September 16, 2009 1:56 PM

White people killing black people for no reason. Nothing new here. Time for the black man to rise up and take the power, put the whites in chains."

NO REASON? WHY ARE YOU BRINGING UP RACE WHEN THE GUY KILLED WAS BREAKING INTO SOMEONE ELSE'S HOUSE? LET ME COME TO YOUR HOUSE, EMPTY IT OUT, YOU JUST SIT THERE AND DO NOTHING. REMEMBER NOW IF YOU ATTACK ME OR KILL ME, YOU ARE ATTACKING ME FOR NOTHING BUT THE COLOR OF MY SKIN...

I think you should be allowed to defend your own property not just your life, and honestly value doesn't matter, the theif already put the value on their lives, worthless... Stipidly stories and post like this is one more reason I never buy The Baltimore Sun anymore... Wish you would stop filling my mailbox up with your trash...

People are too emotional over the fact that the guy was a career criminal. You really need to look at the facts. Reports say the criminal was hiding under a counter. I think what you have here is more of a criminal and a vigilante. The criminal was also stabbed in the chest, as well as, having his hand chopped off. Looks like premeditated murder. People have a fear of black men because of how history has portrayed them. This question is not whether people have the right to defend their homes because they do. This is a case of someone murdering an intruder when they could have called the police. A vicious, bloody murder. It needs further investigation, without all the emotion. There are lots of criminals in the world. They are not all black. It's not fair. The dead can't speak. Killers are more dangerous than buglars. They need to be identified, as well.

While you are correct in stating that this is a tragedy with which the young man will have to deal for the rest of his life, I do not think that calling him a vigilante and stating that he did not need to go outside and look for the intruder is ridiculous. Obviously someone was able to get into the house before to steal his other property. If it were me, I would be afraid that the intruder would enter my home again. No, the criminal did not deserve to die. Unfortunately, however, that is a risk anyone takes when breaking and entering. What do you think would have happened to this boy had he not been armed with a sword? I would wager that a seasoned criminal wouldn't have just ran away from him. This was a grown man of nearly fifty attacking a young college boy! It is heartbreaking that a young twenty year old boy will have to deal with this type of criticism weighing on his already heavy conscience. Give the kid a break. He probably needs it right now.

Criminals deserve to die. End of story.

in our country we have a saying: " after battle, everybody is a general"...

I think Mr. Pontolillo done exactly what he should have done. If by chance the young man reads this "Brovo" my friend. If more people would stand up to the people out there doing wrong then we would have a better world. The Thief got what he deserved.

There is a factoid in self defense situations that the editorialists and commenters here need to know. It is called the Tueller Drill. Basically, it states that an assailant can attack someone from about 21 feet away in 1.5 seconds. So a defense (handgun drawn and fired, sword raised and slashed, police baton raised and swung, etc.) needs to be started when the assailant is 21 feet away, and ready within 1.5 seconds, before the bad guy can stab, grapple, or punch a defender.

Even in the outrageously worded editorial, the criminal assailant Riceis admitted to have "lunged" at the defender, who had 1.5 seconds or less to protect himself. And since it was a sword being used, and swords can only be used at arms' length, it is clear the criminal assailant was approaching the crime victim, who was backed into a corner, and not vice versa.

Should this event ever come to trial, which I seriously doubt will happen, such small details will clearly show the crime victim was defending himself against an attack.

Here in Texas, a break-in after dark is considered more serious than one during daylight hours, because the domicile (even the garage) is considered more likely to be occupied, and the criminal's intent is therefore more likely to harm the occupants than just steal things.

I am so glad I no longer live in Baltimore!

Saldy, there is one thing that keeps a person in check, fear. All to often the victim is the one afraid and the criminal has power over the situation. Criminals NEED to fear their victims.

If only more burgulars were struck down w/ swords. Seriously. It needs to happen more often truthfully. Crime rate would drop because all the criminals breaking and entering wouldn't get slaps on the wrists only to be released to go try to burgularize again. This guy was a multiple repeat offender. 29 times. How many times DIDN'T he get caught?

I have 2 samurai sword swords on display as well, and if a burgular tries to enter my residence while I am home, he too will meet the same fate as this poor sap with no reservations what-so-ever.

Whatever side of this controversy you may believe, when confronted by an intruder whose intention cannot be assumed, then consider you and possibly your family's lives in jeopardy. There have been home invasions recently where members of the family invaded have been massacred. The cold hard reality is that criminals have a distinct advantage in surprise and sometimes in armament.
Can you rationalize with such a person who is bent on breaking societal laws by committing a burgulary? Don't bet your life on it. Can the local constabulary do anything about it? No. Police duties include investigating a crime after it happens. They cannot perform an arrest on a percieved future crime.
As a citizen, I am responsible as well to defend myself and anyone else threatened by such a criminal act. To not defend yourself and your posessions in this situation consitutes a submissal to such deviant characters such as Mr. Rice who took the chance and, after 29 convictions, finally got to settle up with society on his terms

This type of liberal bs is exactly the type of thinking that led to this incident. If this burgler had been thrown in jail for a very long time somewhere about the third time he had been arrested, then this whole situation would have been avoided. But the tendency of liberals to apply light and non existent sentences, pushes the criminal back into society for the public to deal with. I do hope that someday, your house is broken into while you are there. Please, call the police. Let's see just how long it takes them to get there. And you can go cower under the bed, hoping he won't find you. I wonder how it would feel knowing for the rest of your life that you are an absolute coward and unable to protect your own family. Wait. Let me guess. You would be ok with that.

I'm awfully confused. The bleeding-heart-left thinks that he should have ran out of his own house, scared, and waited for the police to come while the criminal cased his place? That makes ABSOLUTELY NO SENSE. Sure, its a tragedy that the guy died. It's an even greater tragedy that their are people in our country that don't think he had it coming.

Simple logic here. Don't break into people's homes!

And frankly, it's a good thing that he used force to attempt to remove him. The guy (unknown to the home-renter) had a prior of pulling a gun on someone.

I'm from Canada and I couldn't agree more with the actions of this brave student. He did the right thing in defending his property. He shouldn't be penalized in any way, but rewarded for his deed of ridding this world of another degenerate example of criminal scum. Sure the death was a tragedy and I sympathize with Rice's family, but Rice had a choice to enter or not. I just wish we had the option of defending our property and our lives rather than running away and hoping the police don't take their sweet a*s time getting there. People who defend their homes shouldn't be considered criminals. Here in Canada, you try defending yourself with anything, and it seems like the criminal automatically gets more rights than you do. It's like the government is implying that it's okay for you to get robbed. Someone breaks in, you call the police and maybe if you're lucky you got a look at the scumbag criminal. But after that you're sh*t out of luck because the jerk still made off with your property and you're left with nothing but half a*sed reassurance that the police will look into the matter. Count yourself lucky that you have the NRA to defend your Second Amendment rights.

Your garage detached or not is a part of your home and you have the right to arm yourself and investigate a suspicious sound coming from there. 99.9999 percent of the time the noise turns out to be the wind or the cat but you also have the right to defend yourself if that sound turns out to be a burglar lunging at you.
Maybe some folks hide under the bed and call the police every time they hear a noise but I suspect the cops would label you a nut case stop coming after three or so calls if you tried it.
The burglar in this case was a 49 year old career criminal who chose his own path in life. I don't know how anyone could be so naive to believe that he could be rehabilitated by the system when he had all his life to change his ways and chose not to. That is assuming he was ever "habilitated". Would anyone out there care to explain to me how you rehabilitate someone who was never "habilitated" in the first place?
Mr. Rice had already robbed the house once that day. I can't prove that but anyone with an ounce of sense can figure out that Rice, having robbed the house once that day was coming back for the rest of the stuff he couldn't carry away the first time.
Rice entered the house late at night, surely knowing that the house was occupied. The fact that he lunged at Mr. Pontolillo tells me that he had already thought it out and decided to deal violently with the resident if caught. And he was brazen enough to come back to the same house he robbed only hours earlier knowing full well that the resident would be nervous and on full alert. I suspect that Rice was fully prepared to kill if necessary to escape.
Any person who breaks into an occupied home is no petty criminal and the fact that Rice was unarmed does not impress me one bit. An unarmed burglar can arm himself very easily in any home. My garage is full of items that can be used as weapons: axes, shovels, hammers, fire extinguishers, etc., and I have no doubt that Mr. Pontolillo’s is similarly equipped.
It was perfectly reasonable for Mr. Pontolillo to arm himself and investigate a suspicious noise in his home and it was perfectly reasonable for him to assume that Rice was a deadly threat when he lunged at him in his own home. What I think is nuts is that Maryland makes it so difficult for a guy to get a modern weapon that he has to resort to a samurai sword to protect himself.

Andy Green, you disgust me. I hope you are the victim of crime next. Maybe it'll inspire you to have some empathy for that poor college kid.