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Parents Of Dallas Musician Killed Talk To CBS 11

http://cbs11tv.com/local/local_story_249195926.html

Jay Gormley
Reporting

(CBS 11 News) DALLAS The funeral for Carter Albrecht will be held Friday at Parkway Hills Baptist Church in Plano. On the night before they bury their son, the musician's parents are talking exclusively to CBS 11's Jay Gormley.

"The sadness is amazing," said Ken Albrecht, Carter's father. "In a lot of ways, it will be with us until our very last breath, and it will probably never lessen."

It's the type of answer you would expect from grieving parents, but Judy and Ken Albrecht of Plano say their son is not the type of person portrayed by his actions early Monday morning.

That is not Carter Albrecht. That is not his life of 34 years of gentleness and compassion," said Ken. "Carter dated a lot of women. They all cherished him and loved him. He never, ever touched anyone."

Police say the 34-year-old musician hit his girlfriend, chased after her and then wandered over to a neighbor's house where he tried to kick in the door.

Fearing it was an intruder, the neighbor fired a warning shot. It turned out to be a deadly shot.

"I know that he and his wife were very frightened. It was obviously dark, and they could not tell who it was," said Judy. "I wish he hadn't had a gun. I wish he hadn't fired. But I don't know what I would have done."

"They didn't invite someone, at that time in the morning, to be kicking at their door. Whatever action he took, that was a decision he had to make at that time," Ken Albrecht said. "He had a house to protect, a wife to protect, and my heart just goes out to them."

No one really knows what set Carter off. His parents confirm that he was taking the prescription drug Chantix to quit smoking. The Albrecht's believe the drug mixed with alcohol altered their son's mood.

"He was pretty excited about not smoking, and he did take it," Judy said. "That's the only connection we have with his out of character behavior."

Carter was considered one of the brightest talents in Dallas. He was a member of several bands, including Sorta and Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians.

His musical talent was encouraged by his mother, a life-long piano teacher.

"In every walk of his life, he was determined to learn and determined to excel," she said.

The Albrechts say Carter was scheduled to play Elton John's birthday in October at Carnegie Hall. They say Carter never wanted to bask in the spotlight. Instead, he just wanted to make his fellow band mates better musicians and better people.

"I hope you've gotten a good sense of Carter's gentle spirit and giant generosity," Judy said.

"He was just a tremendous person. He was my hero," Ken said. "He was just a great guy."

Apparently its was the back door and it had a window according to the story below. That kind of changes things. Cause if he could see him then he should of know how tall he was and there for the warning shot might get sticky. However someone banging on my back door would not sit well with me even more so than the front door.


Man Who Shot Musician Told 911 He Tried Firing Warning Shot

http://www.nbc5i.com/news/14062032/deta ... w&psp=news

POSTED: 6:00 pm CDT September 6, 2007
UPDATED: 6:14 pm CDT September 6, 2007

DALLAS -- A homeowner who killed a member of Edie Brickell & New Bohemians by shooting a gun through his back door told a 911 operator he was trying to fire a warning shot but didn't think the musician "was that tall."

But instead of scaring Jeffrey Carter Albrecht away, according to a tape of the 911 call released Thursday, the man tells the operator "I think I shot him" as Albrecht's body lay in the doorway.

He was "trying to get in the back door," said the homeowner, who identifies himself as William Logg. "I woke up and my wife was screaming. ... I looked out there and he's like trying to beat through the window. I yelled at him to get away."

Albrecht, who was 6-foot-5, was shot in the head around 4 a.m. Monday while trying to kick down Logg's back door, police said. Logg lives next door to Albrecht's girlfriend, whom police said the musician was fighting with before the shooting.

Police and friends of Albrecht have said they don't know why the 34-year-old had gone to the neighbor's home.

Coincidentally, the neighbor who shot Albrecht is also a musician. Logg, 54, is a blues guitarist who goes by the nickname "Smokey" and has recorded multiple albums.

Logg will not face charges, police said. The case will instead be turned over to a grand jury, but police and Dallas prosecutors have said Logg appeared to be within his rights under the state's self-defense laws.

The 10½-minute call to 911 begins with Logg's wife screaming "There's someone in my yard!" Seconds after the call begins, a loud noise can be heard in the background.

When the operator asks what the noise was, Logg's wife said she doesn't know. Soon after, Logg can be heard telling his wife, "I think I just shot him."

"Oh my God! Oh my God, Billy, don't tell me that!" the woman says.

Albrecht, who went by his middle name, had been a keyboard player for the New Bohemians since 1999, according to the band's Web site. Albrecht played several times with Brickell's husband, Paul Simon. He also played with Texas musician Charlie Sexton, a renowned guitarist.

He also played keyboard and guitar and sang for Sorta, named in 2006 as the best local music act by the Dallas Observer.

Edie Brickell & New Bohemians scored a breakout hit in 1989 with "What I Am." They broke up for several years but regrouped and put out an album last year.

Liberty wrote:Quiting tobacco is tough

No its not. If the person is not mentally ready to quit smoking than he’s/she’s never going to quit. I smoked for 16years about a pack or more a day. I just quit one day. I decided that I had enough.

Since we are on the subject. What if the home owner had not been armed? What if the guy actually broke down the door, Then what? He already freaked out and was beating up his girlfriend. Someone that’s supposed to be special to him. Do you think he would have cared in his state what had happened to the home owner? If he had gotten in and killed the home owner in a drunken rage we would not even still be hearing about. It's because a gun is brought into the scene and a person is dead because of their actions that we are still hearing about it. Everyone wants to focus on the gun and no one wants to really focus on the facts. This whole story and the way the media is twisting it to make all gun owners look like mad men with guns that will shoot anything that moves. They are the uninformed, unknowing, and gun illiterate that are passing wrongful judgment on all gun owners. The home owner is being dissected just like a LEO would be after a shooting. Only the Home owner doesn’t have the support group that a LEO would have. Guess I better stop here before I get angrier and type something worse than I have already typed.

Venus Pax wrote:

ricor wrote:I have seen several threads started on theis subject and the title line is always incorrect. It should read: Drunk musician who was taking a drug that should never be mixed with alcohol beats girlfriend takes drunken rampage to neighbors house. Or something like that.

Precisely. We may not all agree with the homeowner/crime victim's course of action, but he did not ask to be put in this situation, and the time required for a detailed plan for the exact scenario was not a luxury for him.
We've been posting about this topic for a few days now and we can't come to the perfect response. He only had a few minutes, if that. Considering that no passers-by or other neighbors were hurt, I don't think anyone can find fault with him.

And what I find both hysterical and madding is the fact that every news story I have read has to make a big deal out of the new law that does not even play a part in this event. The home owner is protected under a different law thats been on the books for a long time now.

Charles L. Cotton wrote:I want to thank everyone for this discussion. Although our opinions vary, I think this is a valuable thread that could be beneficial to all of us.

This here is also a good discussion that is a parallel of this thread.
http://www.texasshooting.com/TexasCHL_F ... highlight=

Charles L. Cotton wrote:

Renegade wrote:

Will938 wrote:

frankie_the_yankee wrote:I take it back. The guy will be no billed. Here's why.

PC §9.31. SELF-DEFENSE. (a) Except as provided in Subsection
(b), a person is justified in using force against another when and to the
degree the actor reasonably believes the force is immediately necessary
to protect the actor against the other's use or attempted use of
unlawful force. The actor's belief that the force was immediately
necessary as described by this subsection is presumed to be reasonable
if the actor:
(1) knew or had reason to believe that the person against whom
the force was used:
(A) unlawfully and with force entered, or was attempting to
enter unlawfully and with force, the actor's occupied habitation, vehicle,
or place of business or employment;

The guy banging on the door could be easily construed as "attempting to enter unlawfully and with force". This should meet the requirements for the presumption of reasonableness under the law.

I still wouldn't shoot through a door myself.

Isn't there a distinction between force and deadly force?

Yes, that is what I was referring to when I wrote:

I do not think it was "immediately necessary", as required by PC9.32 (3).

above. Deadly force has the additional qualifier of being "immediately necessary".

The new "Castle Doctrine" in Texas presumes you reasonably believed deadly force was immediately necessary, if you know or have reason to believe that someone is attempting to enter your home, business or car unlawfully and with force. It's clear that the homeowner knew or had reason to believe that someone was attempting to enter unlawfully and with force, so he is entitled to the presumption. As noted in one of the articles quoted, there are other justifications for using deadly force under these circumstances.

By no means am I saying I would have shot through a closed door in this situation, nor am I saying I wouldn't. I just don't know enough of the facts to make a determination. There certainly are circumstances where I would not wait for entry to fire in self-defense, but they would be the exception rather than the rule. This is my standard, not Texas law and not something I would try to force on others.

I am very sorry the man is dead and I’m sorry that the homeowner had to take someone’s life. However, we need to be guarded in blanket criticism of someone trying to prevent an unlawful and forceful entry into one’s home. Texas law now recognizes this as legitimate use of deadly force. Also, we could easily replace the healthy man in this scenario with a frail, elderly woman with limited physical abilities. Would we expect her to wait until the BG or multiple BG’s are already inside her home before firing in self-defense?

Again, I’m not taking a position on this particular shooting; I’m am saying we should never say we’d never fire through a door, regardless of the circumstances.

Chas.

According to the last news article I posted its wasn't even the new law that protected the home owner stated in the quote below.

news story wrote: The bill, backed by the National Rifle Association, states that a person has no duty to retreat from an intruder before using deadly force. Lewis said he read over the Castle Doctrine on Tuesday, but said the homeowner appeared to be protected under another deadly force law already on the books.

Under Chapter 9 of the state penal code, a person can protect their property with deadly force to "prevent the other's imminent commission ... of criminal mischief during the nighttime."

"I think (the shooting) falls most under Chapter 9," Lewis said.

===============================================================================

Venus Pax wrote:

texas297 wrote:
From what I gather, this was just a tragic mistake by all parties.

I'm not so convinced that the homeowner made a mistake. If someone is trying to bust down my door (be it front or back), I'm going to wonder who and what are on the other side. My guess would be that he wasn't there for refreshments (see signature line).

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

Police Won't Charge Homeowner In Musician's Death
http://cbs11tv.com/local/local_story_247152451.html

(AP) DALLAS Police said Tuesday they aren't pursuing charges against a homeowner who shot and killed a former member of Edie Brickell & New Bohemians who tried kicking in his door in the middle of the night.

The case will be turned over to a grand jury that will decide whether the homeowner will face charges. Dallas police Sgt. Larry Lewis said the shooting appears to fall under state law permitting deadly force as self-defense.

Jeffrey Carter Albrecht, 34, was inebriated Monday when the wife of his girlfriend's neighbor began screaming around 4 a.m. that someone was breaking in, police said. After telling Albrecht to get away, the husband fired his handgun through the door and shot Albrecht in the head, police said. Albrecht had been fighting with his girlfriend.

"He yelled several verbal warnings, 'I'll shoot! I'll shoot!'," Lewis said. "From what we gather, he fired near the top of the door, hoping he would scare the person away."

The homeowner, whose identity wasn't released, was not arrested.

The shooting came two days after the enactment of a new state law, nicknamed the "Castle Doctrine," that gives Texans a stronger legal right to defend themselves with deadly force in their homes, cars and workplaces.

The bill, backed by the National Rifle Association, states that a person has no duty to retreat from an intruder before using deadly force. Lewis said he read over the Castle Doctrine on Tuesday, but said the homeowner appeared to be protected under another deadly force law already on the books.

Under Chapter 9 of the state penal code, a person can protect their property with deadly force to "prevent the other's imminent commission ... of criminal mischief during the nighttime."

"I think (the shooting) falls most under Chapter 9," Lewis said.

Albrecht, who went by his middle name, had been a keyboard player for the New Bohemians since 1999, according to the band's Web site. He also played keyboard and guitar and sang for Sorta, named in 2006 as the best local music act by the Dallas Observer.

Albrecht played several times with Brickell's husband, Paul Simon. He also played with Texas musician Charlie Sexton, a renowned guitarist.

Danny Balis, Albrecht's roommate and fellow member of the Dallas rock band Sorta, said the shooter lived next door to Albrecht's girlfriend. Albrecht had been fighting with his girlfriend, authorities said.

His death stunned friends and those who knew him in the North Texas music community. The idea of him banging on a door in the middle of the night seems out of character for a man known to be friendly and quiet, friends said.

"He is not a violent person," said Carrie Garcia, Sorta's manager. "He is cool as a cucumber, shy, always wanted to make a joke in a situation that may be a little tense."

HighVelocity wrote:

"He is not a violent person," said Carrie Garcia, Sorta's manager. "He is cool as a cucumber, shy, always wanted to make a joke in a situation that may be a little tense."

Why does this line have to go in every story of this nature? He was the one that was responsible for it all but is be portrayed as the innocent victim.

SC1903A3 wrote:It appears the man that was shot was a well known Dallas musician.

From the Dallas Morning News:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... fe1fe.html

After reading that story I have no sympathy for the guy. I learned along time ago that you don't hit women. This is a case of karma coming back around.

However if it where my door he was banging on I wouldn't not have shot though the door.

Wonder how many people are going to throw this encounter around saying that the Castle Doctrine was a bad thing.

Dallas Man Shot After Domestic Disturbance

http://cbs11tv.com/local/local_story_246091731.html

Robbie Owens
Reporting

(CBS 11 News) DALLAS A Dallas homeowner shot and killed what he thought was an intruder, but the victim turned out to be a neighbor.

The incident happened early Monday morning in the 9000 block of Santa Clara Drive in east Dallas.

According to police, the 30-year-old victim was involved in a domestic disturbance at his home prior to the shooting. He somehow ended up at a neighbor's house, kicking and banging violently on the door.

The homeowner inside did not know what was happening, and thought that the person outside was trying to break in and do harm. The homeowner fired through the door, only later discovering that it was a neighbor outside.

Police plan to interview both the homeowner and the other person involved in the domestic disturbance in hopes of getting a better idea of what exactly took place.

This shooting comes on the heels of a new law that went into effect on September 1, clarifying that a homeowner can use deadly force if he or shee feels that their life or property is in danger.