In an incident that happened last week, a man shot at two roommates inside his Cape Coral, Florida home. That man faces 3 felony charges. Here is what happened.
Cape Coral Police: Dayne Miller
Late Night Shooting—
According to Cape Coral Police, around 12:30 AM, they responded to a call from the homeowner at 1041 SW 1st Street. When they arrived, they safely removed the two roommates from the home without incident. They found shell casings on the floor outside a bedroom, and bullet holes in the door.
Police then spoke with the homeowner called Dayne Miller.
Miller admitted he shot at the two roommates through a closed bedroom door, after his teenage daughter told him she woke up to one of them laying next to her in bed, naked. The teenage daughter did not accuse the roommate of any criminal act.
According to police, all parties stated that Miller and the two roommates, a husband and wife who rent a room from Miller, were drinking alcohol “in excess”.
One roommate told police that while intoxicated, and after using the bathroom, he mistakenly went into Miller’s teenage daughter’s room and laid down in the bed, and fell asleep.
Police say that the spouse of the confused and inebriated roommate heard Miller’s daughter telling him about the naked man in her bed. The wife woke her husband and brought him into the couple’s room. That is when Miller demanded they open the door and let him in.
Police say that when the couple wouldn’t open the door, Miller threatened to kill them, and shot 3 or 4 times through the bedroom door.
Miller Facing 3 Felony Charges—
Police arrested Miller and charged him with two counts of F.S.S. 784.021(1)(a) Aggravated Assault With a Deadly Weapon, and one count of F.S.S. 790.19 Shooting into an Occupied Dwelling.
Almost without exception, anytime someone uses deadly force, the person must have a reasonable belief that the threat presents an eminent threat of death or serious bodily injury. Here, even if Miller knew the roommate assaulted his daughter—something the daughter never claimed—he could no longer use deadly force against the roommate once he was away from the daughter, in his room behind a locked door.
I think it would horrify and anger any parent to learn a naked man was in bed with their teenage daughter. But this doesn’t mean the parent can legally attempt to or actually kill the person at a later time.
My Thoughts—
Alcohol certainly played a role in this incident. We don’t know if either man would have done what they did, had they not been drinking alcohol? The roommate is not without blame. No one would likely blame Miller had he pummeled the roommate. But shooting through a bedroom door at two people is crossing a line. Miller would have done far better in protecting his daughter if he would have remained sober, and vetted the people he rents to a little better.
Just because Police arrested Miller, doesn’t mean a prosecutor will file charges against him. Do you think the prosecutor should file charges? Will Miller plead out to lesser charges? What do you think? Leave your comment below.
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