West Virginia resident Rodney Bruce Black has been charged with murder after he shot and killed two men he thought were trespassing on his land. One of those so-called trespassers turned out to be his new neighbor.
According to WCHS, 62-year-old Black fatally shot brothers Garrick and Carl Hopkins on Saturday afternoon, believing the men were trying to steal items from his tool shed.
Black saw the two men from his window and grabbed his gun before calling the police.
Black told detectives in his statement that he saw two men “shaking the door on his tool shed in his backyard.” He said he then “reached and got his .243 and loaded the gun and pointed the gun out of his window and the shot the first male and then pulled the bolt action back and fired another shot and hit the other.
Police say that even though the suspect is white and the victims black, the incident is not being considered a race crime. Black is charged with two counts of first degree murder. Police have also discovered over 50 guns in Black’s home, including a variety of shotguns, rifles and muzzleloaders.
This news comes on the heels of other cases where people have shot first and asked questions later, including the high-profile deaths of Jonathan Ferrell and Renisha McBride.
Our prayers are with the Hopkins family at this time.
SOURCE: WCHS | PHOTO CREDIT: Screenshot
