78-year-old disabled ex-Marine foils robbery, shoots 14-year-old punk

Austin Kilcoyne, age 78, is a disabled ex-Marine and a former firefighter. When he heard a noise in his home earlier this year, he investigated and discovered a vicious 14-year-old boy who beat the elderly man in the head with a pair of pruning shears and dragged him around the house yelling, "Tell me where the money is!"

When the young thief released Mr. Kilcoyne in order to gather his valuables, Kilcoyne was able to reach a pistol he had concealed in order to defend his home after a previous robbery. He shot the teenaged thief three times, in the arm, buttock, and thigh, before the youth wrested the gun away only to find it empty. Kilcoyne had loaded it with only three bullets, in case someone got it away from him and tried to use it on him.

Wounded and moaning, the teen escaped to an alley, where he was discovered by workers who turned him in to police. The young punk was charged with charged with attempted murder, home invasion, and aggravated battery.