Prince William County police will not charge a Dale City homeowner who shot a man on his front porch who he encountered after hearing what sounded like someone trying to break into his house, police said Friday.
Detectives with the Prince William County Police Department’s violent crimes unit concluded an investigation into the July 6 shooting, which occurred in the 4300 block of Glendale Road in Dale City.
A 43-year-old man was shot but not fatally wounded during the incident.
In consultation with the Prince William County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office, the shooting was determined to have been an act of self-defense, according to 1st Sgt. Jonathan Perok, spokesman for the Prince William County Police Department.
Officers arrived at the home at about 9:55 p.m. on Tuesday, July 6, to find a 43-year-old man suffering from gunshot wounds. Upon questioning the homeowner, who was initially detained by police, officers learned the homeowner shot the man after he heard what sounded like someone trying to open his living room window and then heard someone on the porch and went outside to investigate, police said in a news release at the time of the incident.
Early Thursday, July 22, a 44-year-old woman shot and killed a masked man armed with a handgun who approached her from the side of her house in the 4100 block of Hoffman Drive.
The woman had left her home at about 12:25 a.m. that morning to walk her dog when she encountered the man, Perok said in a July 22 email.
Police have identified the victim of the fatal shooting as Azhar Laurent Smart, 20, of Triangle, according to a police press release.