Sedalia homeowner who shot burglary describes encounter

SEDALIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Sedalia homeowner says he warned an intruder several times before shooting him Wednesday morning.

Police responded to the home in the 600 block of East 17th Street for a burglary.

Mark Ream says he, his wife and their 2-year-old child were sleeping when his wife thought she heard a noise in the home.

"We heard footsteps, she actually woke me up and I went to investigate. I grabbed my pistol," Ream said.

Ream told police that he found the suspect, Daniel Schnack, 52, in an enclosed back porch. Ream said he told Schnack to leave the home but the suspect started to move toward him.

"He was standing back here just kind of looking out the windows… and I opened the door and seen him and said, hey what are you doing on my porch and that's when he turned around and started walking towards me," Ream siad.

Police said Ream shot Schnack once before he left the home. Ream said he warned the intruder several times to leave before he shot him the in the leg.

"I didn't want to shoot him at all, but after four, five, six times asking him to leave and him still coming at me and getting as close as he did to the bedroom I had to stop him," said Ream.

Police found Schnack at Bothwell Regional Health Center where he was being treated for non-life threatening injuries. Commander David Woolery with Sedalia Police Department said a homeowner has the right to protect their family.

"From our investigation, from everything we seen so far, which is still open, that the home owner did what was reasonable to do and were not currently filing for charges on the home owner," Woolery said.

Police said Schnack was arrested for first-degree burglary.