Self Defense Lubbock, Texas style

A retired Lubbock police officer fatally shot a suspected burglar on Thursday and wounded an accomplice after discovering the pair in his home.

James Kimber, 65, returned home shortly after noon and noticed his garage door opened slightly. Kimber went inside, got a handgun from the laundry area and started looking around. He then heard voices coming from a bedroom and the sound of a semiautomatic weapon being cocked, said Lubbock police Lt. Roy Bassett.

When Kimber opened the bedroom door, an armed man rushed him. Kimber fired, striking the man in the chest. Fermin Martinez Jr., 19, of Idalou, staggered out the door and died in the alley behind Kimber's home, police said.

Kimber also shot Richard Steven Lovato, 19, of Lubbock, in the leg and held him at gunpoint until officers arrived.

Kimber retired from the department in 1996.