by Terry DeMio, The Cincinnati Enquirer
BURLINGTON, Ky. -- The robbers who targeted a 92-year-old farmer in his home early Monday were just "boys" who got mixed up in drugs that led them astray, the mother of one of those accused said.
Lynn Inabnit sobbed Wednesday as she spoke of the three men charged with breaking into Earl Jones' house only to find him poised with a .22-caliber rifle aimed at the first one who came upstairs.
"Everyone's been painting them like they're evil," she said, worried about how they've been portrayed. "They're not evil. They're just little boys" who became heroin addicts.
Jones fired a shot that killed Lloyd "Adam" Maxwell, 24, of Richmond, Ky.
His cousin, Ryan Dalton, 22, and Donnie Inabnit, 20, both of Dry Ridge, Ky., took Maxwell from the home and left the scene, Boone County sheriff's deputies said.
His cousin, Ryan Dalton, 22, and Donnie Inabnit, 20, both of Dry Ridge, Ky., took Maxwell from the home and left the scene, Boone County sheriff's deputies said.
Jones' home had been burglarized three times in a 12-day stretch in August before he heard noise in his basement after 2 a.m. Monday.
Jones, who served in the U.S. Army Air Forces from 1941 through '46, said he aimed for the first intruder's heart. Jones has not been charged.
Under Kentucky's castle domain law, people are not required to retreat if someone unlawfully enters their home.
Under Kentucky's castle domain law, people are not required to retreat if someone unlawfully enters their home.
During his World War II service, Jones said he never shot anyone.
He worked as an aeronautical engineer and said he serviced the Enola Gay, the B-29 that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.
He worked as an aeronautical engineer and said he serviced the Enola Gay, the B-29 that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.
Jones said he is proud of his service but thinks it's a shame that the first time he fired a shot at another person, it was in his own home.
Mother: Heroin addiction led men to 92-year-old's home – USATODAY.com
Link: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-09-06/intruder-alert/57641800/1
