DETROIT — How Renisha Marie McBride’s young life ended Nov. 2 is not in dispute: A homeowner in suburban Detroit fatally shot the 19-year-old in the face as she stood on his porch before the sun came up.
Almost every other aspect of the case is not as clear-cut.
Did race play a role in the shooting? What happened on that doorstep? Did the homeowner reasonably think he was acting in self-defense?
Police and prosecutors say Theodore Paul Wafer fired once with a 12-gauge shotgun through his screen door.
The 54-year-old airport maintenance employee, who faces murder and manslaughter charges, is free on bail awaiting a Dec. 18 hearing that will determine whether the case should go to trial.
Ron Bretz, a Cooley Law School professor and former criminal defense lawyer, said the case might boil down to a single word. “It’s got to be reasonable,” he said.
Under a 2006 Michigan law, a homeowner has the right to use force during a break-in. Otherwise, a person must show that his or her life was in danger.
Defense lawyers are expected to argue that Wafer feared for his life when a drunken Mc-Bride came to his door at night after crashing her car blocks away.
McBride’s family and prosecutors see no justification for the slaying. She was unarmed, and the screen door Wafer fired through was locked.
