Clifford Wright appears in a mugshot inset against the home he allegedly invaded before being shot by the homeowner on May 5, 2023. (Murfreesboro Police Department)
Two men allegedly broke into a home in Tennessee over the weekend and one left in a body bag after a man inside the house defused the situation with his gun, police say.
According to the Murfreesboro Police Department, the homeowner will not be facing any charges over his response to the home invasion that went awry for the invaders almost from the start.
During the harrowing incident, a teenager was held at gunpoint and the family dog was shocked with a Taser-like device, police said.
On May 5, at 8:24 p.m., the MPD responded to the call and found Kevin Ford, 52, dead at the scene of the crime, a press release says. Wearing a mask and suffering from multiple gunshot wounds at the residence on January Street, Ford was pronounced dead where he lay.
“The preliminary investigation revealed the two masked intruders, wearing gloves, broke into the home through the front door, tased the family’s dog, and held the homeowner’s teenage son at gunpoint,” authorities said. “The homeowner retrieved his gun and shot the two intruders several times. Three people were in the home at the time of the home invasion. The homeowner is not facing any charges.”
“Dog is fine,” an MPD spokesperson said in an email to Law&Crime.
Another man was later arrested in connection with the incident at a Salvation Army on Main Street in the city located just over an hour south-southwest of Nashville, the MPD said.
Clifford Wright, 42, was found with multiple gunshot wounds, police said. He was taken to a hospital where he was treated before being released and jailed on charges of aggravated burglary, attempted aggravated robbery, convicted felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent felony.
The incident is said to still be under investigation by MPD Criminal Investigations Division detectives.
Wright is currently being detained in the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center on $700,000 bond.
The defendant’s next court date is currently slated for June 5 in the Rutherford County General Sessions Court.
According to Volunteer State law, “[a] person in lawful possession of real or personal property is justified in threatening or using force against another, when and to the degree it is reasonably believed the force is immediately necessary to prevent or terminate the other’s trespass on the land or unlawful interference with the property.”
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