Charges filed in fugitive shooting

Bail bondsman faces assault charges
By Brett Hambright, Staff
Intelligencer Journal

Published: Jan 31, 2007 1:59 AM EST

LANCASTER, Pa. - A bail bondsman who allegedly shot a fugitive he tried to apprehend last year was recently charged, investigators said.

Dale Kauffman, 53, of Columbia shot Moises Torres Jr., then 29, in his right leg Nov. 29 when Torres tried to run from his home at 652 E. King St., investigators said.

The bullet fractured Torres' fibula and tibia, according to investigators, requiring surgery and skin grafts.

Kauffman was charged with aggravated assault and recklessly endangering another person, investigators said.

A bail bondsman is allowed to use deadly force against a fugitive only to avoid death or serious injury, investigators said.

Because Torres was unarmed and running away from Kauffman and two other bail bondsmen inside the home, investigators say, the fugitive posed no such threat.

The three bail bondsmen tried to apprehend Torres because he failed to appear in court for drug-related charges and other offenses, police said.

When the bondsmen went to Torres' home about 10:15 p.m., police said the fugitive initially cooperated. Then, they said, he struggled with one of the bondsmen and ran for the front door. Torres was shot during his attempted escape.

Lancaster city police investigated the case, and charges were approved by the Lancaster County District Attorney's office.

Aggravated assault, a first-degree felony, carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence. Reckless endangerment is a second-degree misdemeanor with a maximum 2-year prison sentence.

Brett Hambright's e-mail address is bhambright@lnpnews.com.

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Bondsman gets probation for shooting man

Intelligencer Journal
Published: Feb 26, 2008
00:55 EST
Lancaster

By BRETT HAMBRIGHT, Staff

A bail bondsman who in 2006 shot a fugitive in Lancaster city was spared a prison sentence Monday by a Lancaster County judge.
Instead, Dale K. Kauffman of Columbia was sentenced to 5 years' probation and ordered to stop working as a bail bondsman.
Kauffman shot Moises Torres Nov. 29, 2006, as Torres tried to flee a home in the 600 block of East King Street. Kauffman and another bail bondsman were in the home trying to detain Torres.
President Judge Louis J. Farina said a "deficiency in our system" allows bail bondsmen to be placed in difficult situations with dangerous criminals.
Unlike police officers and sheriff's deputies, bail bondsmen are not required to have weapons training, Kauffman told the judge.
"(Kauffman) was never trained," Farina said. "This points out a deficiency in our system, so I have some sympathy for your plight."
"We need to send a message to other bondsmen," Farina continued. "You are the first. I'm not aware of any case like this. And I want you to be the last."
Kauffman pleaded guilty in December to aggravated assault and reckless endangerment.
Torres, now 30, was unarmed when he ran from the bail bondsmen, court documents say. Kauffman fired one shot from his 40-caliber handgun, striking Torres' right leg.
The bullet shattered Torres' tibia, requiring him to undergo surgery and skin grafts, court documents say.
Defense attorney Herbert M. Crystle told Farina that Torres elbowed Kauffman in the throat before fleeing the home.
Crystle said Kauffman had no prior criminal record as an adult and that he has lived "a life of public service."
Kauffman served in the Army and worked as a volunteer firefighter and security guard before becoming a bail bondsman, Crystle said.
Kauffman is a "good man," Crystle said, "who made a bad decision in the heat of the moment."
Kauffman spoke briefly before he was sentenced.
"My intent was never to hurt anybody — but to bring him in," Kauffman told Farina. "I can't (change) what did happen. I'm truly sorry I injured Mr. Torres."
Crystle told Farina that Kauffman has continued to work as a bail bondsman but no longer carries a gun.
Farina acknowledged serving "bail pieces" was a source of income for Kauffman, but ordered him to cease practicing.
"I have serious reservations about whether a convicted felon should be serving bail pieces," Farina said.
Apprehending and detaining fugitives while unarmed could place a bondsman at risk, the judge said. "We allow you to be armed when you arrest dangerous people," he said. "There are rules people in your business need to be aware of and trained for. It doesn't excuse you — but it does mitigate."
Assistant District Attorney Kelly Sekula argued Kauffman also endangered innocent bystanders on a busy city street when he fired from inside the home toward the front door.
Kauffman initially told police he only wanted to scare Torres and make him stop running for the door when he fired the shot.
"You are a good man. But, you made a very bad mistake here and seriously hurt somebody," Farina told Kauffman. "The system doesn't work when it lets people do what you did."

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Do not consider anything for your interest which makes you break your word, quit your modesty, or inclines you to any practice which will not bear the light, or look the world in the face .... Marcus Antonius

I AM Some Folks "KARMA" and A MODERATOR @ FRN