Life Changes In The Blink Of.........

Have you ever had a day so bad that you wished you still lived in last week? 

In Houston Texas within a span of 15 minutes Quintin Woods life was forever changed, and so was the life of the man who kicked in the front door of Wood's northwest Harris County home.

At around10 a.m. Tuesday, the postal carrier who's on medical leave was resting before a physical therapy appointment. That's when he heard the doorbell ringing repeatedly. Then the loud banging on the door began.

"I knew this was going to be bad," Wood said. Four years ago he returned home to find his home had been burglarized. The burglar was later caught, but his vigilance on home security remained high.

"I got my gun and walked out of the room. Then I saw the door was open, and he was in my house," Wood explained.

It was even more terrifying because Wood said the intruder was in another room, and he couldn't see him.

Wood had already called 911, begging for help because a break-in was underway.

For anywhere from one to three minutes, he said he waited behind a wall for the man. And then they both saw each other.

"He kept coming at me," so I fired once, Wood said.

The suspect collapsed in the tile entry way of the two-story home. The door had withstood his kicks, but the door frame did not. It was shattered.

Wood was overcome by how a quiet morning had been shattered as well. When asked about the impact the shooting had had on his own life, he couldn't answer, as tears filled his eyes.

After a couple of minutes, he returned. The suspect was on the floor, bleeding. By then deputies had arrived.

"He asked to call his girlfriend," Wood said. "He kept saying 'I'm a thief, I'm a thief.'"

The suspect was said to be in his mid-20s. He was taken by Life Flight helicopter for emergency treatment.

The day was far worse than the one four years ago when Wood's house was burglarized, his possessions missing. "There are no words to describe this."

Neighbors say they see it as one of their own taking up for himself.

"He did the right thing," one said. "We're a community of older homeowners... and we're not sitting ducks."

PR