Defensive gun use (DGU) weekly roundup
Eight stories and updates that hit the news over the past week or so.
Welcome to another weekly round-up. Note that we don’t pretend that this represents every newsroom that covered any given story.
And hey, lawyers? We know that everyone is innocent until proved guilty. This is just what the story looks like at this point in time.
California
Redwood City
It was nearly 11 PM Saturday when a couple was checking out at a Safeway in Redwood City’s Sequoia Station shopping center. Without any apparent provocation, a man approached them and stabbed the male shopper in the abdomen, leaving additional wounds consistent with a sustained knife attack.
The woman used her shopping cart to push the attacker back and protect the male victim. The male victim, bleeding from the stab wound, produced a gun and fired once. The shot missed — hitting a checkout monitor instead — but it was enough to make the attacker flee to the parking lot, where witnesses pointed him out to officers and he was detained without further incident.
The victim survived. The attacker, Isidro Zamora-Cisneros, 31, was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, along with methamphetamine possession and related charges. He was held without bail.
Florida
Jacksonville
On May 13, the State Attorney’s Office ruled that a man who killed Joseph Starkey in December of 2025 was justified and that no charges would be filed against him.
The road rage encounter on St. Johns Bluff Road turned fatal when Joe Starkey, driving home with his wife, got out of his vehicle to confront another driver.
The other driver remained in his vehicle and warned Starkey he had a gun and that Starkey should not approach. Starkey kept coming — and, according to both a witness and the shooter, he reached his hands through the driver’s window.
The driver fired.
He then called 911 immediately afterward. Starkey, described by the community as a local musician, died at the scene. The announcement closes the case.
Indiana
Anderson
A 41-year-old Anderson man had been staying at a home north of town — the Riall family was putting him up. However, the man later told police that the family had been abusive toward him, and whatever goodwill there might have been between them definitely disappeared the night of May 9.
Shortly after 11:30 PM, a physical dispute broke out between the man and two others: Koty Riall, 37, and his father Rodney, 58. According to witnesses, the victim ended up on his back with Koty on top of him. He pulled a knife and stabbed Koty. When Rodney then came at him, the man shot him.
Both Rialls died at the scene. The 41-year-old was arrested but faced no charges — the prosecutor found credible evidence of self-defense and declined to proceed.
Massachusetts
Cambridge
Around 1 PM on Monday, May 11, Tyson Brown opened fire on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts — eventually letting loose at least 60 rounds on the busy street. Drivers were trapped as Brown advanced.
A Marine veteran with a concealed carry permit wasn’t having it. Moving car to car, he pulled trapped drivers to safety — including Rachael Saveriano, who said he opened her door and told her to run. She did, and looked back to see the veteran exchanging fire with Brown.
A Massachusetts state trooper also engaged Brown. Two men were seriously wounded in the incident. Brown, 46, was taken into custody. He had previously been convicted of armed assault with intent to murder a police officer in 2020.
North Carolina
Dunn
The linked news article doesn’t give much detail, so I’m going to let Valerie Beasley Ennis tell her side of the story. This is a Facebook comment from a person with a deep interest in the story, so treat it carefully — but without it, the news article doesn’t make a lot of sense.
I have some information regarding this incident and feel extremely compelled to share it here with everyone so the public has a better idea of what really happened that night at 301 South Washington Avenue, my childhood home and my mother’s residence.
Earlier on that same day, Dunn PD responded to a call reporting a break-in at the residence. After being told no one was available to take fingerprints or photos of the crime scene until Monday, I was told I should just board up the window and go home. Later that evening Steven and I returned to my mom’s home to make sure the window was still boarded up, nothing else had been taken, and no one else was breaking in again. This is when the shooting occurred.
The person who was shot identified himself as Dave and said a guy at the railroad tracks had told him to come get what he wanted out of the house, which was what he was doing at the time. Instead of attempting to run away from the scene, he ran toward Steven.
Dunn PD confirmed that he had definitely been inside the residence which Steven already knew from seeing him climb out the window. His name is David Elijah Nesbitt, which we learned Wednesday upon reading the warrant for Steven’s arrest after he was released.
This is not new information for the Dunn PD but after this incredibly misleading post was brought to my attention, I knew I’d be remiss if I didn’t share it accordingly. My husband was protecting himself, his family and property which he has a right to do just as I have the right to share the truth when others fail to do so.
Ennis was charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon intending to kill (c.f. the City of Dunn PD Facebook post). Because it wasn’t Steven Ennis’s home, North Carolina’s Castle Doctrine didn’t apply.
