Eighty four year old Fred Ricciutti from Elizabeth, Pennsylvania never figured he’d be punching holes in anybody with his service issue weapon again. Nevertheless the other morning in the wee hours, he had occasion to do just that.

It seems one Raymond Hiles was out and about early Tuesday morning and found himself trying his hand at fenestration rearrangement (breaking a window) at Mr. Ricciutti’s residence. Fred, unaccustomed to being awakened early under these circumstances, opted to take a pot shot at Raymond. Grazed in the neck, Raymond took this to mean that he wasn’t welcome there and departed.

Police found Mr. Hiles several blocks away bleeding profusely from a neck wound. They elected to make him a guest of the county until the matter of a small bail amount ($100 K ) could be negotiated. Mr. Hiles was unable to account for why he had a screwdriver and stun gun in his possession at the time of his being granted free room and board by the city’s finest. His injuries were determined to be non life-threatening and he is expected to recover his hearing soon.

Fortunately, Mr. Ricciutti didn’t manage to kill or permanently maim Mr. Hiles so he is not expected to be charged with a crime. Which is where I have to ask Gilligan to back the  boat back up to the dock for a minute. Why, pray tell, would Veteran Fred be charged with anything? Do they have special dispensations for burglars in Pennsylvania that preclude harming them in the pursuit of their crimes? Are Veterans so untrustworthy as to not be allowed to possess firearms after separation?

There are more insults and innuendo here than meet the eye. We sincerely hope the writer(s) of the article (AP) and the television station reporting it ( WPXI-TV, http://www.wpxi.com) have a clearer explanation of why he might have been charged with a crime but is expected not to be. I’d say Mr. Hiles can count his lucky stars that he’s not room temperature at the morgue right now. It seems Fred didn’t have time to don his glasses before shooting.