01/08
   SAN ANTONIO (UPI) -- A San Antonio man and an intruder he caught
rummaging through his apartment exchanged apologies - the man for
allegedly breaking in, the resident for shooting him in the rear
end.
   James Kirkland, 48, said he was awakened at about 9:30 p.m.
Wednesday by a noise from the other side of his bedroom wall. He
said he grabbed his .22-caliber target pistol from a nightstand,
walked into his living room, where he spotted a dark figure holding
his 24-inch television set.
   Police said Kirkland told them he yelled "Freeze!" But the figure
ran for the door, still carrying the TV set, so he aimed low and
fired two shots, striking the man in the buttocks.
   Kirkland said "When he hit that door, I popped two rounds at him
and I heard him say, 'Uhhhh.' He dropped the TV (on the porch) and
(ran)."
   The man took off, but moments later, Kirkland said heard a knock
at his door, followed by a voice muttering "Sir, I'm unarmed."
Kirkland said that when he asked what the man wanted, the intruder
said "I'm the guy you shot. Can you call EMS (Emergency Medical
Services)?"
   Kirkland said he told the man to sit on the porch while he called
for help but the man told him "I can't. I'm hit in the butt."
Kirkland said he peeked through his blinds to be sure the man was
unarmed and saw blood streaming down his right pants leg. He then
called EMS, which notifed police.
   After officers arrived, Kirkland said the man he shot apologized
to him for breaking into his home. Kirkland said he replied with an
apology of his own for shooting the man.
   The wounded man was jailed after being treated for the wound at
Medical Center Hospital. Police later arrested the wounded man's
alleged accomplice, who was staying in an apartment in Kirkland's
complex and had Kirkland's VCR on a couch.