By Walt Philbin
Staff writer/The Times-Picayune
http://www.nola.com

December 24, 2000

A man shot and killed a burglar who was punching his wife in the bedroom of the couple's French Quarter apartment early Saturday, police said.

Police said the burglar broke into a second-story apartment in the 500 block of Bienville Street, between Decatur and Chartres streets, shortly after 4 a.m. A woman was asleep in the bedroom and her husband in the living room, officers said.

The woman awakened during the burglary, and the intruder apparently tried to stifle her calls for help by putting his hand over her face and punching her, officers said. Her screams woke her husband, 50, who got a revolver, ran into the bedroom and saw the man hitting his wife, officers said.

The resident fired several times, striking the man, who ran into the living room and collapsed, police said.

After calling police, the resident met 8th District officers at the front door and led them upstairs to the living room, where the man still was lying on the floor. The alleged intruder, a 33-year-old Algiers man, died at Charity Hospital. He had been shot several times, the coroner's office said. His name was being withheld until the coroner's office could notify his family.

The couple have not been identified by police, who cited security concerns. The woman's age was not available.

After a preliminary investigation, police filed no charges against the resident. Police said they will ask the district attorney's office to review the case.

Police classified the incident as a burglary, but they were trying to establish how the man got in, officers said.

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