Alleged burglar dies after Riverdale homeowner shoots him

A teenager is dead and his alleged burglary accomplice is charged with murder after a homeowner shot at them during an alleged burglary attempt, according to police.

A spokesperson for the Riverdale Police Department said John Dexter Williams, 19, and Patrick Kemp, 22, tried to break into a home on Birch Circle Tuesday morning. Investigators said the homeowner shot Williams, who ran away from the scene. At around 10:45 a.m., officers responded to a report of a person shot on Birch Walk Boulevard, which is located in the same subdivision.

“That’s when my neighbor called me and told me that someone had gotten shot, but they must have ran to the neighbor’s house across the street from her, because that’s where the police found him in the driveway,” said Cynthia Harper, who lives nearby.

Harper believes she saw the two men walk past her home shortly before the shooting.

“I hate that they got shot, but you go in someone else’s property, hey, you get what’s coming to you,” Harper added.

Neighbors said criminals have frequently targeted their subdivision during the day.

“They assume that nobody’s at home. So a lot of the neighbors they came together like, ‘Well we may have to get armed, you know. Just to protect ourselves and protect our families.’ I guess that’s what happened today,” said Homer Minor, whose parents live in the neighborhood. “Somebody lost their life trying to take somebody else’s goods.”

Kemp is charged with felony murder and burglary in the first degree. Police do not plan to charge the homeowner.

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