Texas Homeowner Charged With Murder After Fatally Shooting Motorist Who Parked In His Driveway

A Texas man has been charged with murder after he allegedly shot and killed a motorist who was sitting inside a parked car in his driveway.

The incident occurred around 3.40 a.m. on Oct. 11 in Martindale, a small town in Texas. Terry Duane Turner, 65, told police that he woke up to use the bathroom and found "an unknown vehicle parked inside his driveway with its headlights off," according to an arrest affidavit obtained by CNN.

According to Turner, he then returned to his bedroom to retrieve a handgun. He then ran outside and saw the vehicle’s headlights were turned on and the car rapidly backing out of his driveway. Turner told the investigators that he chased after the car and "struck the front driver's side door window twice with his handgun," the affidavit stated, according to CNN. He then fired the gun, striking and killing the driver.

The victim was identified by police as Adil Dghoughi, a 31-year-old Moroccan immigrant.

After the shooting, Turner called 911 and told the operator that the victim had pulled a gun on him. "I just killed a guy," Tuner told the operator according to KVUE. "He started racing away and I ran after him ... he pointed a gun at me and I shot," Tuner added.

Investigators didn't find a gun inside Dghoughi's car, the affidavit stated.

Dghoughi’s girlfriend, Sarah Todd, believes that the victim got lost in Martindale and pulled over to look up for directions when he was shot dead, the report said.

Turner turned himself in on Oct. 22 on the felony murder charge, a day after an arrest warrant was issued for his arrest. But, he was bonded out less than two hours later.

The victim’s family and Todd have expressed outrage that it took the police around two weeks to arrest Turner.

The victim’s family and Todd expressed outrage that it took the police around two weeks to arrest Turner.

According to Mehdi Cherkaoui, the attorney representing Dghoughi’s family, the victim’s windows were closed when Turner shot him. The bullet first entered Dghoughi’s hand before it entered his head. "And the bullet exited the victim’s head, and actually there was enough force for it to travel through the passenger-side window," the attorney was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.

Turner's attorney, Larry Bloomquist, told CNN that his client "was defending himself and his property" during the shooting and is cooperating with the police investigation.

Dghoughi’s family fears that Turner will avoid charges by invoking a Texas law commonly referred to as "stand your ground," which says a person can use force as a form of self-defense if "force is immediately necessary" to protect themselves against the other.

"We're going to continue to fight until there is justice for Adil," Todd was cited as saying by CNN.