The Buffalo-area homeowner who fatally shot Albany teacher David Park will not be held criminally responsible.
David D'Amico testified before an Erie County grand jury on Monday, which determined that he had not acted criminally, his attorney, Thomas Burton, said Tuesday. The grand jury returned a no-bill Tuesday, clearing D'Amico of criminal charges. Neither Burton nor D'Amico appeared in court Tuesday.
Burton said his client was devastated by the shooting and had waived his immunity for any crime that had occurred that night. He said D'Amico, who was so drained by the experience that he lost 15 pounds in the last month and a half, was relieved that the situation was not compounded by his having to face trial on second-degree murder charges.
"That doesn't mean it wasn't tragic," Burton said. "It just means it wasn't criminal."
Park, a 31-year-old teacher at Arbor Hill Elementary School, was shot around 1 a.m. March 28 after entering D'Amico's home in the Buffalo suburb of Amherst. Toxicology results show that his blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit for driving while intoxicated. Why Park entered the house through an unlocked rear door likely will never be known. He was in the Buffalo area with his wife to attend a baby shower at a neighboring home.
Criminal cases where a homeowner fatally shoots an intruder are rare, said Erie County District Attorney Frank Sedita III. He said the shock of the incident was deeply felt on both sides and that the homeowner will suffer for the rest of his life with the consequences of the shooting. He called it a "textbook case" of a justifiable shooting.
"If there's any lessons, it's under certain circumstances you have the right to shoot somebody in your home," he said.