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Waymone Williams

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A homeowner used his concealed handgun to shoot and kill one of two men early Monday morning in what police described as an armed robbery in the homeowner's North Collinwood neighborhood driveway.

The robbery suspect, 23-year-old Waymone Williams, had been ordered by a judge last January to take a one-day concealed-carry class about the consequences of having a weapon in a crime. The homeowner, Timothy Peak, had a concealed-carry permit, police said.

Peak, 26, declined to comment when contacted at his house Monday afternoon.

Williams, of East 120th Street, had one prior criminal case. He pleaded guilty in December to carrying a concealed weapon, obstructing official business and tampering with evidence. Charges of aggravated burglary and failure to comply with police were dropped.

Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge John Russo sentenced Williams on Jan. 10 to 18 months of probation and ordered him to take a concealed-carry class at the request of the probation department.

Vince Holland, chief probation officer for the Cuyahoga County Adult Probation Department, said the class is not designed to prepare people to carry a concealed weapon, but to educate those found guilty of gun-related crimes about the consequences of having a weapon.

Holland said he didn’t know if Williams completed the class. Having been convicted of a felony, Williams would have not been allowed to have a gun, both Russo and Holland said.

Police were called at 12:30 a.m. Monday and officers found Williams with multiple gunshot wounds. Paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene.

Investigators reported that Peak and a woman were getting into his car when two men wearing masks and gloves approached them.

“One of the males was in possession of a handgun and the other male was in possession of a crowbar,” Sgt. Sammy Morris said. “The male with the handgun struck the homeowner in head with the handgun and attempted to pull him out of the vehicle.”

Peak grabbed a handgun in his car and fired multiple times, striking the robber in the torso. The robber fired once, but the bullet missed the homeowner, Morris said.

During the shooting, the second suspect stole the female victim’s purse and ran, Morris said.

Peak was treated at St. Vincent Charity Hospital for a laceration on his head. The woman was not injured.

The city prosecutor will review the case. Anyone with information is asked to call homicide detectives at 216-623-5464.

Cleveland Councilman Mike Polensek, who lives near Peak, said he has known him and his family for years. He said Williams and his partner were wearing masks, "and you know they weren't there trick-or-treating."

“As far as I’m concerned, Waymone Williams got exactly what he deserved...lead poisoning,” Polensek said. “If he hadn’t had that gun, we’d be reading about him in a two paragraph story in the paper as another innocent victim of violent criminals looking to prey on him like jackals. (Williams) picked on the wrong man this time.”

Jim Irvine, chairman of the Buckeye Firearms Association, said this shooting is not the common outcome when a concealed-carry permit holder is confronted by someone who would do him harm.

“The most common result is the person with the permit pulls out a gun and the suspect runs away. No shots are fired, as the suspect realizes, ‘I picked the wrong person,’”Irvine said.

In this case, it may have been too dark for the robber to realize the homeowner had grabbed a gun, Irvine said.

And if Irvine had the opportunity to talk to Peak, he said he would say, “I’m sorry for the situation and glad you were prepared and able to survive it.”

It sounds like a justified shooting, Irvine said, but “if it bothers you, get some counseling. There’s no shame in it. The vast majority of permit holders don’t want to shoot someone.“

Reporters Pat Galbincea and Peter Krouse contributed to this story.