The store manager of a Delhi Township smoke shop, where a teenager was shot and killed during an October break-in, is now facing charges.

Tony Thacker, 29, was indicted Friday on counts including felonious assault, tampering with evidence and illegal possession of a firearm, court records show. …

“There is simply no justification for shooting at someone as they are running away,” Hamilton County Prosecutor Melissa Powers said in a statement. “However, I want to make perfectly clear – these retail thefts will not be tolerated. If you try to rob a store, you should expect to be shot.”

[Yes, and that may be the only disincentives in play these days for robbers. But the prosecutor is also correct that the use of lethal force is only justified while the threat of “death or great bodily harm” is acutely present. Once the threat retreats, you can’t keep firing. That is what Thacker allegedly did when his bullets struck and killed one of the robbers. Also, Thacker was apparently ineligible to possess a firearm at all. — Ed]