Dixon case update.(Exercising The Right)(Ronald Dixon unregistered handgun case)

As reported in our January 27th column, when Canarsie, New York, resident Ronald Dixon was awakened by a noise shortly before 8 a.m. on December 14, 2002, he glanced at a bedroom mirror and saw the reflection of an intruder near the room where his 18-month-old son was sleeping. After asking his wife to call 911, Dixon grabbed a handgun from his closet and went to investigate.

A burglar, later identified as Ivan Thompson, was rummaging through drawers in the child's room. When Thompson made a move toward Dixon, Dixon fired at least two shots, striking the intruder twice. The wounded thug, who had been arrested on 19 previous occasions and was on parole for a burglary conviction, sought to flee, but collapsed outside the house. He survived and was charged with burglary and trespassing.

The Dixons and their two children were not harmed, but Mr. Dixon was arrested. Prosecutors agreed that the shooting was justified, but Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes charged Dixon with possessing an illegal weapon after it was learned that Dixon's gun, legally purchased in Florida, was not registered in New York. If convicted, Dixon faced up to a year in prison.

The case was widely reported locally and nationally. In March, as a groundswell of public support for Dixon surged, District Attorney Hynes opted to reduce the charge from illegal to attempted ...