Thieves & Murderers

Last year February, on returning home I was greeted by a concrete maw. On inspection I discovered that the 'brass-slot' fitting on my letter box was nicked by some bastard. The letter box is built into the wall in front of my house and the brass-slot assembly was fixed onto a black marble slab accommodated in a recess on the outside of the wall. So if you came to drop a letter you saw a brass plate with a slot and the word 'LETTERS' embossed on it. The whole brass plate was unceremoniously ripped off the wall.

Couple of evenings later on a walk, I found more concrete maws all around my neighbourhood. Talking to one of those effected, I learned that brass fittings like these slots and taps are the hot property amongst petty thieves in the city. You can buy a peg of brandy or a can of industrial glue for the money you get in a brass tap exchange at the scrap-yard. As we were discussing various thefts, we heard a commotion. One of the residents a few houses away had managed to catch one of the thieves red-handed - a kid about 13 years old. By the time we ran to them, the kid bit the guys hand and escaped. Smart kid. I hate smart kids.

This year in march another thief hit my house. He made of with a tap from the terrace. I noticed it only when I ran out of water. I had only filled the tank up that very morning! Got the pipe capped promptly. So what next? Yesterday it was raining heavily. With the noise as a cover these guys manage to thieve some pipes & fittings from my neighbours terrace. If these fucks had been a bit enterprising they could've swiped the house clean as the neighbours were at their relatives in another part of B'lore. One of my pipes was out of place.

Scenario: You hear some noise & rush onto the terrace to see what is happening there. You see a chap frantically trying to extract a brass tap. In the spur of the moment, you bum-rush the fool off the terrace. He is splattered on the ground.
Question: Do you get off murder for protecting one's property?
or
Do you do time for murder?