Dad has to shoot one son dead to save another

A father from Florida is in distress after being forced to shoot down one of his two sons to end a violent struggle between the brothers.

John Maloney was left with the devastating choice after his 30-year-old son, Joseph, got violent with his younger son, James, 26, over a game of pool, as per Fox.

Martin County Sheriff William Snyder told the news outlet that they received a phone call from a woman, later identified as Marie, John’s wife, reporting that Joseph was acting irrationally.

Later, Marie called 911 for the second time and reported that her husband had to shoot Joseph after he was on the verge of killing his own brother, James.

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John and Marie later told police that the brothers got into a heated argument over the game of billiards. The two of them had been allegedly drinking before the incident took place.

As the argument escalated, Joseph locked James in a chokehold while holding a knife over his head. John made an attempt to convince Joseph to release his brother, but the elder son did not comply.

James pleaded his brother to release him while explaining that he could not breathe anymore. Before long, he began to lose consciousness and John had to take the drastic measure. He ultimately fired his revolver and shot Joseph several times.

Sheriff Snyder also explained that Joseph was acting irrationally in hours leading up to the incident. He even attacked a door with a machete, which prompted his parents to lock themselves in their bedroom. James had managed to keep his brother calm and away from his parents up to some extent.

When Maria called 911 for the first time, she had already mentioned that Joseph had to be “Baker Acted,” which is a reference to the Florida Mental Health Act that allows officials to examine a person showing signs of possible mental illness without his consent.

It has been reported that John will not be facing any charges as he fatally shot his older son to protect his younger son. Family witness and evidence showed that he had to kill Joseph to “prevent the death or great bodily injury” to James, Snyder confirmed.

The family opened up that Joseph had been under stress due to his upcoming court hearing regarding a 2015 “Driving Under Influence” manslaughter case.

Joseph crashed with another vehicle coming from the opposite direction and killed a high school football coach in May 2005.

Previously, another father was arrested for his son’s murder, a crime which he apparently had not committed. The father was vindicated only after 14 long years when the real culprit came forward to confess.