Legally blind

[schr8er2000]

A legally blind man beat up an intruder and held him at knifepoint until police arrived at the man's eastside home, authorities said. Allan Kieta, 49, told police he was at home Monday morning when his small dog began barking and he encountered the man.

"I opened the door and just ran into him. I had him pinned in the laundry room and just kept pummeling," said Kieta, a former wrestler in high school.

He said he grabbed the intruder by the belt and dragged him into the kitchen, where he put a knife at the man's throat and tried to dial 911.

"Being visually impaired, I couldn't get the buttons because I was using my left hand," he said. "It took me about 20 tries."

Police arrived within minutes and arrested Alvaro Castro, 25, on an initial charge of residential entry, Sgt. Matthew Mount said.

Lt. Jeff Duhamell was impressed with Kieta's feat.

"Its pretty remarkable for anyone thats blind to be able to defend themselves, let alone make an apprehension," Duhamell said. "To be able to grab this guy and hold him down until police got there is pretty remarkable."

Castro, who was initially taken to the Wishard Memorial Hospital detention facility, denied trying to burglarize the home and said he was a former boyfriend of Kieta's daughter and was trying to visit her, said Mount.

Kieta said Castro told him he was looking for his cat.

"I go, 'Your cat? You're in my house!'" Kieta recalled.

Castro was transferred to the Marion County Jail on Monday night.

Kieta said he suffered swollen hands and a sore back, but no serious injuries.

"When my wife was cleaning the blood off, she said, 'I think it's all his,'" Kieta said.

[blendingnoise]

Sooooo many questions.

How did he know the guy didn't have a weapon and wasn't about to get shot or stabbed? I have a feeling he is not fully blind and may be able to make something out. Like I said, so many questions.

[ShakeyDad]

Sooooo many questions.

How did he know the guy didn't have a weapon and wasn't about to get shot or stabbed? I have a feeling he is not fully blind and may be able to make something out. Like I said, so many questions.

Legally blind, in most cases, only means he can't see well enough to drive, or he needs a magnifying glass to read. I know a couple "legally blind" people. They can see people from about 5 to 6 feet away. If he said he ran into him while opening the door, maybe he startled the intruder enough to knock him off balance, or something and was able to grab him quick enough before the intruder could reach for any weapon he might have had. And, being a former wrestler, he was more than able to hold the BG securely until the police arrived.

just my .02

[BerksCountyDave]

That's crazy. Just when you think you've heard it all.

[LowFlyer]

'Legally blind' and 'fully blind' are two different things.

You can be legally blind and still be able to see shapes and shadows in your peripheral vision.

[blendingnoise]

Thats what I was wondering. I figured he was legally blind probably by some definition that was not even close to full blindness.

How blind was he? If he was only able to see shapes and outlines or blurry.... Was he able to see there was no weapon in the guys hands or not? Those are the questions I was curious about.

[BenningBoy]

If he was a fully blind shaolin monk, he wouldn't have even needed the knife. I watch alot of Kung Fu reruns.

[normanvin]

'Legally blind' and 'fully blind' are two different things.

You can be legally blind and still be able to see shapes and shadows in your peripheral vision.

What he said....There us a woman at work. She always told us her husband was legally blind. One day I saw her in a store with a man that she told me was her husband. I was amazed to see him wandering around by himself. No cane or anything. She later explained that legally blind and not being able to see were two different things.

[PAhunter]

There are various conditions that carry a definition of "legally blind". One of which I am familiar with is Retinitis Pigmentosa.

http://www.blindness.org/content.asp?id=45

Jack