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MANCHESTER, KY — Kentucky State Police are investigating an early-morning shooting in Clay County that left a 23-year-old man fighting for his life after, troopers say, he arrived intoxicated at his parents’ home and threatened the family.

The call came in to Clay County 911 around 2 a.m. on Saturday, June 13. According to KSP Post 11 in London, the caller reported that a family member was at the residence on Portersburg Road and was threatening to harm them, followed by a series of gunshots.

When troopers arrived, they found Jeremy Oliver, 23, of Manchester, with a gunshot wound to the chest. Troopers placed a chest seal on him and turned care over to Clay County EMS, who transported him to St. Joseph Hospital in London. He was later airlifted to the University of Kentucky Albert B. Chandler Hospital in Lexington with life-threatening injuries.

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A preliminary investigation determined that Oliver came to his parents’ residence while intoxicated and started a verbal argument, troopers said. That dispute escalated and ended with Oliver being shot in the torso. The family tried to drive him to the hospital themselves but were unable to do so.

KSP has not said who fired the shot, has not announced any charges, and has not publicly characterized the shooting. The release names only the wounded man.

What makes a case like this so hard is who the threat came from. Standing up to your own son or brother is the most wrenching version of that choice there is, and the right to defend your life and your home does not vanish because the person threatening you is family. When someone faces an imminent threat of death or serious injury, the law recognizes the right to meet it with force, even against their own.