Neighbors of retired Buffalo Police Officer Donald Miller say his presence has always given them a sense of security.

That feeling was reinforced with a sense of relief Thursday afternoon when Miller fatally shot one of two robbers who threatened him in front of his East Side home.

One thief pulled out a gun, and a scuffle started shortly before 12:45 p.m. on John Paul Court, just off William Street. Miller pulled out his handgun, for which he has a permit, and shot the man in the upper torso, according to authorities.

The dead robber was identified by police as Cortney Gordon, 30, of Buffalo.

It appears that Miller was acting in self-defense, according to police sources.

After Gordon was shot, he managed to wrest the gun from Miller and fled with his companion and both guns. The wounded man collapsed a short distance away in front of the Monsignor Adamski Village senior citizen apartments at 855 William.

Three men who saw Gordon collapse approached him and took both Miller's and Gordon's guns, according to Detective Sgt. Daniel F. Rinaldo, the lead homicide investigator. Neither gun has been recovered.

"We have a statement from another bystander who told the three men not to touch those guns," Rinaldo said. "The guns were taken from Gordon as he was dying."

Police officials said the gun thieves will not be charged if they return the two weapons. Neighbors had only good things to say about Miller and his actions Thursday.

"There's no problem with that, as long as Don was not hurt," William Gault said of how Miller defended himself. "Don is an asset to the neighborhood. He gives us a sense of security living here."

"It's about time it got turned around," said Dorothy Blair, another neighbor who also was relieved that Miller was unscathed.

They and other residents, upset over criminals encroaching on their well-kept, suburbanlike street, recalled how an older man was killed in a drive-by shooting two years ago in front of the Adamski apartments while waiting to be taken for dialysis treatment.

In Thursday's shooting, residents said they were glad the tables had been turned.

The 71-year-old Miller, who served with the now-disbanded Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority Police Department and then with the city police force, was interviewed by homicide detectives at his home and not charged, police sources said.

Miller was approached by the gunmen just as he returned home and was getting out of his sport utility vehicle in his driveway.

"I'm glad I'm OK, but I have no comment," Miller told The Buffalo News as he stood in his doorway.

Erie County District Attorney Frank A. Sedita III said he has directed Assistant District Attorney James F. Bargnesi, chief of the office's Homicide Bureau, to review the circumstances surrounding the shooting.

"It's too early to tell," Sedita said when asked whether the case will be presented to a grand jury for review.

Attorney Thomas H. Burton, who frequently represents police officers in cases involving the use of deadly force, is representing Miller.

"If you are dumb or brazen enough to attempt an armed robbery, sometimes you pay the consequences," Burton said. "When you try to rob a former police officer, the stupidity rises to a whole new level."

Based on the circumstances of this shooting, Burton said, Miller was within his legal rights to use deadly force "in stopping a robbery and defending himself because he could not retreat with complete safety."

Relatives of Miller described him as a devoted family man.

People who congregated near the scene where the robber collapsed complained to The News that emergency personnel were slow in responding with first aid.

Buffalo fire dispatchers said that they received a call for first aid at the shooting scene at 12:45 p.m. and that at 12:49 p.m., Engine 3 firefighters reported being there.

Ambulance personnel were at the scene within minutes, police said.

lmichel@buffnews.com null