When No One Would Listen

This is the actual true story about The Guenthers in Colorado. The one review was incorrect. A 34-year-old man who contended that he shot three neighbors in self-defense was acquitted Thursday of one count of second-degree murder and two counts of assault. David Guenther, 34, of Northglenn had once based his defense on Colorado's "make my day" law, which permits the use of deadly force against intruders, but shifted to conventional self-defense for this trial. Guenther still faces trial next year for first-degree murder in the slaying of his wife -- the woman he said he was trying to protect when he shot his neighbors -- and the wounding of her male companion earlier this year. Burden of Proof A judge last year dismissed charges against Guenther in the April 19, 1986, shoot-out, citing the "make my day" law. However, the Colorado Supreme Court later ruled that the burden of proof was on the defendant and ordered Guenther to stand trial in Adams County District Court for second-degree murder and two counts of first-degree assault. Josslyn C. Volosin, 26, was killed by a shot in the heart, and her husband, Michael, 27, suffered wounds to the thigh and wrist. Robbie Wardwell, 27, was felled by a bullet in the abdomen during the shooting. Earlier that night, Michael Volosin, Wardwell and their friends, who had been partying at the Volosin home, had been rowdy and raucous in front of the Guenther house across the street. Defense attorneys argued that Guenther fired his .357 magnum pistol in self-defense. He was afraid for his life and that of his wife, Pamela, and their two children, public defender Robert Perin told the jury in closing arguments on Wednesday. The law was named for a line from a Clint Eastwood movie in which the actor muttered "make my day," apparently hoping for an opportunity to shoot a felon.

Los Angeles Times March 28, 1988, Monday, Southland Edition SECTION: Part 1; Page 16; Column 1; National Desk LENGTH: 126 words HEADLINE: MAN IN 'MAKE MY DAY' CASE CONVICTED BYLINE: By AP DATELINE: BRIGHTON, Colo. BODY:

The first man to invoke Colorado's "Make My Day" defense in a shooting has been convicted in a separate case of murdering his estranged wife and wounding her boyfriend. David Guenther, 35, was found guilty Saturday of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and first-degree assault in the 1987 shootings. He faces at least 40 years in prison before parole, and prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty. The "Make My Day" law allows residents to use deadly force in their homes against intruders. Guenther's acquittal with that argument for the 1986 fatal shooting of a neighbor and wounding of two others was overturned by the state Supreme Court. But he was re-acquitted in that case with a self-defense argument.

I just watched When No One Would Listen, and is sadly real life. Everyday woman are abused and terrorized by the man that promised to love and protect them. I was abused by my husband for the first four years of our marriage, broken bones, lots of bruises, a lot of tears. Fortunately for me, he went to counseling, and we're going into our ninth year of marriage. They say sometimes men don't change, and will always hit, but my husband did change, and continues to make up for it everyday. Abuse is the worst thing a woman can go through, and I think it's important to educate them and let them know that there are many options out there. Nobody deserves to be hit, nobody.

This is an excellent film about domestic abuse and its shattering impact on the life of a family.

Good acting saves this from a typical "Movie of the Week" fare. I would STRONGLY recommend this film. The only flaw, would be that the love-scenes seem to drag the film down a bit. But otherwise, good acting throughout.

If anyone has any information of the real case, (Were the names of the main characters, The Cochran's changed for privacy?) please post as I can not find anything about the case on line. Does anyone know when this case/trial actually happened?

I saw the movie last night and I cried. I work in a woman's transitional shelter and fortunately see the brighter side of survivors of domestic violence and not the fatal victims of it. Of the many stories I've heard from the women and children I would have to say that this is one of the movies that comes to be depicted so well that the women I work with can see it and be thankful they did not end up in a morgue like Jessica Cochran. If anyone out there reads this and you are going through a similar situation, please don't hesitate to call a hotline for domestic violence. A grave is far more worse than a shelter to end up at. There are many programs like the one where I work at that empower women to be SURVIVORS, NOT CONTINUE AS VICTIMS. Take that one step and know that there is help out there and you don't have to end up DEAD>

I too seen the movie and really liked it. I always try and look up any information on a true movie as in trying to find the real names the location, the trial etc....Here is what I have found so far. I hope this helps.

David was found guilty of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and first-degree assault in the 1987 shootings. He faces at least 40 years in prison before parole, and prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty. David Guenther -- 6-foot-5, 260-pounds -- beat Pamela regularly for 15 years. Her close friends knew it. But she stayed with her husband, who was unemployed and apparently universally disliked. When she finally left David, Pamela took her two children and secretly moved in with her boss -- who later became her lover. David -- who in 1986 killed a neighbor woman and wounded her husband in a bloody quarrel on the doorstep of the Guenther home in a Denver suburb -- tried to kidnap Pamela in a doughnut shop parking lot and threatened her life repeatedly.

After she got a restraining order forcing him to leave their home so she could move back in, he forced his way into the house and held her hostage at gunpoint for four hours before surrendering to local police.

Yet, eight hours after David was arrested, he was out on $10,000 bail, charged only with burglarizing his own home -- a fact that outraged Pamela's friends and neighbors. He began stalking Pamela, who hid from him in a shelter for battered women and insisted upon -- and got -- police escorts to her supermarket job. A week after the hostage episode, David jumped out of his car in a parking lot and shot Pamela to death in front of their children. He is serving a life sentence for first-degree murder.