Sorry it came to that.

A Flint, Michigan, man doesn't like how the media is portraying him after he was forced to shoot a youngster who was threatening him with a gun.

Sean Hannosh was working at the Lewis Street Market, a store owned by his brother, on July 21 when two masked robbers entered the store. The lead robber pointed a shotgun at Hannosh and told everyone in the store to get down on the floor. As Hannosh and his customers went to the ground, the lead robber shot, hitting a cigarette display behind Hannosh.

Hannosh quickly moved behind some protective glass and retrieved a pistol. He then fired a warning shot to try to scare the robbers before being forced to fire a shot at the lead robber.

His shot struck the robber, but the masked man was able to free the scene with his accomplice. The robber, Hakeem Nelson, 14, was later found and pronounced dead at a local hospital. The other robber had abandoned Nelson but took Nelson's shotgun.

Though locals characterize Hannosh as a good person and have showed support for him by stopping at the store and telling him that he did what he had to do, the media have since depicted Hannosh as being too quick on the trigger, too quick to shoot a teenager.

But, as Hannosh pointed out to the Flint Journal, he couldn't tell how old the masked robber was, and he didn't have time to discuss it with him. "I didn't know if he was 14, 15, or 100 years old," he said. "I didn't want to shoot him. I'm sorry he was 14. I have three kids too."

The police have watched the store's surveillance tape and ruled that the shooting was justified, yet the media still portray the robbery victim who defended himself as the bad guy--as usual.