A Portland man with a long criminal record is suing the business owner who shot him three times after catching him breaking in, asking a jury for $10 million.
Quick Take
- Kenneth Voyles filed a $10 million lawsuit against Touchstone Granite & Marble and owner James Grant after Grant shot him during a break-in.
- Grant testified he fired three times because Voyles looked ready to attack him after refusing repeated orders to get on the ground.
- Grant’s attorney says Voyles threatened Grant with raised bolt cutters before the shooting.
- The case highlights a real legal gray area: Oregon’s self-defense laws protect homes more clearly than businesses.
Break-In Ends With Three Gunshots
Kenneth Voyles broke into Touchstone Granite & Marble, a Portland countertop shop, and ran into owner James Grant, who was working in a back room. Grant told him to get on the ground several times. Voyles did not comply. Grant then shot him three times in the arm and torso.
Court records show Grant left the room at one point to grab a gun from under his pillow before returning and firing. Voyles says he was trying to escape when he was shot. Grant also threw a cup of urine at Voyles and threw heavy tiles toward him before the shooting happened, according to reporting on the case.
Lawsuit Seeks $10 Million in Damages
Voyles filed his civil complaint in Multnomah County on May 6, 2026. He accuses Touchstone Granite & Marble and Grant of battery, assault, negligence, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. He is asking for $5 million in compensatory damages and another $5 million in punitive damages, arguing Grant’s response went far beyond what the law allows.
Voyles has a lengthy criminal history, including burglary and theft convictions, and spent more than a year in prison for a separate string of car thefts. That record does not automatically end his civil case. Courts generally still let plaintiffs sue over alleged excessive force, even when they committed the underlying crime that led to the confrontation.
Owner Says He Fired to Protect Himself
Grant testified on August 12, 2026, that he shot Voyles in self-defense. He said Voyles “looked very agitated” and seemed about to attack him. “My adrenaline was flowing, to just protect myself,” Grant said, adding he did not want to use deadly force.
Grant’s attorney, Stephanie Schilling, said her client had every right to defend himself against “a stranger in the dark” who threatened him with raised bolt cutters. The defense argues Voyles was trespassing inside the shop when Grant confronted him, and that Grant gave multiple warnings before firing.
Why Oregon Law Makes This Case Complicated
Oregon law lets people use physical force to defend themselves when they reasonably believe someone is about to use unlawful force against them. Deadly force requires a reasonable belief the other person is committing a violent felony or poses a serious threat. But the state’s strongest self-defense protections apply more clearly to a home than to a business, which makes the location of this shooting legally significant.
Nationally, at least 23 states shield people who act in self-defense from civil lawsuits altogether. Oregon is not one of them, and at least six states allow civil suits to move forward even after a self-defense claim. That gap explains why a shooting many Oregonians see as justified can still end up in front of a civil jury.
šØ PORTLAND HAS APPARENTLY REACHED THE āBURGLAR SUES THE VICTIM FOR $10 MILLIONā STAGE OF CIVILIZATION
A man admits he broke into a Portland business around 5:30 in the morning.
The owner was living inside the building.
According to the owner, the intruder raised a large pairā¦ pic.twitter.com/1uNjcl10hF
— The Undercurrent (@NotTheirScript) August 14, 2026
Cases like this are not rare. Property owners across the country have faced similar lawsuits after shooting intruders, even when police declined to file charges. For many Americans on both sides of the political divide, the case raises a shared frustration: a legal system that can let a person who broke the law turn around and demand millions from the person he victimized.
Sources:
thegatewaypundit.com, kptv.com, fox13seattle.com
