Burglar Shot — Then Drops $10M Bomb

Police officers walking past caution tape at a crime scene — Photo: Zoran Karapancev / Shutterstock

A Portland business owner now faces a $10 million lawsuit from the same man he shot three times after catching him breaking into his shop.

Quick Take

Kenneth Voyles filed suit in Multnomah County seeking $5 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages.
Owner James Grant testified he fired after warning Voyles to get on the ground and feared an attack.
Court records say Grant threw urine and tiles at Voyles before grabbing a gun and shooting him three times.
Oregon law gives stronger self-defense protection inside a home than inside a business, a gap that could shape the case.

Break-In Leads to Three Gunshots

Kenneth Voyles broke into Touchstone Granite & Marble, a countertop shop in Portland, according to court filings. Owner James Grant was working in a back room when he found Voyles inside the building. Grant threw a cup of urine at Voyles’ face and threw heavy tiles toward him before leaving briefly to grab a gun from under his pillow. He came back and shot Voyles three times, in the arm and torso.

Voyles says he was trying to escape when Grant opened fire. He has a long criminal record that includes past burglary and theft convictions, along with more than a year in prison tied to a separate string of car thefts.

Lawsuit Demands $10 Million in Damages

Voyles filed his civil complaint on May 6, 2026, naming Touchstone Granite & Marble Inc. and Grant as defendants. The lawsuit accuses them of battery, assault, negligence, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Voyles is asking a Multnomah County jury to award him $5 million in compensatory damages and another $5 million in punitive damages, arguing Grant’s response went far beyond what the law allows.

The case puts a spotlight on a familiar tension in self-defense law. A person’s criminal conduct does not automatically end their right to sue over how they were treated afterward. But it heavily shapes how the public views the case, even as the legal fight comes down to narrower questions about timing, necessity, and how much force was reasonable.

Owner Says He Feared for His Life

Grant took the stand on August 12, 2026, and said he acted to protect himself. He testified that he repeatedly told Voyles to get on the ground, but Voyles refused and appeared ready to attack. “My adrenaline was flowing, to just protect myself,” Grant said, adding that he never intended to kill Voyles and 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’s actions were a reasonable response to a real threat.

🚨 PORTLAND HAS APPARENTLY REACHED THE “BURGLAR SUES THE VICTIM FOR $10 MILLION” 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 pair… pic.twitter.com/1uNjcl10hF

— The Undercurrent (@NotTheirScript) August 14, 2026

Oregon’s Legal Lines on Self-Defense

Oregon law allows people to use physical force, including deadly force, when they reasonably believe someone is about to commit a serious crime against them. But the state does not have a “make my day” law like some others, which would fully shield property owners from civil liability. That gap matters here, since Touchstone Granite & Marble is a business, not a home, where self-defense protections tend to be stronger.

Nationally, at least 23 states shield people from civil lawsuits when they act in self-defense, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. In at least six other states, civil suits can still move forward even after a self-defense claim succeeds criminally. Oregon’s rules sit closer to that second group, leaving business owners like Grant exposed to lawsuits even when police do not pursue charges.

The case is still working through Multnomah County Circuit Court, with no verdict yet reached. For many Americans watching from both sides of the political aisle, the lawsuit raises a shared question: whether the legal system does enough to protect property owners who defend themselves, or whether it leaves too much room for costly litigation regardless of who broke the law first.