It Started With the Ringing of the Doorbell-The Shooting of Yoshihiro Hattori
After accidentally ringing a man’s home doorbell, Yoshihiro Hattori, a Japanese exchange student, was shot and killed while on his way to a Halloween celebration
Yoshihiro Hattori was a Japanese student in the United States on an exchange program when he was shot in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The shooting occurred after Hattori accidentally went to the incorrect residence while on his way to a Halloween celebration.
Yoshihiro Hattori was born in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, the second of Masaichi Hattori’s three children.
As part of the American Field Service (AFS) student exchange program, he traveled to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States, in August 1992, when he was 16 years old. He had also obtained a scholarship from the Morita Foundation to fund his trip.
Hattori was welcomed in Baton Rouge as a homestay student by Richard and Holley Haymaker (a college professor and a physician, respectively) and their adolescent son, Webb.
Hattori and his homestay brother, Webb Haymaker, were invited to a Halloween party on October 17, 1992, that had been prepared for Japanese exchange students. Hattori and Webb Haymaker accepted the invitation.
Hattori and his friend Webb Haymaker were on their way to a party in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, when they unintentionally wound up at the front door of Rodney Peairs’ home instead of the intended destination.
According to police reports, the teenagers knocked on the door, but they began strolling back to their car when no one answered. Bonnie Peairs, who was inside the house, caught a glimpse of them as she peered out the side door. As soon as she saw them, she quickly locked the door and ran to her husband. She told him to get his gun.
Rodney Peairs did just that, and upon opening his carport door, he noticed Hattori and Haymaker returning to their car. He shouted, “Freeze!” pointing his loaded rifle at Hattori…
