An 18-year-old high schooler, who showed up at a property in the middle of the night, was shot dead by the homeowner after he mistook him for a burglar.

On Saturday, June 5, the high school senior, Todd Smith, was attending a party outside the Arlington, Washington, city limits, when he reportedly decided to go for a run.

Smith, who his friends said was not himself that night, showed up at a house along 106th Avenue Northeast in Arlington. He was reportedly trying to get inside through a back door.

"He had told me and somebody else that he wanted to go for a run later," Conner Buffon, Smith's friend since middle school, said. "So we think that he did that and ended up getting lost."

According to the police, the homeowner, who thought Smith was a burglar, asked him to leave his property, warning him that he was armed.

Police say the homeowner opened fire when Smith ignored the warning and moved towards him. The homeowner claimed that he fired the weapon in an act of self-defense.

Police say the homeowner is cooperating with investigators and has not been arrested. However, Smith’s friends are questioning the homeowner’s claims.

"He’s a 5-foot-6, maybe 140-pound kid. He wasn’t a threat at all," friend Brandon Donahue said.

"If he was being defensive, then why did he need to shoot him twice? Why did he need to put two bullets in my friend? One would’ve stopped him," friend Ashton Beidler said.

The group has filed a petition demanding that the homeowner should be arrested and charged with Smith’s death.

"He simply knocked on the door, and upon not leaving he was shot and killed. He posed no threat, as he was unarmed and disoriented, and the use of force used in this situation was absolutely unnecessary," the petition read.

"In the state of Washington, it is illegal to use violent force against another individual without reason to believe you were threatened for your life. An 18-year-old boy lost and confused trying to get home was not a threat to anyone’s life. And justice needs to be served for Todd," the petition stated.

Smith was just days away from graduating from Arlington High School.

"I’m thinking about standing up on the stage and seeing the empty chair where our friend was supposed to be," said Daniel Schweizer.

"We lost a very, very beautiful soul," friend Madison Whiteley said. "He would always put other people before himself."

Police said the case is being investigated.

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