Might not have been safe to fire off a shotgun in close quarters. Shotgun might not have been loaded, with a shell in the chamber, safety off, ready to fire, or any time to do anything about any of that under panic and stress. So he just charged in and beat him to death with it! OK, and now he relives the situation with real pride and satisfaction for the rest of his life! Frankly, I'd have been more satisfied to unload five rounds of 12 ga buckshot into him at close range! But hey, beating him to death works for me too!