The rules for self-defense are:
1. You MUST have a REASONABLE belief of:
DEATH, INJURY, or SERIOUS BODILY HARM that is IMMINENT or ABOUT TO HAPPEN!
2. You CANNOT plug someone over property...EVER! Call 9-11 and then call your insurance company.
3. With modern forensics, it is highly INADVISABLE to plug a turd and drag them back inside. Luminol can dicipher blood splatter marks.
I teach NRA firearms safety and listen to a lawyer give his legal brief every WEEK! You violate those rules for self-defense, expect to get charged.
REMEMBER: DEATH FORCE is A SHOT(s) FIRED! Whether you MEANT to hit them or NOT!
If you PULL your weapon EXPECT the cops to show up.
If you SHOOT someone, here is what you MUST SAY to the cops:
1. I WAS SCARED FOR MY LIFE. I was OHHHHH so SCARED!
2. HE/THEY/SHE said that they were going to M*****F*****ING KILL me.
3. I WILL NOT SAY ANOTHER WORD UNTIL I SPEAK TO A LAWYER!
Folks, you have CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS, USE THEM!
You Sir are simply wrong... These laws are differ from state to state...and let me be clear....I do not advocate "plugging" someone for criminal mischief...
I said, it is a defense to prosecution.......in Texas. This does not mean the shooter gets a free pass to kill or maim. Utilizing a weapon for any reason carries a full host of responsibilities and the ability to make that split-second life-saving decision.
Thanks for your informative reply.
Just out of curiosity..if someone tries to hurt my dog,I can't shoot him unless " He was coming at me, my dog was trying to protect me, he tried to get my dog so he could get me next...so I shot him." Would that work ?
With all due respect, that's not a "universal rule".
In my Village (in IL, but 'red' DuPage County) we are allowed to use deadly force to, "protect life and property".
Our Village's firearms laws consist of one half of one type written page (unlike Chicago's 69 pages) and I reread it over and over again to make sure I was reading it correctly, but that's it, "life and property".
Correct re: DO NOT DRAG THE BODY ANYWHERE! Leave them where they fall.
If ya got a good size kitchen butcher knife (and the perp had had access to the kitchen) AND you can get near the body without leaving alot of trace evidence, leave the knife near the body.
Tell the cops he said he was going to kill me. Keep it simple. Stick to a simple explanation.
Provided you don't live in Texas.
WRONG. It depends on the state. In the northeastern totalitarian police states like NJ, NY, MD, and MA you are not allowed to defend yourself or your property. In those less totalitarian parts of the country such as Texas and Ga you can.
I have two cop friends here in TX. They both told me to do and say EXACTLY what you just stated. Almost verbatim.
If you SHOOT someone, here is what you MUST SAY to the cops:
1. I WAS SCARED FOR MY LIFE. I was OHHHHH so SCARED!
2. HE/THEY/SHE said that they were going to M*****F*****ING KILL me. 3. I WILL NOT SAY ANOTHER WORD UNTIL I SPEAK TO A LAWYER!
Actually, IMHO and also as a NRA certified Personal Protection In The Home instructor, #3 should be the first. Then do it - shut up, no matter how difficult it is.
probably wouldn't hurt to say the guy was calling you a "faggot," either.
Everything else you say is 100% correct. If you shoot someone on your doorstep and drag him inside, you are a fool and you WILL get caught.
Your remark about property is also true in most places.
However... In Texas, and perhaps a few other states, deadly force may be used to prevent "theft by night." Shoot him a minute before sunrise, it's a no-bill. Shoot him a minute after, and it's 2nd-degreee murder just like this case. Weird. I believe it is based on a Biblical verse or a precept of Roman law; it goes back a very very long way.
-ccm
If you SHOOT someone, here is what you MUST SAY to the cops:
1. I WAS SCARED FOR MY LIFE. I was OHHHHH so SCARED!
2. HE/THEY/SHE said that they were going to M*****F*****ING KILL me.
3. I WILL NOT SAY ANOTHER WORD UNTIL I SPEAK TO A LAWYER!
Folks, you have CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS, USE THEM!
Definately do not talk to the police beyond what is stated above. Even casual talk can be incriminating later.
Your rules are localized only...they don't apply to every states laws. Albeit I won't shoot some SOB over hubcaps after dark here in Texas I can legally.....
What about if it has already happeened?
What if the perp had just raped and killed your 9 year old daughter, and you shoot him in the back as he's fleeing down your street, perhaps never to be found by the police?
When I said "never to be found by the police" I mean that if you don't shoot him, he may get away and never be found by the police.
Wrong answer hoss. At least in Texas you can kill for property.
Sounds like really good advice.
I think a home invasion robbery qualifies as a threat to one's life. We're not talking about a robber breaking in when no one's around to make off with the loot.
Not everywhere. Some states, Texas for one, allow use of deadly or potentially deadly force in the protection and/or recovery of ones property. We once shot horse thieves (still do in fact), a few years ago a juvenile chicken thief was shot and killed in San Antonio (fighting chickens not layers or friers), IIRC that guy wasn't even charged.