What if he’s got a pointed stick?
I think it’s unfair that Texas gets all the credit. My state also makes the assumption that the simple fact of a home invasion is all the provocation a person needs in order to defend with lethal force. That means if somebody is in my home without a) my permission, b) a really good reason, like an emergency (e.g. he works for PNM and there’s a gas leak, he’s a fireman and my home is on fire, etc), or c) a warrant, I am justified in responding with deadly force, including gunfire.
And (hijack) j.c. -
Of HIM who! Why would anyone shoot or crush the skull OF HIM who would grow up to cure cancer!
“Him” is the objective case. It’s the object of the preposition “of”!
And as long as I’m here, I’ll respond directly to the OP: I don’t care who it is or how sad their death or injury may be. If somebody is in my home without proper authorization, I assume my life is in danger and respond accordingly. Whether it’s a 14 year old boy, a 40 year old rapist, whatever. ESPECIALLY if it was the middle of the night and my wife and daughter were home.
If you value your safety, don’t intrude into somebody’s home. It’s basic common sense.
Well, lets see what those who encounter a lot of criminals, and those do carry guns all the time think.
Nearly all of todays police officers consider handguns to be excellent self defense tools. They also believe that guns can be safely carried, kept in the house with husbands, wives, children, etc. They also think that it is not that difficult to determine when to use a gun, and when not to.
You will have a hard time finding any American cop who would rather carry a golf club instead of a handgun for personal protection.
As far as the general populace, 34 states allow non-police to carry guns all the time. The accident rate, and crime rate of those civilians is actually lower than that for police.
Is there a website that succinctly covers all 50 states on open-carry, concealed-carry, self-defense, and other interesting things?
For example, if I remember correctly, New Mexico is open-carry, going to concealed-carry, and has the interesting take in the law that your car is an extension of your house, so you can keep a gun in your glovebox with no problems (assuming, of course, you tell the cops before you open it.)
Same deal here in TN. If they are in your home, a threat of death or serious bodily harm is assumed.
If someone breaks into my home, they may have a chance to avoid injury if they are out of reach, motionless, and I can see their hands. Anything less, and I shoot. I will keep shooting until there is no more threat.
samarm Just reading the OP and nothing but the OP.
WTF was he doing in my house. You say if he us knocked out by the golf club he goes on to a productive life. What basis do you state that? AFAIK most teens that commit minor crimes and get away with it go on to bigger things. Why did this teen feel it safe to break into my house?
Under the example you mention I think the home owner is completly within his rights in using deadly force and the teen is 100% wrong. The family of the teen should be understanding of the situation and not blame the homeowner for the mistakes of the teen.
First, you’re right on about NM. You can carry a gun (loaded or not) anywhere except schools, government buildings, and establishments that serve alcohol, with no need for a permit. A concealed carry law was passed a few years ago, which allowed cities to opt out of the permit. But was struck down by the State Supreme Court on the grounds that it violated the State’s Constitutional provision that no municipality can pass a gun law that is stricter than the state laws. So they recently drafted and passed (and the Governor has said he intends to sign) a new bill that eliminates the opt-out ability.
As for a site explaining all the gun laws by state, try this: http://www.nraila.org/GunLaws.asp
There are links for state laws, DC laws, and federal laws.
I don’t know where to find self-defense and justifiable homicide laws for all the states, unfortunately.
If I see a “shadowy figure with a mask” in my house and I think he has a knife and he turns toward me, I’m firing Center of mass until the intruder draws his last breath.
Call me a gun nut.
Or a person who wants to avoid pushing up daisey’s as long as possible.
I’ve been a gun owner a long time, and firmly believe that you should have the right to shoot anyone who breaks into your house.
But about 15 years ago, I was living in the second floor of a stacked duplex in what for Lawrence, Kansas was considered a bad neighborhood. One night, a friend of mine got incredibly drunk and decided to sleep it off at my place rather than drive the 10 miles to his house. Rather than just knock on the door, he climbed up the balcony, pulled a screen off, opened a window, and tried to crawl through the window into the living room.
It woke me up. My guns were all in a closet in the living room. I was heading for them, when I realized that the person was actually stuck halfway through the window and didn’t seem to present an immediate danger. So instead I just turned on the light.
It still horrifies me to think what could have happened. I was so damn scared, I’d have shot him when I came around the corner to the living room, had I been holding a gun.
Because I now live in a rural area where help is half an hour away, I sleep with a loaded gun in my bedroom. But my plan is if I think anyone is breaking in, unless I’ve clearly got no other choice but to shoot, I’m going to get my kids in my bedroom, barricade the door, call the sheriff, and only shoot if someone tries to force their way into the bedroom.
From one gun-owning Texan to another, I have to say that if someone breaks into your home and you stop them with one shot, but then procede to shoot them again, you have committed murder. An intruder laying on the floor, mewling in pain, is not a threat any more. Don’t get so happy to kill someone that you deprive your wife of a husband and your kids of a father (or whatever) while you sit in prison for murder.
For those of you with this attitude, you do realize that there is a difference between killing someone in self-defense and cold blooded murder? If you shoot an intruder and they’re no longer threatening there is no moral reason to shoot them again. You will have gone from defending your life to being nothing more then a murderer.
The fourth Rule does tend to get less emphasis compared to the other three Rules, doesn’t it? I suppose that’s because it doesn’t affect normal everyday gun handling, only actual shooting.
I think everyone should train with shoot/don’t-shoot targets. If you don’t have access to a simulator, a shoot house, or pop-up targets, you could still have a friend set up (while your back is turned) a stage with some don’t-shoot targets.
You don’t want the difference between the targets to be too obvious. One place I trained at drew a pistol and/or a police badge on the chest of each target. Badge = don’t shoot, pistol and no badge = shoot, no pistol and no badge = shoot only after giving a verbal command and the RO tells you how the target responded to your command.
Maybe I just misinterpreted this statement by Tony Montana.
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He didn’t say he’d shoot until he was no longer in danger. He said he’d shoot until the intruder was no longer breathing. Sounds like he’d administer a coup de grace to me. Not only is a coup de grace a full round action it is also evil to kill a helpless opponent. I’d certainly make him change his alignment.
I’d have to disagree. It depends on the context of the encounter, and the nature of the enemy.
Er, anyway…
The statements by Tony Montana and Texican certainly suggest that they would shoot until the intruder was dead. Texican’s clarification definitely lends itself to this interpretation as well.
So, who’s up for a Texas Dopefest at the gun range?
Quite a few of you say to keep shooting until the intruder stops advancing on you. In the military, I was taught to double tap ( 2 round bursts). Is shooting in that manner likely to be looked at as excessive force or unjustified?
I imagine if I was really faced with what I thought was a life threatening situation, I would shoot at least 4 rounds. I would aim for center mass and double tap then repeat, then assess the situation further.
As related to me by my CHL instructor and police buddy, a double tap to center mass is not generally indicative of murderous intent. A second double tap might be, depending. Remember, the use of deadly force has to be be restricted to the absolute minimum a reasonable person would need to stop an “actor”.
