# Mental Excercise on Self Defense **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 6, 2012, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mental-excercise-on-self-defense/627392 "2012-07-06T04:01:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![stw004](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@stw004](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stw004)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2012, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mental-excercise-on-self-defense/627392/1 "2012-07-06T04:01:12Z")
It’s 1875, Dodge City, KS. You shoot and kill an unarmed man in the streets. When the Sheriff rides up, you calmly explain, “Well, we got into a fist fight and I was losing real bad so I had to shoot him.” Do you hang? ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2012, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mental-excercise-on-self-defense/627392/2 "2012-07-06T04:12:57Z")
> [@stw004](#): > > It’s 1875, Dodge City, KS. You shoot and kill an unarmed man in the streets. When the Sheriff rides up, you calmly explain, “Well, we got into a fist fight and I was losing real bad so I had to shoot him.” Do you hang? nevermind ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2012, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mental-excercise-on-self-defense/627392/3 "2012-07-06T04:41:41Z")
I doubt the simple set of facts presented would decide the case one way or another. You don’t mention if there actually was a fight, witnesses, or evidence the sheriff could see. Also, your actions might be viewed in a standard of common behavior at the time more than a literal reading of the law. So if you and/or the dead guy is seen as the drunken cowboy troublemaker passing through on the cattle drive, you might get different treatment than a local. Now if the dead guy was carrying some Skittles and wearing a hoodie, things would be completely different. But you’re probably not interested in that aspect of it. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2012, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mental-excercise-on-self-defense/627392/4 "2012-07-06T16:13:47Z")
Do we really need another self-defense thread? Don’t we already have enough to fill their own forum? ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2012, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mental-excercise-on-self-defense/627392/5 "2012-07-06T17:29:29Z")
Are you related to or friends of the Sheriff? Is your victim? Are you wanted on other charges? Is he? Do you appear rich or to be a cattle baron? Was he a sheep herder? All valid concerns from the westerns I’ve seen. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2012, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mental-excercise-on-self-defense/627392/6 "2012-07-06T17:30:55Z")
> [@Lanzy](#): > > Was he a sheep herder? In that case you get a reward for killing him. But then why make up a story about a fist fight? ---
**Author:** ![stw004](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@stw004](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stw004)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2012, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mental-excercise-on-self-defense/627392/7 "2012-07-06T18:27:46Z")
You are both cattle punchers of equal rank. Neither of you has any relation to the Sherriff. There were 3 witnesses from a distance, all three arrived after the fight had started but can testify that they did see a fight and that you shot the unarmed man and that is all. Neither of you is drunk or intoxicated. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2012, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mental-excercise-on-self-defense/627392/8 "2012-07-11T04:39:01Z")
> [@stw004](#): > > You are both cattle punchers of equal rank. Neither of you has any relation to the Sherriff. There were 3 witnesses from a distance, all three arrived after the fight had started but can testify that they did see a fight and that you shot the unarmed man and that is all. Neither of you is drunk or intoxicated. then hang him. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2012, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mental-excercise-on-self-defense/627392/9 "2012-07-11T05:04:54Z")
Wait, wait, don’t tell me… the sheriff is the patient’s mother, right?