The subject would make a cool band name. Anyway, has anyone ever been shot and killed for looting in the US? Does martial law have to be declared to make shooting looters legal? Are civilians allowed to shoot looters of their own stores?
I’m not a lawyer and do not have any particular knowledge of the legal rights of someone being looted. But from what I do know it seems that the bad guys always seem to have more rights than than the good guys when it comes to defending property. I figure that if you were to shoot someone looting your store you should be prepared for a legal battle. That said, I myself would open fire.
BTW, that does sound like a cool band name.
IANAL. It seems to vary a lot by jurisdiction. Booby traps are illegal, though. Previous discussion.
I think it’s illegal to use deadly force to protect property pretty much everywhere in the U. S.
I think the best way to lower the theft rate would be to change some of those laws.
Achernar is correct in that it varies depending on jurisdiction. In general, you cannot use deadly force on someone who is not threatening your life or someone else’s life, no matter what they’re doing. If, for example, you see someone sneaking out of your living room window with your T.V., you cannot use deadly force to stop him.
That’s why cops carry throw away weapons.
:eek: did I say that?
Well I’m specifically talking about looting during a crisis, not run-of-the-mill robbery. Does anyone know if US military or police have ever actually shot looters?
I seem to recall that after the National Guard was sent into LA during the Rodney King riots a guy refused to stop for a checkpoint and they shot (& killed) him right through his windshield.
According to the San Francisco Bar Association (http://www.sfbar.org/about/sfam/octnov97.html), during the earthquake in 1906, soldiers were given orders to shoot looters on sight. I’d heard that looters were hung occasionally from lampposts, and thought I’d seen pictures, but can’t find anything.
I’d also heard of the order to shoot looters after the '06 earthquake. And I also heard that the worst of them were the militia or soldiers that were supposed to be patrolling–some of them were drunk as could be, stealing more booze, etc etc.
Clearly, the mods are busy elsewhere. This one definitely belongs in either IMHO or GD.
As to the OP, (1) Yes. (2) Shooting looters is not expressly legal under martial law or otherwise. In most states, the legality(?) of shooting looters has more to do with the threat of bodily harm posed by said looters to others on the scene. But that principle applies to any other sort of threat, not just one posed by a looter. (3) Yes and no.
IANAL, but I also think that “Shooting Looters” would kick ass as a name for a band. I think I may drop a line to Dave Barry…
I remember seeing on the news here in DC: during the Rodney King riots, two jewelry store owners shot at looters heading their way, but didn’t kill or injure anyone. They managed to fend off people for quite a long time, until they ran out of ammo. I don’t think they were prosecuted for anything.
Texas rules!
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Yes. About 200 looters were shot and killed following the 1900 Storm in Galveston, Texas. Of course, that was nearly 103 years ago.