Pretty much what the title says. What do you believe counts as a Defensive Gun Use?
Although I don’t own a gun myself, I’m told that you don’t draw your weapon unless you’re prepared to use it, and you don’t shoot unless you’re prepared to kill. So there’s none of this “warning shot” crap, and if you’re showing your gun, you should be ready to use it.
Yeah, a warning shot into the air just stupid. You might end up hitting some other random person.
I’m surprised the OP didn’t include any options about property crimes. Like shooting somebody who’s stealing your car or stealing your neighbour’s car.
OP also did not include options for shooting at random strangers who are driving trucks.
Is this really legal ? Shooting someone stealing my car, or the neighbors car, seems a bit excessive to me.
DrumBum, it is excessive. Using a gun to stop someone from stealing mere property will probably get you jail time. About the only time that using a gun on someone who is stealing your car is if you are in it at the time. (See Castle Doctrine.)
I use a warning shot to scare stubborn bears off my property. I fire it into a tree next to it.
Since I’m not real comfortable having a bear stare me down while I’m in the yard, I consider this a DGU
Damn. Kinda wish it was a public poll so we’d know who the psychopath is who thinks that shooting at people who piss off or frighten you is ok.
Any intruder in my house for any reason is going to get shot until they cannot be a threat. That’s defensive gun use. My state doesn’t have the Castle doctrine in law, but in practice such cases are not prosecuted. In the past 25 years the only such cases were 1) The little falls case that’s been discussed here before, and 2) Several cases where there were questions about whether the “intruders” were originally invited in or not, these weren’t “some strange guy is in my living rooom” type cases.
I think Texas is the only state where you’re specifically allowed to use lethal force to defend your property, like someone out on the street stealing your car stereo, but in my state and those with the Castle doctrine an intruder in your house is considered a threat to your safety no whether they’re a murderer, trying to steal your TV, or someone just drunk or high.
I suppose “drawing your gun and announcing it” would include the classic case of “rack your shotgun so the intruder hears it” use as a disuasive (“back off”).
Otherwise, I should imagine direct defense against an attack or perveived imminent attack would count.
Texas statute on the use of deadly force to protect property: Tex. Penal Code §9.42. There are a large number of conditions that must exist before your use of deadly force will be justified under the law, including all of the pre-conditions in section 9.41, but deadly force may be used in the defense of personal property in Texas. As to the person, I follow the section dealing with the use of deadly force in defense of your person, found here, at Texas Penal Code §9.32. I’m not sure how those definitions translate to your poll choices, but I agree with Chimera that being pissed off is an insufficient justification.
I’ve tried to find Kleck’s definition of defensive gun use, and I’m not having much luck. This site claims that Kleck defined it as:
It would be nice if we could all agree on a definition for a DGU. My own definition is pretty close to the one found here, where:
That’s a very broad definition, I agree, broader than even Kleck’s, but I think it’s needed to cover areas where an actual gun isn’t present but the threat of a gun dissuades an attacker. This admittedly requires some mindreading on the part of the defender. How do you really know why the three guys, who fanned out and were approaching you, decided to turn around and go back to the convenience store after you turned to face them, placed your hand on your waist, and under your shirt? (A la the technique described in this excellent essay on street robberies linked by Lumpy in another thread. I only read the essay recently, and the incident above happened about 4 years ago, stupidly walking back to a bus stop at night, through the 'hood.) I had no gun, and maybe nothing was going to happen, but I could see counting it as a DGU. It may have been instead that I was walking at a pretty brisk pace and the guys, who may have only been trying to hit me up for spare change, decided that I wasn’t worth the effort to approach.
So is shooting someone just because they have pissed you off. Not all the poll choices are legal.
No option for shooting a bullet out of the air?
Many of the examples would need the support of proper context, but I voted that most apply, and at least in MD, I’ve seen at least two of them hold up as a defense in an actual homicide case.
Fear/Intimidation can be used as a form of defense, and that’s mainly how I attribute a warning shot. If an offender retreats at the sound of a gun, then that’s a successful defense, by any real measure. You remain safe and avoid much of the legal ramifications involved in actually hurting/killing someone. You’ve certainly used the gun, but you’ve also gauged the situation before/while doing so. Makes sense to me.
There are a few psychopaths around here who find juvenile amusement in checking off every single choice on a multiple-choice poll just to fuck with it. Doesn’t matter what the poll choices actually are.
Except when that warning shot hits someone outside your home.
Plus you just wasted a round from your limited capacity magazine.
You’re adding your own details. The intent of a warning shot is not to* hit someone outside of your home*. I’m specifically talking about a warning shot, as defined, here:
[ul]“The firing of shots or delivery of ordnance by personnel or weapons systems in the vicinity of a person, vessel, or aircraft as a signal to immediately cease activity.”[/ul]
In other words, it fits the definition of defensive gun usage, as the intent behind the fired shot is to deter an offender, as opposed to pursuing an immediate lethal confrontation.
If the offender backs off, I don’t qualify that as a waste. This also doesn’t mean that every attempt at defense, in any form, is successful.
Did you know a pistol round can go through several layers of drywall? Where did your warning shot go? Or is your first round a blank?
My opinion does not count, my bullets do.