Shooting Someone In Your Home

[Naj]

robber breaks an entering into my home. he hasnt threatend me nor my family he jsut picks my wide screen tv and starts out the door. because of his size its obvious im no match for him. i cnat stop him my self but i have gun/taser. can i use it? i've heard stories of home owners shooting intruders in the back and then getting sued for it but the robber. whats the best way to stop an intruder w/o getting sued?

[Naj]

what bout in calfornia? can you shoot an intruder in cali?

[cdwjava]

what bout in calfornia? can you shoot an intruder in cali?

It depends on the circumstances. Any such shooting would be a homicide. Depending on the circumstances, it could be a justifiable homicide.

- Carl

[Naj]

under what circumstances is a homocide justifiable? also what if i shot him with one of those new taser guns? non-lethal ya know?

[Tiberius]

Shoot him below the knee, or hit him with a club?

[JoeW]

The reason why we have a second admendment, in primarily self-defense like operations. The reason why it is legal to have a gun, in your own house, is for self defense. If somebody breaks into your house at night, studies have shown that the person who breaks in at night, knows you are home and dosen't care. Somebody who breaks in during the day, expects you to be gone. Therefore, if the person wants/dosen't care if you are home, I suspect they would have a weapon. In the circumstances of somebody breaking into your home, and grabbing your TV I personally wouldn't want to kill somebody, so I would have an alarm installed however if you do end up in a situation where you are to shoot them with a lethal weapon and you were to aim for the chest, head, etc. then it would be clear you are aiming to kill them. However, if you were to shoot for their leg, arm, or something of the sort it is more clear that you were simply defending yourself - so if they die from it, it should be justifiable.

The aspect with using a non-lethal weapon, is the sueing aspect. I do not understand why somebody who is in your house, would not be in violation of the law. Because you didn't give them permission to enter, they would be trespassing and most likely breaking and entering. Therefore, no matter what they are in violation of the law and you are protecting your family.

I do not think that they will be able to honestly have a case and sue you, if you shoot them because they are in your house taking your TV. However, we've all heard the stories of you hearing somebody break in, you have your gun drawn and your adrenaline all running and your son is downstairs figuring out what the noise was too, and you end up shooting your child.

If you are worried about somebody breaking into your house, get an alarm system. If you are worried about killing somebody, get a non-lethal weapon. If you simply want to protect your family, and your property, then it dosen't matter - they are in your house, and it should be justifiable. Shoot them in the leg, and then protect yourself from getting shot too. If you can, get home insurance and let them take your damn TV - your insurance will cover it, however nothing can cover the loss of your life.

[aaron]

Not to be overly technical, but the Second Amendment is primarily about having the nation defended by militias instead of having a standing army. It was a given at the time that you might need to be armed for self-defense purposes, as is reflected in many state constitutions.

[GreatGadsby]

and you certainly cannot shoot them in the back as they are leaving your house with your TV. you need to be in fear for a life to shoot someone. and it doesn't matter if you shoot them in the chest or the arm/leg... if deadly force is authorized, then it's authorized, period.

[lwpat]

and you certainly cannot shoot them in the back as they are leaving your house with your TV.

As Ron White says, shoot him in the leg and then blast him when he turns around to see who is shooting at him.

[cdwjava]

under what circumstances is a homocide justifiable? also what if i shot him with one of those new taser guns? non-lethal ya know?

Using a firearm for self defense will depend on state law. In general, in my state, you can use it to protect your life or the life of another. There is a presumption that someone making unlawful entry into your home is there to do your harm ... however, the defense still requires a fear for your safety, it doesn't give you a free-fire zone in the hallway for a trespasser.

Much the same goes for zapping someone with a Taser - articulate a fear for your safety.

- Carl