National Carry AcademyDEFINING CRITERIA FOR USING DEADLY FORCE
July 26, 2016
Castle Doctrine. Stand Your Ground Law. Self-Defense. Deadly force. All of these terms are “buzz words” in the rhetoric of legally armed citizens and anti-gun media and politicians alike. But what do they mean? All terms have to do with ensuring a good guy has the law on his side, so long as he plays by the rules of the law (of course, criminals aren’t too worried about those parameters we care about as legally armed citizens). This blog will help you understand the legal aspects of using deadly force in the state of Minnesota (and others, so long as your state has the same laws as Minnesota). Before reading on, please know that I’m not a lawyer and this blog shall not be used as legal advice! Ultimately, the interpretation of these items is up to a jury of your peers and how they interpret your actions; the obligation is on you as the defendant in a deadly force trial to convince 12 jurors they would have done the exact same thing you did given the exact same circumstances! Please note, this blog is a summary of many questions and side-tracked “what if” conversations that take place over the course of a typically hour-long segment of my permit to carry course.
In order to meet the legal obligations of deadly force all 4 of these items must be met:
- You must not be the aggressor – This means you cannot start or instigate a situation that may ultimately end in the use of deadly force. Instructors would be wise to also advise participants in courses that they must also not escalate a situation. Said simply, leave the bravado at home when you are carrying a firearm in public, and be more willing to apologize if someone feels you have wronged them. For example, I would not be justified in using deadly force if I start insulting someone in a bar and then we decide to go out to the parking lot to settle it, and as he lunges at me I shoot him.
- You must be in immediate fear of death or great bodily harm – I advise my participants in my permit to carry courses that you should only be reaching for your firearm if your primary emotion is fear. It’s simple to understand “death” in this category, but “great bodily harm” is one of those ambiguous legal, gray-areas. I summarize it by stating that you would likely be left in a vegetative state with a low quality of life as a result of the actions of the perpetrator. There are other factors to help explain this criterion. For example, size disadvantage, strength in numbers, pre-existing or temporary handicaps (prior to using a firearm, while fighting with the perpetrator on the ground, your shoulder is dislocated or your arm is broken, and now the guy is on top of you), presence of a weapon (whether it is a gun, knife, chain, tire iron, or bat). If you perceive a threat exists, the threat is real and you feel your life is in jeopardy, if you can articulate that to a jury of your peers, then this criteria is met.
- You must have no lesser-force option – You are not required by law to use a pocket knife first if you have one, but can you do anything else prior to drawing and shooting your firearm? I tell my participants to think about a police officer’s duty belt and the various tools they carry each day. All of those tools (baton, pepper spray, Taser) are options. Each tool is an option for an officer to try to use to resolve a threatening situation, prior to escalating his/her use of force, all the way up through the use of a firearm. If you can run away, this also qualifies as a lesser-force option.
- You must be unable to retreat – If you think you can get away from the threat and avoid using deadly force, try it! If you’re able to run away, run! If you are able to quickly drive away from the drive-thru ATM to get away from the masked man reaching through the window of your car, drive away!
Again, these are a summarized version of the most in-depth portion of any permit to carry course you will attend. Some instructors would recommend that you purchase a small chunk of time with an attorney specializing in self-defense laws because it may be a small investment of time and money that could help you in the future. Although these 4 items above are a short glimpse at the 4 criteria required in Minnesota, you must also keep in mind that you ultimately need to convince a jury of your peers that your actions were justified and that all 4 criteria above were met, and therefore you exercised your right to self-defense.
DEFINING CRITERIA FOR USING DEADLY FORCE
July 26, 2016
Castle Doctrine. Stand Your Ground Law. Self-Defense. Deadly force. All of these terms are “buzz words” in the rhetoric of legally armed citizens and anti-gun media and politicians alike. But what do they mean? All terms have to do with ensuring a good guy has the law on his side, so long as he plays by the rules of the law (of course, criminals aren’t too worried about those parameters we care about as legally armed citizens). This blog will help you understand the legal aspects of using deadly force in the state of Minnesota (and others, so long as your state has the same laws as Minnesota). Before reading on, please know that I’m not a lawyer and this blog shall not be used as legal advice! Ultimately, the interpretation of these items is up to a jury of your peers and how they interpret your actions; the obligation is on you as the defendant in a deadly force trial to convince 12 jurors they would have done the exact same thing you did given the exact same circumstances! Please note, this blog is a summary of many questions and side-tracked “what if” conversations that take place over the course of a typically hour-long segment of my permit to carry course.
In order to meet the legal obligations of deadly force all 4 of these items must be met:
- You must not be the aggressor – This means you cannot start or instigate a situation that may ultimately end in the use of deadly force. Instructors would be wise to also advise participants in courses that they must also not escalate a situation. Said simply, leave the bravado at home when you are carrying a firearm in public, and be more willing to apologize if someone feels you have wronged them. For example, I would not be justified in using deadly force if I start insulting someone in a bar and then we decide to go out to the parking lot to settle it, and as he lunges at me I shoot him.
- You must be in immediate fear of death or great bodily harm – I advise my participants in my permit to carry courses that you should only be reaching for your firearm if your primary emotion is fear. It’s simple to understand “death” in this category, but “great bodily harm” is one of those ambiguous legal, gray-areas. I summarize it by stating that you would likely be left in a vegetative state with a low quality of life as a result of the actions of the perpetrator. There are other factors to help explain this criterion. For example, size disadvantage, strength in numbers, pre-existing or temporary handicaps (prior to using a firearm, while fighting with the perpetrator on the ground, your shoulder is dislocated or your arm is broken, and now the guy is on top of you), presence of a weapon (whether it is a gun, knife, chain, tire iron, or bat). If you perceive a threat exists, the threat is real and you feel your life is in jeopardy, if you can articulate that to a jury of your peers, then this criteria is met.
- You must have no lesser-force option – You are not required by law to use a pocket knife first if you have one, but can you do anything else prior to drawing and shooting your firearm? I tell my participants to think about a police officer’s duty belt and the various tools they carry each day. All of those tools (baton, pepper spray, Taser) are options. Each tool is an option for an officer to try to use to resolve a threatening situation, prior to escalating his/her use of force, all the way up through the use of a firearm. If you can run away, this also qualifies as a lesser-force option.
- You must be unable to retreat – If you think you can get away from the threat and avoid using deadly force, try it! If you’re able to run away, run! If you are able to quickly drive away from the drive-thru ATM to get away from the masked man reaching through the window of your car, drive away!
Again, these are a summarized version of the most in-depth portion of any permit to carry course you will attend. Some instructors would recommend that you purchase a small chunk of time with an attorney specializing in self-defense laws because it may be a small investment of time and money that could help you in the future. Although these 4 items above are a short glimpse at the 4 criteria required in Minnesota, you must also keep in mind that you ultimately need to convince a jury of your peers that your actions were justified and that all 4 criteria above were met, and therefore you exercised your right to self-defense.