Walk It Through: The Intruder
No retreat from one's own dwelling, force against an unlawful intruder, and force believed necessary in the arrest.
A parent wakes at night to a stranger forcing open the back door.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One night and one break in. Defense of property and the full conditions for deadly force are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Deadly forceForce justifiable in an arrest only by a peace officer, or someone summoned to assist one, who reasonably believes it creates no substantial risk to innocent persons, that the crime was one of the serious crimes the section lists, and that there is an imminent threat of deadly force or the force is needed to stop the crime or prevent an escape.
- Simple assaultAttempting to cause, or purposely, knowingly or recklessly causing, bodily injury; negligently causing bodily injury with a deadly weapon; or trying by physical menace to put someone in fear of imminent serious bodily injury.
- Retreating with complete safetyDeadly force in self protection is not justifiable when the person knows the necessity can be avoided with complete safety by retreating, giving up a thing claimed by right, or complying with a demand to stop.