Walk It Through: The Intruder
No duty to retreat at home, deadly force against a burglary, and the force an arrest allows.
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 house and one night. Initial aggressors, defending property short of a home, and claims against an officer 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.
- Criminal trespassTrespass raised to a crime by the place: fenced or enclosed property, a school against posted rules, or a public housing project, among others, is criminal trespass in the third degree, a class B misdemeanor.
- Duty to retreatThe rule that deadly physical force is not justified when the person knows they can avoid the need with complete safety by retreating.
- Physical injuryImpairment of physical condition or substantial pain, the harm assault in the third degree turns on.
- Notice of claimThe notice served within ninety days after a claim arises before suing a public corporation or its officers or employees in tort.
- Resisting arrestIntentionally preventing, or trying to prevent, a police officer or peace officer from making an authorized arrest of oneself or someone else. A class A misdemeanor.