Walk It Through: The Stranger In The Yard
A man in the yard at night, a door, a threat, force, and immunity that must be overcome.
Late at night a homeowner hears someone trying the back door and sees a man with a crowbar.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One intruder in one home. Force against a police officer, force outside the home, a person who started the fight and a civil suit from the intruder 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.
- Duty to retreatAn obligation to back away before using force. South Dakota says a person using force as its sections permit has no duty to retreat.
- Forcible felonyA felony whose imminent commission, along with imminent death or great bodily harm, can justify deadly force when a person reasonably believes it necessary to prevent it.
- Self-defense immunityImmunity from criminal prosecution and civil liability for force used as the law permits. Once claimed, the other side must overcome it by clear and convincing evidence.