Home Defense question..

[adchrome]

I have been getting conflicting answers so thought i would ask here..

My house is very Dark, (Dark Paneling throughout)
ok say me and my wife are awakened by an intruder breaking in the back/front door, I jump out of bed grab my 12 guage and my wife and i take cover in the adjoining bathroom with our bedroom door locked,I announce that i am armed and he breaks through our bedroom door, I shoot the man to stop the threat not knowing if he is armed or not because its dark and the man dies....We turn the lights on and to our dismay the man was unarmed

if he was unarmed ( no baseball bat, glass bottle.. etc) would i be in the wrong to shoot him even though we were in fear of bodily harm...

i have been hearing that the only time you can legally use deadly force is if the assailant has a weapon of some type and you are in fear for your life , even if he has broken in your home

also would 00 buck be considered too excessive of a round in a courtroom...?

Our kids are all grown...My wife and i live alone

any info would be appreciated

[Rogue187]

The suspect breaking into your home after you've given your warning is all that is needed..
You were in fear for your life..you had to protect yourself and your loved one.
Doesn't matter if he was unarmed or armed..he entered with ill intent and you had to do what you had to do.

[adchrome]

ok, thanks, hope it never happens but its good to know

[CBR_rider]

Take a good look at penal code 198.5. Then, re-read the scenario you just posted while trying to visualize it like you are actually in the story. Once you are done reading the scenario, describe to yourself what EXACTLY happened that made you fear for your life. Whenever you give your statement to law enforcement or a jury, it will be much more powerful when you can accurately and vividly describe what exactly happened and HOW it made you fear for your life/the life of your loved one.

[Ron-Solo]

00 Buck is fine for home defense.

[RitcheyRch]

Thats what I have for it home defense as well.

00 Buck is fine for home defense.

[therealnickb]

I have been getting conflicting answers so thought i would ask here..

any info would be appreciated

Count on more conflicting answers. (Which is what you wanted right?)

Does "know your target...." ring any bells?

[adchrome]

Take a good look at penal code 198.5. Then, re-read the scenario you just posted while trying to visualize it like you are actually in the story. Once you are done reading the scenario, describe to yourself what EXACTLY happened that made you fear for your life. Whenever you give your statement to law enforcement or a jury, it will be much more powerful when you can accurately and vividly describe what exactly happened and HOW it made you fear for your life/the life of your loved one.

ok, is it safe to say that if an intruder breaks into your home Always Assume that they are Armed, and does Law Enforcement see it this way also

or better yet if someone breaks in while you are home, is that always considered a reason to Fear of Great bodily injury

the fictional story is based on what me and my wife have prepared for, hoping that the locked bedroom door will give me time to get my Firearm.
our bathroom being our barricade, my wife on the phone with 911 immediately

I realize there could be many scenarios but this seems the most likely if it happens in the middle of the night. the only time I would fire is if they came through the locked bedroom door, 9 times out of 10 i believe the intruder would flee once hearing that i am armed..

[adchrome]

Count on more conflicting answers. (Which is what you wanted right?)

Does "know your target...." ring any bells?

1. not really..

2. no reason to believe anyone i know would break in

just asking for clarification of the law

[P5Ret]

How about identifying your target before you shoot blindly. Let's add a twist to your scenario. Your neighbor is blind stinking drunk and goes into the wrong house. I believe what therealnickb was getting at was know what you are shooting at. Buy a damn light that you can use with the shotgun.

[55chevypost]

He is asking if he would be liable in court. You are attempting to put leo type training on a non leo. If articulated the way he described, the shooting would be justified criminally. Not to say he wouldn't get sued, who knows. But criminally justified. It would be unfortunate if it was a drunk friend or loved one and he would live with that. But thats not the question.

[adchrome]

How about identifying your target before you shoot blindly. Let's add a twist to your scenario. Your neighbor is blind stinking drunk and goes into the wrong house. I believe what therealnickb was getting at was know what you are shooting at. Buy a damn light that you can use with the shotgun.

ok, so my neighbor is blind stinking drunk, breaks in my home comes thru my locked bedroom door after i announced being armed, its illegal to shoot him even though we were in Fear of Bodily Harm..?

By the way I have a Locked gate and 4 ft. fence in front of my property

[P5Ret]

knowing what you are shooting at is law enforcement training? Funny I was always taught knowing your target was one of the 4 basic rules of firearms safety. It is not about if someone was armed or not, but can you reasonably articulate that you were in fear of your life when you don't even know what the target is. Under the letter of the law you may be justified, but that doesn't mean that there isn't a deputy da looking to make a name or push the bosses agenda that will file charges.

[oddjob]

My opinion is that your still OK in a criminal court. I doubt you would be prosecuted. I agree 00 buck is just fine.

Civil proceedings is going to be a whole different situation.

[adchrome]

Great info guys...Thanks so much, hopefully others can learn from this thread also

I was thinking of putting on a tactical light but then others say it only gives up your position...would be better to give my position rather than shoot a drunk neighbor that is unarmed and go through the Civil proceedings....

Now if my Drunk neighbor was Armed with some sort of weapon thats a different story correct..?