GUN OWNERS: BE WARY OF USING DEADLY FORCE TO PROTECT SOMEONE OTHER THAN A FAMILY MEMBER OR FRIEND

Bob Walsh, a regular contributor to PacoVilla’s Corrections Blog, posted some important information on Paco’s blog concerning the use of deadly force. I have chosen to reproduce the part that deals with the use of deadly force to protect someone other than a family member or friend. Gun owners beware! Use caution in coming to the defense of another because things may not be as they appear to be.

From Bob Walsh on PacoVilla’s Corrections Blog:

"………. using deadly force to protect others is an incredibly risky thing, legally speaking, for a private citizen to do.

When you are protecting yourself (and others immediately with you) you have a pretty good idea of what is going on. When you stick your nose into somebody elses business you can be surprised big time as to what the facts really are. If you do so you are risking your freedom and every nickle you own or can ever hope to own on you being right, and a judge and jury agreeing with you. A case in point.

A young girl, maybe 12 or 13 years old, is riding her bicycle down the street. A much older man in a ratty pickup truck pulls in front of her to stop her and has a few words with her. She appears to be yelling at him. He physically grabs her and forces her into the pickup truck, throws her bicycle in the back and drives off.

What really happened? What, if anything, do you do about it?

What actually happened is that her mother sent her uncle to bring her home for dinner and she didn't want to go, she wanted to keep riding her bike. This real incident kept most of the police force of a major California city busy for the better part of a day. The people involved were immigrants, did not speak English and didn't know every cop in the county was looking for them until a friend who saw the 6:00 o'clock news mentioned it to them in passing that evening.

Let's say for the sake of argument say that you elected to intervene. The uncle sees someone (you) trying to stop his truck, doesn't know what's going on and keeps going. You pull a gun. He tries to run you down in self defense, you shoot at him, maybe hit him, maybe hit the girl. Whose ass do you think is going to be in jail that night?"