When can I fire my gun?

[voola]

B"H

Dear friends, I have a genuine non-hypothetical question.

When are you allowed to discharge your firearm in PA ? under what circumstances? I am a person who will run away from a troublesome area if I find it dangerous . I will do my best not to even say a word to the assilant, but still I am wondering when does the law give me the chance to discharge it. i think if I have to i will aim for the assilants feet first instead of the torso because I dont want to kill him even though he stabbed me ( C"vS )and run away . do you think it is a good idea? do i have to call 911 later. please let me know . thank you very much.

[GunLawyer001]

B"H

Dear friends, I have a genuine non-hypothetical question.

When are you allowed to discharge your firearm in PA ? under what circumstances? I am a person who will run away from a troublesome area if I find it dangerous . I will do my best not to even say a word to the assilant, but still I am wondering when does the law give me the chance to discharge it. i think if I have to i will aim for the assilants feet first instead of the torso because I dont want to kill him even though he stabbed me ( C"vS )and run away . do you think it is a good idea? do i have to call 911 later. please let me know . thank you very much.

I teach an occasional 4-hour course on this topic, which is my way of saying that it's not a simple question with a simple answer.

Short answer, you can shoot if you're willing to bankrupt your family and go to jail as a consequence. That may not happen, but it's always a crapshoot, so pick your battles carefully. Shoot the perp if he'll kill your wife otherwise, don't shoot to prove a point about your manhood. And shut up afterwards, get a lawyer, let the lawyer tell you which facts help and which hurt your case.

[LittleRedToyota]

the PA use of force, and use of deadly force, statutes can be found here:

http://www.acslpa.org/pa_uniform_firearms_act.htm

note that *force* does not equal *deadly force*. you must differentiate when reading the statutes.

also, rememeber, as gunlawyer pointed out...regardless of the actual text of the law, our legal system is a bit of a crapshoot.

[tlgpa]

i think if I have to i will aim for the assilants feet first instead of the torso because I dont want to kill him even though he stabbed me ( C"vS )and run away . do you think it is a good idea? do i have to call 911 later. please let me know . thank you very much.

You're really that good of a shot that you can shoot a moving foot? You'll put your life on the line with that shot?

If someone has a knife, they're only a threat to you if they're within "lunging" distance. Shooting their foot would be pointless. You're still getting stabbed.
If they're farther away and you shoot them (even in the foot) you're likely going to be in serious trouble since you could flee.

If they have a gun and you shoot in the foot.... well you're just dumb.

Rule #1. Don't point (or shoot) at something you don't intend to destroy.
If you fear for your life or limb from the assailant, your intention should be to "destroy" him. If you don't have that fear, you shouldn't draw your gun.

And yes, if you discharge your gun in a self defence situation, you should call 911 immediately!

[GunLawyer001]

. . .
And yes, if you discharge your gun in a self defence situation, you should call 911 immediately!

As I tell my workshop attendees, that's not always in your best interests. It often is, but not always by any means.

You have a 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination, and calling 911 gives them your name as the shooter, plus your recorded admission of the shooting. You give the DA everything that he needs for a prima facie criminal case against you, then the burden of proof shifts to you to establish your defense.

There are plenty of convicts who were the first to call 911. Lots of them believe that the shooting was justified, but the court disagreed. There are no people convicted after the police were unable to identify the shooter.

[GuyMontag]

I think it's funny that I read the question and thought it was a troll question... guess not?

GunLawyer001
I'm not sure what you're suggesting by saying, "There are no people convicted after the police were unable to identify the shooter." Are you saying to flee to safety without calling police?

Also, what would you then recommend you say when calling 911?

[tlgpa]

As I tell my workshop attendees, that's not always in your best interests. It often is, but not always by any means.

I was more refering to discharging ie: missing the badguy or shooting him in the leg as in the OP. Now it's your word against his and first to call 911 is more likely to be the victim.

[GunLawyer001]

I think it's funny that I read the question and thought it was a troll question... guess not?

GunLawyer001
I'm not sure what you're suggesting by saying, "There are no people convicted after the police were unable to identify the shooter." Are you saying to flee to safety without calling police?

Also, what would you then recommend you say when calling 911?

I was more refering to discharging ie: missing the badguy or shooting him in the leg as in the OP. Now it's your word against his and first to call 911 is more likely to be the victim.

Whoever had the gun is more likely to be the bad guy. Where both had guns, whoever shot first is more likely to be the bad guy. Guilty people call 911 all the time, sometimes to report that someone stole their coke, or that their roommate stole their previously-stolen stereo. There's nothing that wraps the first 911 caller in a halo.

The police can't look into your soul and see the happy sunshine that abides there. If the only thing that will immediately connect you to a bleeding corpse is your own call to 911, then just maybe it's not in your best interests to make that call. Cops love confessions, and a confession is nothing more than an admission of facts that can be used against you in court. Like a 911 call in which you implicate yourself in an allegedly self-defense shooting.

[Exbiker]

I teach an occasional 4-hour course on this topic, which is my way of saying that it's not a simple question with a simple answer.

That sounds like an interesting class. How often and where?

[RoyJackson]

B"H

Dear friends, I have a genuine non-hypothetical question.

When are you allowed to discharge your firearm in PA ? under what circumstances? I am a person who will run away from a troublesome area if I find it dangerous . I will do my best not to even say a word to the assilant, but still I am wondering when does the law give me the chance to discharge it. i think if I have to i will aim for the assilants feet first instead of the torso because I dont want to kill him even though he stabbed me ( C"vS )and run away . do you think it is a good idea? do i have to call 911 later. please let me know . thank you very much.

Voola, if there's one piece of advice I can give you above all others...listen to Gunlawyer's advice!
He's a real lawyer....all the rest of us just watch too much "Law and Order"!