Potential Break-In Thwarted? (State College)

[psublue]

Yeah, I edited the original post to clarify what I meant.

God, I need to get out of this town...

[Michele]

Yeah, I edited the original post to clarify what I meant.

God, I need to get out of this town...

Just be careful what you post on a public forum. It could very well come back and bite you in the ass in a way most would not want to be bitten.

[jcabin]

Absolutely correct! ^^^^^^

The inside is your turf, the outside his turf. He crosses that turf line then the situation changes.

Ya' dig?

Ohh I dig!

[XD45]

I thought in PA you had a duty to retreat? Anyway someone can post the statutes you're talking about?

[GunLawyer001]

. . . As far as I can tell from the PA Uniform Firearms Act, I would have been completely justified in using force in this situation. . . .

The UFA says nothing about the use of deadly force. The UFA is only Chapter 61, so all statutes within the UFA are in the format "61XX".

However (shameless partial plug) my firearms law workshops, as well as several other good courses offered by other folks, will cover this sort of thing.

Figuring out real-life actions from the wording of the statutes like Section 505 of the Crimes Code is not all that easy, like building a working bomb when all you have is "e = MC squared".

Use of force, use of DEADLY force, defensive displays of firearms, and general principles of justification form a continuum, and that's all affected by little glosses like the Castle Doctrine for work and home, duty to retreat (if possible), and when you're excused if you start shooting but could be prosecuted if you don't stop shooting quickly enough. The rules for using a gun against an attacker in your home vary between persons, and whether or not you started the fight, and whether there's a credible threat.

Take a course from someone. Using a gun can change your life and the lives of others just as badly as skydiving or scuba diving, and people take courses for those before they pick up the gear and try it out. Some things, you just don't want to learn via trial & error.

[levib]

I thought in PA you had a duty to retreat? Anyway someone can post the statutes you're talking about?

That is my impression from reading all the stuff about Castle Doctrine last year. We still don't have castle doctrine in place here in PA, do we?


Edit:

For this one time, low low price you too can have a justified shooting in your home!

Just busting your chops lawyer.

[TheF00L]

Post deleted by poster, as I am, doing to almost all my posts.

[psublue]

*(4)(i) The use of deadly force is justifiable under this section if:

(A) there has been an entry into the actor’s dwelling;

(B) the actor neither believes nor has reason to believe that the entry is lawful; and

(C) the actor neither believes nor has reason to believe that force less than deadly force would be adequate to terminate the entry.

That's from the section about defense of property, "Title 18, §507. Use of Force for the Protection of Property." In my specific hypothetical case (beyond the actual events that happened), had I been attacked in my own home, the UFA specifically indicates that I would be authorized to use deadly force in the event that I believed it was the only way to get the bad guy out of my apartment.

[psublue]

My friend, I hope I am not running you out of town while only looking for a clarification to your question...

Don't fret! I should have been more clear. It's just that I went to college here, took a job here after graduation, and I'm slowly starting to burn out. I'm 23, which makes me 46 in State College Townie years. Put me out to pasture.

[levib]

Thanks for looking this up in answer to your own question! Seems pretty clear cut, I'd just worry about someone trying to prove you should have stopped shooting before you did.