Why He’s Facing Up to 10 Years in Prison
This past week, several
people forwarded me the story about the Washington state man who is facing up
to 10 years in prison for shooting a thief who was stealing his car. In case
you didn’t see the story, here’s a quick recap…
One morning, a gentleman
starts his car in his driveway because he’s getting ready to take his wife to
work. He runs back into the house to get something and leaves his car running
in the driveway as many of us have done before.
When he comes back out of
his house he sees a thief driving off with his car. He chases the car down the
street and fires one round from his 9mm handgun at the thief. In a one in a
million shot that he probably couldn’t do again, he hits the thief in the back
of the head and kills him.
As I just mentioned, the
car’s owner who took the shot has been charged with manslaughter and is facing
up to 10 years in prison.
I hate hearing about these
stories because although the car owner thought he might have been doing the
right thing, he clearly has no idea what his state’s law is when it comes to
the use of deadly force.
And understanding the use of
deadly force is obviously one the first things you should do if you ever carry
concealed. The fact is, when it comes to deadly force, Washington state law
says you (the person) must be in immediate and imminent physical danger.
In other words…
Like the majority of states
in this nation, you can use deadly force to protect life but not property.
Clearly, when the owner of the car was chasing after his stolen vehicle he was
not in any physical danger caused by the car thief and he should have
immediately called the police instead of firing a round from his gun.
I do feel sorry for the
car’s owner because I am sure he is a good family man and all around good
person. But if I was called to be an expert witness in this case I would have
to say this was a bad shooting and the shot should never have been taken.
That’s why if there is even
the smallest amount of doubt in your mind as to what the deadly force laws are
in your state, you should look them up right now. Simply Google “Virginia
deadly force law” (or whatever state you live in) and one of the top choices
should be the government website for your state.
Read over the deadly force
law and if you don’t understand it, ask around or pay a lawyer for an hour of
their time. As much as I dislike lawyers, if you have to spend $300 bucks so
you feel comfortable with your understanding of the law, it would be money well
spent in my opinion.
By the way, the owner of the
car has set up a legal defense fund and is fighting his charges and it will be
interesting to see the outcome of the case. But I pray all of us will study our
state laws so we never have to find ourselves in his position.
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