imported post
We got off on this discussion by talking about brandishing. My point was that carrying a gun in the hands is not brandishing unless coupled with the intent to coerce, intimidate, or instill fear in, another person. But pulling out a gun, or even making reference to a gun, even one feels vaguely threatened, can be considered brandishing, even if the gun is not in the hand. If it is in the hand under those circumstances, it could be charged as attempted murder or assault with a deadly weapon (though that could be knocked down to simple assault at plea bargain time, depending on the court and prosecutor).
skidmark wrote:
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User: You wrote
When you are in a situation in which you or an innocent third party is faced with the imminent threat of serious bodily injury, such that you reasonably believe, based on objective fact, that deadly force is required, then pull the gun out and shoot to kill.
Would that have been a slip of the fingers, and what you were intending to say would have been along the lines of "shooting to stop the threat"?
... Shooting at the end of the draw stroke when the threat no longer exists would not be excusable nor justified.
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No, that was not a slip of the fingers. When I've done my firearms law lectures, Jimmy Johnson, owner of VaPistol.com who's been sponsoring the events, always introduces me by telling the folks that what I say will shock them. This is why.
However, I did fail to make two important points. First, one can always change his mind and put the gun away without shooting, if he should decide that he was wrong or that the threat has dematerialized. Second, that every word in that definition is really important, and it's a long-winded definition. You have to know it so well that you dream about it. "If you
reasonably believe, based on
objective fact, that you or an innocent third party is faced with the
threat of an
imminent serious bodily injury, then the use of deadly force is excusable."
You have to be reasonable. It only needs to be a belief, not scientific fact, but it's got to be reasonable. Differential of potential force makes a difference in one's reasonable belief. That, alone doth not a good defense make, sinceeach of the elements of the defense has to be proved by testimony. (Hence the old aphorism, "Don't threaten a fat old geezer who isobviously in no shape to fight - he'll just kill you.")
It has to be based on objective fact - other people watching the same events, would have seen the same things you did that led you to the reasonable belief. (That's why cops areusually exonerated because they mistakenly shot people who pulled out a shiny pen, cell phone, or cigarette lighter. It was an objective fact that the detainee pulled out a cell phone. Other people watching would have seen him pull out the cell phone. The cop had a reasonable belief, based on that objective fact, that the detainee had a dangerous weapon and that he or other officers were threatened thereby.)
The belief has to be about a threat, not an emotional response ("Fear is not an option.")
The threat must be imminent, right now, not five minutes from now, not five minutes ago. Imminent means immediate, like right now.
The threat must involve serious bodily injury. Not necessarily a deadly threat, a baseball bat to the knees would probably result in a serious bodily injury.
If you don't have all those conditions at the same time, don't even think about the gun. If you do have all those conditions at the same time, the threat is a human being, and yes, you have to stop the threat, but that means stopping that human being. You need to know this definition and what it means so well that you'll be able to apply it despite the adrenaline rush you will get in a real emergency. You have to be reasonable, even though your body is being as unreasonable as all-get-out.
I don't like euphemisms and dancing around what's really going on. The purpose of a defensive gun is to kill people. Like a fire extinguisher, I hope, I really hope, verily I say unto you, I truly hope that I never have to use one. But when I do, I mean business. And if you're in court as a result of a shooting, you need an attorney who will not avoid the unpleasantness of your having shot someone by dancing around the eight hundred pound gorilla in the room, namely that you shot someone.
Everyone in the room is going to know you used a gun to shoot someone, and everyone knows how horrible that is. No point in trying to pretty it up. Face it head on, and explain why you reasonably believed that it was absolutely necessary to do what you did, and why you did it. I want a client who can look at the jury and tell them the whole story and make them understand that any sane person who wants to livewould have done exactly the same thing in the same circumstances.
And if you're in that situation, there's no getting around the fact that the gun is designed specifically to kill human beings. Everyone's going to understand that. The fact that you've lightened the trigger pull, honed the action, used hollow point bullets, and used night sights and a lasergrip, is not going to make the slightest bit of difference in the decision of whether you're guilty or not guilty. (It could be relevant to sentencing. But let's don't get to that point by doing things that could get us found guilty.)
You'd best not shoot anyone if you don't mean to kill them. (Attempted murder is punishable to the same degree that murder is.) If you're not willing to kill another human being in a situationthat requires it, you'd best not have a gun, unless you justenjoy target practice. And you'd best not mean to kill anyone unless you "reasonably believe, based on objective fact, that you or an innocent third party is faced with the threat of an imminent serious bodily injury."
Other than "stopping a serious felony" (rape, robbery, murder, burglary, and arson) defense of self/defense of others is the only reason to even think about pulling out a gun, unless you're a law enforcement officer. There may be a defense of excusable homicide where a non-LEO shoots a fleeing felon who represents a continuing danger to other people, that has been recognized where cops have done the shooting; but I wouldn't count on a favorable verdict in that situation. To my knowledge that defense has not resulted in any precedents where a non-LEO did the shooting, so it's an uncertain area of the law.
For us non-LEO's it's a binary choice - unless you're faced with the "right now" kind of threat that requires deadly force, don't even think about touching the gun. It has to be a strictly defensive measure and only in circumstances that require it.
It isn't always being fast, or even accurate that counts; it's being willing. I found out early that most men, regardless of cause or need, aren't willing; they blink an eye or draw a breath before they pull the trigger. I won't.
- John Bernard Books played by John Wayne in "The Shootist".
Note: the cases cited by 1774.org website are good information, but not necessarilyreliable as precedent - an "unpublished" opinion is not precedent.