Originally Posted by
George
not in your home I do not believe there is as clear of a "path to innocence"
this is an in your own home scenario, that if you have a clean record should result in not even being brought into custody for questioning
5 main items
1 weapon(especially firearm) is legally possessed
2 structure was secured (break in needs to have occurred) - does not matter how drunk/ confused a person is if they break in
3 person who broke in is unknown to you by sight or name
4 authorities were notified previous to deadly force being used
5 person who broke in was warned to stop/ leave before deadly force was used
for # 4 and 5 call 911, put the phone upright and yell a warning, leave the phone on until law enforcement arrives (all is recorded) - side note: let the responding law enforcement know where in the structure you are(through the dispatcher) and lay down any weapons - after a shots fired incident the officer will of course have a priority of there own security
if the person who broke in enters a final barricade (usually bedroom door) after the warning there should be little question of a killing being justifiable - assuming all 5 items check out - that does not mean you will not be sued/ charged with a crime, incur significant expense, mental trauma etc - just that in the end, you are not guilty of a crime
if 1-5 are not all certain it does not necessarily mean you are guilty, just that more red flags will be raised/ investigated
of course in this tent/ campground situation everything is more murky, but IMO protection of family would come far above legalities