Most Hoosiers know were a gun-friendly state. In fact, Indiana ranks among the highest for gun rights. For example, there are hundreds of thousands of residents who have a License to Carry a Handgun. With “carrying” there is significant misunderstanding of the Castle Doctrine and the right to Stand Your Ground with the right to draw your firearm. These limits are the topic of coverage in this blog.
In Indiana, a person can stand his or her ground and not retreat if it is reasonable. This allows the use of force to protect person and property. However, the use of force ... Read More
Tag: self-defense
15
Jan2018
29
Nov2017
A. The right to use force and deadly force in Indiana.
Under Indiana’s use of force statute, a person is justified in using reasonable force against another person to protect the person or a third party from what the person believes to be the imminent use of unlawful force. Further, a person is justified in using deadly force and does not have a duty to retreat if the person reasonably believes the use of this level of force is necessary to prevent serious bodily injury to the person or a third person or in the commission of a forcible felony.
This blog ... Read More
30
Oct2017
Every year civil and criminal defense attorneys across the state and the citizens at large handle or read headlines about “gun blunders” that cause the once-law-abiding citizen to wind up charged with a criminal act. This blog identified the five most common gun myths to help you avoid them, minimize criminal risk and look inside of the defenses.
Becoming the aggressor:
In many cases, someone with a firearm may be authorized at a given moment in time to stand his or her ground and use deadly force and have an affirmative defense to what would be an otherwise criminal act. However, normally ... Read More
12
Jul2017
There are numerous legal debates about mistakes you can make carrying a handgun for personal protection. For instance, in a metropolitan community and dense urban area, an argument can be made that open carry and certain body movements in conjunction are intimidation or brandishing? Is leaving a carry gun at a restaurant or in a bathroom such that it makes a person subject to criminal charge (or civil liability)?
These questions have one clear legal answer: it “depends”. That said, in numerous cases over the years we have observed one single factor that has eroded, damaged or criminalized what may have ... Read More
06
Jul2017
On Monday, the Indiana Court of Appeals decided an important case relating to the gun community and criminal defense; it decided and what is deadly force by a “deadly weapon”. In Indiana, the affirmative defense of self-defense may be raised when a person uses deadly force in response to infliction of serious bodily injury from a “deadly weapon”, a forcible felony or to defend one’s home or curtilage.
There is no definition of a “deadly weapon”. However, its use must be threatened or used in a way that could lead to serious bodily injury or death. In most self-defense cases, a ... Read More
21
Jun2017
Nationally, and certainly within the state of Indiana, a great deal of public interest has been garnered with the passage of the castle doctrine and its companion doctrine, standing one’s ground, into law. However, every seasoned criminal defense attorney knows this defense is poorly understood across the board. Prosecutors, who serve the public, also understand this—although they often have very different views on the scope and meaning of these doctrines.
Think you understand them? Think again. Here is the question: Are you willing to die—today--for your understanding, be sued tomorrow for all you have, or go to prison for the rest ... Read More