Posted on 11/06/2004 7:38:13 PM PST by UnklGene
Overwhelming support for 'make my day' burglary law -
By Karyn Miller and Patrick Hennessy (Filed: 07/11/2004)
An overwhelming majority of the public backs the Sunday Telegraph's campaign to give people more rights to protect their homes and families from violent intruders, according to a new survey.
The ICM poll shows that 71 per cent of voters believe that householders should have the "unqualified right to use force, including deadly force if necessary" - against burglars. The wording of the survey question mirrors legislation, introduced in the state of Oklahoma in 1988 and known as the "Make my Day Law", which has halved burglaries.
An even greater proportion of those surveyed - 81 per cent - say that intruders should lose the right to sue for anything that the householder does in self-defence.
The results are the clearest possible evidence of the high level of support for the Sunday Telegraph's Right to Fight Back campaign, which has won backing both from David Blunkett, the Home Secretary, and David Davis, his Tory opposite number. Mr Davis said last night: "The public are right that this law is in urgent need of clarification. It should be re-balanced in favour of the real victim, the householder." He said the findings pointed to a shortage of police officers: "This means that people no longer feel safe in their own homes, not only against robbery, but also against burglars."
A spokesman for Mr Blunkett said: "We are prepared to consider a specific alternative to the current law, which already allows reasonable force to be used to defend your property, but, so far, nobody has come forward with one, not least the Conservatives."
The present law says that reasonable force may be used against intruders but the Home Office has admitted that there is "no definition" of what constitutes such force. Burglary victims can be hauled into court to answer accusations of assault or worse.
Almost three quarters of those surveyed, 72 per cent, felt that the current law was "ill-defined and inadequate" while 70 per cent thought that the Government could do much more to reduce the risk of burglary.
Only 37 per cent said that the police could already protect householders from the dangers posed by intruders.
Last night Norman Brennan, the director of the Victims of Crime Trust and a serving police officer with 26 years' experience, said: "The public fear crime more than I can ever remember.
"Sadly and reluctantly, I have to agree with the people in your survey. If the public saw more policemen I think they would feel safer, but the sad reality with the police is that we are not allowed to do the job we are employed to do.
"We have been shackled hand and foot and our ability to police has been damaged. Over half our time is taken up with paperwork.
"We need more policemen and the law needs to be explained better. No one, on an official level, is prepared to say in the Queen's English what you can and can't do about an intruder in your home.
"Ask Mr Blunkett about it and he'll just give you a load of spin, but it is time the Government stopped coming up with excuses."
Paul Stephenson, the Chief Constable of Lancashire and a spokesman for the Association of Chief Police Officers, said: "We will consider the survey to establish how its findings can help us to understand people's fear of crime."
Joyce Lee Malcolm, a professor of English constitutional history and the author of Guns and Violence - the English Experience, was "thrilled" with the survey results.
"What a powerful condemnation of current practice," she said. "The best thing the Government could do to reduce the risk of burglary is to permit householders to protect themselves."
ICM interviewed a random sample of 971 adults aged 18 and over by telephone earlier this week. Interviews were conducted across the country and the results have been weighted to the profiles of the interviewees.
Like, duh!!!!!
Gun control doesn't work bump!
As if the problem is with the fearful people, not the blinkin' HOME INVADERS --- you idiot!
"The best thing the Government could do to reduce the risk of burglary is to permit householders to protect themselves." WOW.
The homeland of John Locke and Thomas Paine hasn't a clue about the natural right of all people to defend their property from the criminal element. WOW.
Make my day ping!
Is Texas the only US state where you can use deadly force to protect property and not just life?
I believe so.
They should phone Oklahoma...which has had a "make my day" law for decades.
I think they should run Clint Eastwood for king.
Evidently Constable Stephenson does not have an IQ high enough to "understand people's fear of crime."
You mean they would actually be allowed to throw a PUNCH (gasp)! at a burglar? With a tightly clenched fist? Horrors!
Or would they only permit a slap?
May they use a ripe banana?;)
Nevada passed a Make my Day law quite some time ago - saw a huge drop in home robbery. Maybe someone (the Queen or someone like an MP) should call the Clark County Metro Dept and get their take on this law.
Now if they just do something about the out of control gangs.....
So obviously if the police are not allowed to do their job, a police state is not the answer. I for one feel a lot safer with a gun in my house than with a policeman down the street. Unless they plan to park a cop on my couch a cop down the street is useless with a burglar in the house.
But politicians seem to prefer a cop in every house for some reason...
I believe California has it too.
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