Posted on 02/13/2005 6:26:13 PM PST by sittnick
From the same link. Whoooooooooo boy.
How to tackle a burglar within the law
By John Steele, Home Affairs Correspondent and Toby Helm
(Filed: 02/02/2005)
Householders can kill burglars and not face prosecution as long as they use only "reasonable force", the Director of Public Prosecutions said yesterday.
Even using a knife or a gun would not lead to a charge as long as the householder's actions were what they "honestly and instinctively" believed was necessary "in the heat of the moment".
The advice from Ken Macdonald, QC, was given in a leaflet issued by the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Crown Prosecution Service. It said that only those acting with "very excessive and gratuitous force", such as knocking out an intruder then killing him as a punishment, would risk prosecution.
It emerged that Sir Ian Blair, the new Metropolitan Police commissioner who has called for clearer guidelines, was not consulted on the wording or given an advance copy before appearing on Radio 4's Today programme to discuss the issue.
In the interview, he suggested that the existing "reasonable force" test for deciding whether to prosecute householders was not adequate and reiterated his support for a new test of "grossly disproportionate" force - a phrase suggested by the Conservatives and rejected by ministers.
But speaking at a press conference later, Sir Ian said he was satisfied with the leaflet's test of "excessive and gratuitous" force.
Launching the leaflet, entitled Householders and the Use of Force against Intruders, Mr Macdonald said: "If you are confronted by a burglar in your home and you fear that you or your family are about to be attacked, you are entitled to incapacitate that burglar to prevent him attacking you.
"The key thing to bear in mind is that, as long as someone has not stepped over that line into retribution or revenge, it is quite difficult to perceive of a level of violence, when someone is acting in fear under threat, that would not be regarded as reasonable by a prosecutor.
"This is something the intruder brings on him or herself. We do not need to be too squeamish about the situation."
Mr Macdonald said such guidance meant that in the past the CPS had not prosecuted householders who fatally stabbed or shot burglars or hit them over the head with bats, bars or sticks.
The leaflet, 100,000 copies of which will be distributed through Citizens' Advice Bureaux, police forces and libraries, states: "You are not expected to make fine judgments on the level of force you use in the heat of the moment. So long as you do only what you honestly and instinctively believe is necessary in the heat of the moment, that would be the strongest evidence of your acting lawfully and in self-defence."
Three weeks ago Charles Clarke, the Home Secretary, said the law would not be changed. The Government has not supported a private member's Bill by the Tory MP Patrick Mercer seeking to change "reasonable force" to a test of whether the force was "grossly disproportionate" - the phrase used in civil cases when burglars try to sue householders.
Mr Clarke said yesterday: "The key issue now is ensuring that householders understand the law."
Mr Mercer said: "This will do nothing to redress the law in favour of the victim."
16 January 2005: We show that the fight-back figures are wrong
14 January 2005: Only 11 cases of attacks on burglars have gone to court
13 January 2005: Law change on tackling burglars is ruled out
snip//
I still own a working "GO BALL"!
"Who's number 1?"
"You are [pause] number 6."
"HI! I'm a 30-second bomb. Twenty-nine. Twenty-eight. Twenty-seven..."
It is quite fun.
It also has Japanese pop music that, despite my better judgement, is impossible for me to get out of my head.
And I'm oddly seeing those horrid giant ballons from the series "The Prisoner"..
Powder..Patch..Ball FIRE!
(image of Hornandy round balls)
LOL LOL LOL........
.54 Caliber bump!
LOL, I understand that.
I tend to get video game music stuck in my head. I hate it when I'm going down the road, humming a tune, only to realize that it's the theme from some game I'm playing. Drives me nuts; like you said, it's near impossible to get it out of your head.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.