TX: Shooting in Defense of Property

[grimjaw]

yes,im wondering if it would be legal in a situation like this to solder razor blades to your possesions on a persons vehicle in such a way that only bad guys get cut

The short answer is no, it is not legal.

pioneer, from I remember of my law studies, you cannot 'booby trap' things. We had this discussion come up during property law discussions. If it happened that there was a sharp edge on some hard to reach place, through no fault of yours, only reachable by someone trying to remove your stereo or what have you improperly, the odds are in your favor if they are injured while trying to steal it. If you stick sharp bits in there designed to injure, you're stacking the deck against yourself in court when they sue. It might be a crime regardless.

 

[pioneer]

i really didnt consider it booby trapping because im just trying to keep my stuff from being stolen by which anymore it seems like crimminals have a green light to do anything they want to anymore,ok-so we have to be kind to bad guys even though they may drool at a persons possesions,i guess the only solution to keep from getting robbed is to keep your vehicle in a locked garage along with a germansheperd dog,sheeesh society favors pampering bad guys,i suppose having cayane pepper spray rigged in a vehicle would be illigal too?

 

[Heysoos]

thanks for the responses..

A couple points... As Standing Wolf said:

Let me play devil's advocate a moment, eh? By letting the parasites live, you've enabled them to commit more such crimes as soon as they've been put on probation or sent to jail for a few weeks and turned loose on parole.

I happen to agree with this mindset, and it personally drives me nuts that I can't take appropriate action to help society without ruining my own life(financially or otherwise) in the process. It makes perfect sense to me that if your shoot is justifiable in a criminal sense, the scum or their family should not be able to bring a civil suit against me for stopping a crime. I'm not a lawmaker but this only seems like common sense to me.

Preacherman:

If, on the other hand, the BG's had been trying to break into your house, that's a whole different ball game, and a response using lethal force is much easier to justify at the time, and sustain in court if necessary.

Agreed. There will not be any hesitation when my door is busted through or a window broken in the middle of the night...reminds me...gotta get me one of those 870's in the wake of all the takeover home invasions in DFW in the last year or two...

Look at the outcome:
1) the suspects are in the hands of the criminal justice system
2) you got your property returned
3) you are alive to post what happened

In the couple weeks since it happened, I have been second guessing myself as to what I should have done, this makes me feel a bit better...thanks

With this being the second truck breakin in the last year for me, it's getting frustrating...I'm certainly not flashy with my vehicles, I'm just glad this time turned out for the best, last time it certainly did NOT. From the posts here, it seems that the situation would be up to a jury, and either way, I'd be getting nailed for tons of money, even in the wake of doing society a favor... :banghead:

 

[pioneer]

well i guess the only legal solution to getting a persons possesions from being stolen would be putting in a car alarm connected to a few car horns inside a persons vehicle because it would be extremly painfull to the hearing to rob a person and they wouldnt want to stick around because of the noise but i guess if a person gets a ticket for noise pollution then who cares because at least you have your stuff yet.

 

[2nd Amendment]

You did right by you. THAT is what really matters.

I was robbed so many times, and so much damage done, while I was building my house I'm not certain my reaction would have been as restrained.

Edit: Years ago while in college I soldered razor blades to the back of my car stereo after the third one was stolen in a week. Two days later my carpet was covered in blood, but the stereo remained. Interestingly enough, that was the last time anyone tried to nab it...

 

[beerslurpy]

Florida has had a law on the book for years denying people shot during the commission of a felony from suing.

http://www.flsenate.gov/statutes/in...TM&Title=->2004->Ch0776->Section 085#0776.085

The new law just expands the definition of justifiable homicide.

 

[chris in va]

There's varying levels of force here. Frankly I would have shined a HUGE spotlight on them (if available), yelled something very loud their way and had my CZ on the ready in case they also had a weapon.

A shotgun comes in handy with the racking sound too. My dad lives in the DFW area, and one evening some spanish trash decided to cause trouble at his neighbor's house. Ed (the neighbor) confronted them with a 1911 and even fired one into his grass for 'emphasis'. They split pretty damn fast. The cops came and commended him on his 'handling of the situation'.

No '5-figure lawsuit', no attorney's fees, no jailhouse blues...just taking care of business. No one got killed either.

You live in TEXAS man...you *can* confront a burgler with a firearm in that state. No one says you have to SHOOT them, just let them know you mean business.

 

[p35]

I once defended a guy in the same basic scenario who let fly with a load of birdshot. Didn't do any real harm. Problem was, they turned out to be repo men, and the guy was in a heap of trouble!

FWIW, Washington has the same basic law as Florida- can't sue if you were injured if the cause was your own felony. Breaking into a toolbox, though, is right on the misdemeanor/felony line in most places, so you can't rely too heavily on that in this scenario.