A Sydney man has a long and nervous wait to see if the police will press charges because he defended himself against an armed intruder. It seems that our rights to self defence are far from clear and revolve around the concept of " reasonable force ".
In this instance the householder was confronted by an intruder armed with a stun gun in his own home. A fight developed and the householder inflicted stab wounds on the intruder, who later died of his injuries.
This raises a whole lot of questions. Presumably the police will claim that a stun gun is not a " lethal weapon ". It's purpose is to incapacitate, not to kill. That dodges the question of an intruder's intent in being in the house - armed. The householder will have no idea if the intruder is high on drugs and what action may follow if he is incapacitated by the stun gun. If the intruder is not masked he may fear recognition if the victim lives - and proceed to murder his now helpless victim.
The first reaction of most people confronted by an intruder in their own home - is to resist ! A century ago there was no question about the extent of that resistance. If the intruder got killed it was more likely that society would award a medal than suggest charges. The right of self defence was paramount !
How things have changed ! We now have a code of " criminal's rights ". Making a living by burglary is considered a " profession ". It may not be lawful, but we face many perils if the offender suffers injury in the process. One burglar cut himself climbing in a bathroom window because the householder was in the habit of discarding used razor blades on the window sill. He sued the householder - and was awarded damages.
We constantly hear the police advise people at a crime scene to stay calm and take no action. If a woman is being raped or a citizen beaten to death the preferable action is to calmly observe and make notes on what is happening to assist the investigation that will follow. Getting involved in any way is not recommended.
It seems that when confronted with an armed intruder in your home, the suggested advice is to raise your hands in surrender and hope that the bandit will simply steal your valuables and do you no harm. If this person starts to inflict pain on your wife and children you are permitted to resist - but only to use sufficient force to make the intruder desist - not to cause injury.
And the crazy thing is that when a householder faces court charged with using " excessive force " - the punishment is usually greater than that handed out to the offender.
Who said " Crime doesn't pay ? "
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