It’s actually appalling how many legal gun owners haven’t taken any time to consider when they are justified in pulling the trigger versus when they aren’t legally justified in shooting someone else.
To be fair, with the legacy mainstream media’s steady diet of garbage news stories and hot takes on shootings, often with little to no facts involved, in order to push their anti-2A narrative, it can be difficult to find good, balanced advice on when you are legally justified in shooting someone else (hint: it’s rare that you are justified in doing that).
Now, before we go any further, I need to tell you that I am not a lawyer, and you should not consider what is said here to be legal advice. What is legal in one area may not be legal in another area, and you are responsible to know the laws and guidelines in your area.
That being said, let’s start with a story out of Utah which illustrates one type of situation in which many gun owners might think that they are justified in pulling the trigger when, in fact, they are not. Luke McCoy writes,
A man is facing a first-degree murder charge after fatally shooting a suspected bicycle thief early Tuesday morning near East High School, according to the Salt Lake City Police Department.
The shooting occurred around 5 a.m. near 1300 East and 800 South. Police said 23-year-old Shane Hagaman called 911 to report that his bicycle had been stolen and that he shot the suspect as the man was riding away.
Did you catch the problem with what the Hagaman did?
If you didn’t catch it, here is the problem: Hagaman shot the alleged bike thief as the thief was fleeing.
Not as the person was attacking, but as they were leaving the scene.
Meaning that the alleged bike thief was not a threat to Hagaman’s safety.
And that’s a huge problem because pulling the trigger on another person is generally only justified in order to stop a threat of physical violence to you or someone else. If they are leaving the scene, they are no longer a threat to you (unless they are shooting at you as they are fleeing, for example).
The principle is this: no current physical threat of danger, no justification in pulling the trigger.
And as gun owners, it is our responsibility to know and abide by the legal guidelines in our area on this issue.