phl@drusd.UUCP (LavettePH) (04/19/85)
The Colorado Senate approved the "MAKE MY DAY!" bill on Wednesday and returned it to the lower house for minor corrections. In substance, the bill requires that the prosecutor prove that the resident was *not* in a life threatening sit- uation when she or he used lethal force to subdue an intruder in her or his res- idence. The bill is thought to have enough support to overide any veto. Demand is already picking up for those no-tresspassing signs used by ranchers a year or so ago during the cattle mutilation incidents. They read: TRESPASSERS WILL BE SHOT! - SURVIVORS WILL BE PROSECUTED! It will be interesting to see if the burglary rate decreases once the thieves discover that the justice system can no longer protect them. - Phil
cramer@kontron.UUCP (Clayton Cramer) (04/26/85)
> > The Colorado Senate approved the "MAKE MY DAY!" bill on Wednesday and returned > it to the lower house for minor corrections. In substance, the bill requires > that the prosecutor prove that the resident was *not* in a life threatening sit- > uation when she or he used lethal force to subdue an intruder in her or his res- > idence. The bill is thought to have enough support to overide any veto. > > Demand is already picking up for those no-tresspassing signs used by ranchers > a year or so ago during the cattle mutilation incidents. They read: > > TRESPASSERS WILL BE SHOT! - SURVIVORS WILL BE PROSECUTED! > > It will be interesting to see if the burglary rate decreases once the thieves > discover that the justice system can no longer protect them. > > - Phil Since January 1st, California law has been quite similar to the so-called "Make my day!" bill in Colorado. Until this year, if someone broke into your home, there was no legal presumption that they intended you great bodily harm. As a result, if you shot a burglar who broke in, you might well have to prove to a court that you had reason to fear for your safety. (This seems like a pretty crackpot idea to me.) The law now says that the presumption is that someone who breaks into your home intends you great bodily harm. The courts now have to *prove* that you did *not* have reason to fear to convict you of a crime. I haven't read a detailed account of the proposed Colorado law (newspapers being long on analysis, and short on facts), but if it is similar to California law, I don't see a problem with it, unless you feel that burglars should be protected from lethal force.