'Stand Your Ground' law: South Florida residents use 'Stand Your Ground' law to strke back at intruders -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
South Florida residents strike back at intruders
By Robert Nolin and C. Ron Allen
South Florida Sun Sentinel
September 11, 2009
With handguns and baseball bats, South Florida residents in recent days have been striking back at home invaders, beating and even killing those who violate the sanctity of their homes.
Two cases occurred in Palm Beach County. Thursday night, during a struggle, a Wellington homeowner shot and wounded one of two men who broke into his home. On Sept. 5, a group of men in a Lake Worth home turned the tables on a burglar, seizing his baseball bat and using it to break his arm.:banana:
And early Thursday in Miami, a man who jumped a fence and entered a home's yard ended up dead after a confrontation with the father and son who lived there. His manner of death has not been released by police, who still are investigating.
Such instances are hardly a trend, experts say, but rather a fluke of circumstances. And they probably don't represent an increase in frustrated homeowners fighting back.:tired:
"You have to look at each case individually," said George L. Kirkham, a criminologist at Florida State University. "There's a lot of tension right now in people's lives generally because of the economy. I don't know to what extent those kinds of factors may play into it.":scruntiny:
Use of deadly force against intruders is allowed under Florida law, but prosecutors and criminologists caution homeowners that there are limits to when they can harm an intruder.
Florida's Castle Doctrine has long provided that homeowners can use deadly force against intruders, but the homeowner must have a reasonable belief that he or she is in danger of death or great bodily harm. When acting within the limits of the law, homeowners who kill or injure intruders typically are not charged.
"You can use reasonable force in self-defense or to protect your property," said Bruce Winick, a professor of law and psychiatry at the University of Miami. However, he said, "I don't think you can use this as a license to kill."
For example, if an intruder surrenders or is incapacitated, a homeowner cannot use deadly force; to do so would risk criminal charges.
"We still have a bit of frontier mentality here in Florida, this idea of 'Yes, you can shoot to kill,' " Winick said. "I wouldn't advise people to kill people just because someone comes on your property.":slap:
In 2005, the "Stand Your Ground" law went into effect. It expands the Castle Doctrine to say a person can respond to an attack with deadly force not only in the home but anywhere in public.:yup:
Winick fears the law can send the wrong message. "To the extent homeowners understand that law, it may give them a signal that they can do anything," he said.
Brian Cavanagh, veteran homicide prosecutor with the Broward State Attorney's Office, shares that view.
"The 'Stand Your Ground' law, I hate it, and I think I can speak for most prosecutors and law enforcement officers," he said. "It's a dangerous, dangerous law, especially if it's misinterpreted by citizens who think it gives them the right to use unbridled force. It doesn't give you or anybody a carte blanche right to use force. Anybody who thinks that way better read the law.":twak:
Cavanagh, who makes decisions on whether to charge people in self-defense cases, said the threshold is whether people have a reasonable belief they are in immediate danger. If they don't, they shouldn't respond with deadly force, he said.
But in the heat of a confrontation with an invader, homeowners often don't have the luxury of examining their emotions.:scratchchin:
"People react in these situations," said Jeff Marcus, chief of the felony division at the Broward State Attorney's Office. "I doubt that they're stopping to ponder the Castle Doctrine.":comeandgetsome:
Robert Nolin can be reached at [email protected] or 954-356-4525.
South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
South Florida residents strike back at intruders
By Robert Nolin and C. Ron Allen
South Florida Sun Sentinel
September 11, 2009
With handguns and baseball bats, South Florida residents in recent days have been striking back at home invaders, beating and even killing those who violate the sanctity of their homes.
Two cases occurred in Palm Beach County. Thursday night, during a struggle, a Wellington homeowner shot and wounded one of two men who broke into his home. On Sept. 5, a group of men in a Lake Worth home turned the tables on a burglar, seizing his baseball bat and using it to break his arm.:banana:
And early Thursday in Miami, a man who jumped a fence and entered a home's yard ended up dead after a confrontation with the father and son who lived there. His manner of death has not been released by police, who still are investigating.
Such instances are hardly a trend, experts say, but rather a fluke of circumstances. And they probably don't represent an increase in frustrated homeowners fighting back.:tired:
"You have to look at each case individually," said George L. Kirkham, a criminologist at Florida State University. "There's a lot of tension right now in people's lives generally because of the economy. I don't know to what extent those kinds of factors may play into it.":scruntiny:
Use of deadly force against intruders is allowed under Florida law, but prosecutors and criminologists caution homeowners that there are limits to when they can harm an intruder.
Florida's Castle Doctrine has long provided that homeowners can use deadly force against intruders, but the homeowner must have a reasonable belief that he or she is in danger of death or great bodily harm. When acting within the limits of the law, homeowners who kill or injure intruders typically are not charged.
"You can use reasonable force in self-defense or to protect your property," said Bruce Winick, a professor of law and psychiatry at the University of Miami. However, he said, "I don't think you can use this as a license to kill."
For example, if an intruder surrenders or is incapacitated, a homeowner cannot use deadly force; to do so would risk criminal charges.
"We still have a bit of frontier mentality here in Florida, this idea of 'Yes, you can shoot to kill,' " Winick said. "I wouldn't advise people to kill people just because someone comes on your property.":slap:
In 2005, the "Stand Your Ground" law went into effect. It expands the Castle Doctrine to say a person can respond to an attack with deadly force not only in the home but anywhere in public.:yup:
Winick fears the law can send the wrong message. "To the extent homeowners understand that law, it may give them a signal that they can do anything," he said.
Brian Cavanagh, veteran homicide prosecutor with the Broward State Attorney's Office, shares that view.
"The 'Stand Your Ground' law, I hate it, and I think I can speak for most prosecutors and law enforcement officers," he said. "It's a dangerous, dangerous law, especially if it's misinterpreted by citizens who think it gives them the right to use unbridled force. It doesn't give you or anybody a carte blanche right to use force. Anybody who thinks that way better read the law.":twak:
Cavanagh, who makes decisions on whether to charge people in self-defense cases, said the threshold is whether people have a reasonable belief they are in immediate danger. If they don't, they shouldn't respond with deadly force, he said.
But in the heat of a confrontation with an invader, homeowners often don't have the luxury of examining their emotions.:scratchchin:
"People react in these situations," said Jeff Marcus, chief of the felony division at the Broward State Attorney's Office. "I doubt that they're stopping to ponder the Castle Doctrine.":comeandgetsome:
Robert Nolin can be reached at [email protected] or 954-356-4525.
