News from Alphecca

It appears that Texas is considering the Castle Doctrine that Oklahoma passed some years ago, with a dramatic reduction in residential burglaries...from a comment that linked to Alphecca, we get:

"From a press release issued by the Oklahoma State Senate in 2004:

"It has been an unqualified success. Since the Make My Day Law came into force, burglary has declined by almost half in Oklahoma. In 1987, there were 58,333 cases; in 2000, just 31,661."

Oklahoma's original stand-your-ground law was adopted in 1987 and applied only to invasions of a "dwelling," but did allow use of deadly force if you reasonably believed the invader "might use any physical force, no matter how slight," against any occupant of the dwelling. It gave you an affirmative defense in a criminal prosecution and immunity from civil liability for injuries or death you inflicted.

In November 2006 the law was expanded substantially, to give a PRESUMPTION of reasonable fear of death or great bodily harm from a person who had unlawfully entered OR WAS IN THE PROCESS OF unlawfully entering a dwelling, residence OR VEHICLE. This expanded the circumstances in which deadly force could be used, and shifted the burden to the state to prove, beyond a resonable doubt, that you were NOT in fear of death before they could convict you for shooting a home invader (basically an impossible burden of proof for the state to meet if you keep your mouth shut, unless you manage to tie the guy up before you shoot him.)

The new law also allows use of deadly force OUTSIDE the home without a duty to retreat, including using deadly force to prevent a "forcible felony" against you or anybody else; prohibits arrest of a self-defense shooter unless the cops have probable cause to believe that the use of force was unlawful; and prohibits prosecution for use of force as authorized. It adds teeth to the immunity from civil suit by awarding the defendant legal fees, court costs and other expenses if the court finds he was immune from criminal prosecution. All in all, a substantial expansion of the protections allowed for the last 20 years.

I can easily believe there would be a dramatic drop in burglaries over a couple of decades as the consequences filter down into the subconscious minds of the mutant community. Not all of them are complete morons, and as they watched some of their friends and associates get blown away by homeowners who caught 'em in the act of burglarizing a home, it should sink in that that's not the healthiest line of work.

From the same OK Senate press release:

"While crime rates throughout America fell in the 1990s, Make My Day supporters point to a second statistic in Oklahoma they say proves the impact of the new [1987] law: while burglary rates plunged, other forms of theft stayed constant. In 1988, there were 96,418 cases, in 2000, 96,111."

Now that the same self defense rules apply to public places and to vehicles as have applied to residential burglaries for 20 years, we shouldn't be surprised if Oklahoma begins to see a drop in other violent crimes as well."

Goodness. If only Washington would pass such a thing down in Olympia...