Drumstick wrote:Rightey, in this story, what happened to the people trying to ransack the farmer's vehicles (the ones that weren't shot)?
We had a case like this in the UK many years ago, with a farmer by the name of Tony Martin.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Martin_(farmer)
Whilst I obviously don't agree with murder, I do fall down on the side of one's rights going out the window once you trespass on private property (especially when you are intent on stealing from and potentially causing injury to others). These cases could well be argued as self-defence. The bottom line is that neither of these incidents would have occurred if these people had stayed away.
I mean is anyone seriously not going to try and defend their family and belongings to the absolute fullest extent? It's absurd. What is a homeowner supposed to do? Let an intruder run wild, take whatever they like, perhaps commit a rape or two, maybe even push the boat out and offer them a cup of tea, all in the name of avoiding a prison sentence? It's an impossible situation.
Tony Martin was an interesting case, I sort of agree that if you break into somebody else's home then you are accepting the risks, but Tony Martin was not just a family man defending himself as your final paragraph suggested.
He lived alone and had an illegal weapon. He had previous for shooting at people that were taking apples. The police believe he was lying in wait for burglars to get revenge. And he shot the burglar in the back as he was fleeing.
I don't think the penalty for burglary should be death and so killing somebody can only be justified if you are defending yourself. Having an illegal weapon, lying in wait and shooting them as they run away? For me that is going way too far.