Doorbell camera spots armed suspected burglars at front door of Covina home

basalt

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Cannot do in most of California. A little thing called “duty to retreat”. Not allowed to defend yourself. No castle doctrine, or Stand your ground. This is why many of us Natives of the Golden State have left the ‘liberal paradise’. One would not live very long dong this in most of Nevada. Were armed to the teeth. The DA's will back us up.
You have every right to defend yourself in your home in California- "shall be presumed to have held a reasonable fear of imminent peril of death or great bodily injury." The prosecution would have to PROVE you were not in fear.

You also have the right to defend yourself outside the home, but there is no presumption of reasonable fear and thus the defense must prove you were in fear of great bodily harm. Unfortunately the hardest part is getting permission to carry anything with which to actually defend one's self.

Law section.


If shooting through the door, PC198.5 would not apply as there is no unlawful entry. Then you would have to convince a jury that seeing someone outside your door with a gun made you believe you were going to die or be greatly hurt imminently. That some how, you couldn't just walk back into the kitchen or - as in this case - simply do nothing and they will leave.

However, 197 (2) says: Justifiable...
(2) When committed in defense of habitation, property, or person, against one who manifestly intends or endeavors, by violence or surprise, to commit a felony, or against one who manifestly intends and endeavors, in a violent, riotous, or tumultuous manner, to enter the habitation of another for the purpose of offering violence to any person therein.

So maybe. Does seeing someone outside your door with a gun = "manifestly"
 

TonyR

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"for hours"
Thanks for this. It was shown on Live PD's "Crime of the Week" just a couple of nights ago but by episode's end, they had not caught the guy. All 3 of the men hosting the show got quite a chuckle out of the story. I even rewound it a bit to show my wife.

She will sleep better now knowing they got the guy even though we're some 2,800 miles away! :screwy:
 
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