• tal@lemmy.today
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    7 months ago

    That means at least one jury member just thought that it wasn’t a crime to kill people because they were walking across your lawn.

    Not Arizona, but Texas does let you kill people under some circumstances to stop them from, say, egging (throwing eggs at) your property, as that’d be criminal mischief:

    https://texas.public.law/statutes/tex._penal_code_section_9.42

    Penal Code Section 9.42

    Deadly Force to Protect Property

    A person is justified in using deadly force against another to protect land or tangible, movable property:

    (1) if he would be justified in using force against the other under Section 9.41 (Protection of One’s Own Property); and

    (2) when and to the degree he reasonably believes the deadly force is immediately necessary:

    (A) to prevent the other’s imminent commission of arson, burglary, robbery, aggravated robbery, theft during the nighttime, or criminal mischief during the nighttime; or

    (B) to prevent the other who is fleeing immediately after committing burglary, robbery, aggravated robbery, or theft during the nighttime from escaping with the property; and

    (3) he reasonably believes that:

    (A) the land or property cannot be protected or recovered by any other means; or

    (B) the use of force other than deadly force to protect or recover the land or property would expose the actor or another to a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury.