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Knimrod
04-20-2006, 11:03 PM
Self-defense shooters get House boost
New measures extend immunity
April 20, 2006
BY CHRIS CHRISTOFF
FREE PRESS

LANSING -- A politically charged debate over gun rights brewed Wednesday as a state House committee passed a package of bills that would make citizens who injure or kill attackers in their homes, yards or even on public streets immune from criminal charges and lawsuits.

While courts across Michigan already recognize anyone's right to self-defense, there is no automatic legal immunity for people who use deadly force to fend off assaults.

The legislation approved by the House Judiciary Committee would change that. No longer would assault victims have to try to flee before using deadly force, which common law requires in self-defense cases anywhere other than the victim's home.

Even in public places, people with a legal permit to carry a gun could protect themselves or others without fear of lawsuits or charges.

Advocates concede there are very few cases in which people have been prosecuted or sued for shooting in self-defense. Still, they said, crime victims shouldn't have to fear the legal system.

"Why wait for a crisis to happen?" asked Darin Goens, a lobbyist for the National Rifle Association, which is pushing the bills. "This doesn't tie anyone's hands for prosecution. We're defending the rights of law-abiding citizens who are in a place they have a right to be to protect themselves and their families."

Opponents argued the laws would open the door to vigilantes who could kill and then hide behind immunity from the law.

The bills could be fast-tracked for approval in both chambers, potentially forcing Gov. Jennifer Granholm to make a difficult political decision, choosing between:

• Side with prosecutors and gun control groups and veto the bills, thus angering gun rights advocates.

• Support the bills and alienate gun control advocates who tend to be, like her, Democrats.

On Wednesday, a spokesperson for Granholm said the governor is concerned that the proposed laws are too broad in allowing deadly force in public areas, not just in one's home.

Goens maintained that current state law gives judges and prosecutors too much discretion in deciding whether to charge someone who shoots in self-defense. He said five states have broadened self-defense laws -- South Dakota, Florida, Indiana, Alabama and Mississippi -- and more than a dozen others are considering it.

Calhoun County Prosecutor John Hallacy argued against the bills, however, saying blanket immunity for self-defense is a profound change in law that could result in unjustified shootings or criminals using the shield of immunity to kill or injure others.

Hallacy said he supports gun rights but said the House bills go too far.

"We want to strike a fair balance. Common law has served the people of this state very well," he said.

Rep. Rick Jones, R-Grand Ledge, defended the bills, saying, "I don't think this package will encourage anyone to shoot anybody. This codifies the protections victims already have."

Some said the change in the law is needed to ensure equal treatment for victims who injure or kill their attackers.

Detroit schoolteacher Neva Li, who is white, said she believes a black person who shoots in self-defense in a white community stands a far greater chance of being charged with a crime than a white person who does the same in a black community.

"I think the law can correct some of that," she said.


The gun proposals

The change: This package of bills would allow people to use deadly force without attempting to flee, grant immunity from criminal prosecution or lawsuits, extend the right to use deadly force to public areas, and allow deadly force to stop entry of a home or car.

Who's happy: National Rifle Association, the Michigan Coalition of Responsible Gun Owners and other gun rights advocates.

Who's not: Million Moms March, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and the Michigan Domestic Violence Control Board.

Now what? Because the bills were passed by the House Judiciary Committee, they now go to the full House.


Link to story (http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060420/NEWS06/604200485/-1/BUSINESS07)