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Castle Doctrine, Indiana Senate Bill 1
Castle Doctrine, Indiana Senate Bill 1 Indiana: State House Considers Critical Castle Doctrine Legislation for Homeowners!
Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 12:23AM Second Reading Vote Could Take Place as Soon as Tuesday!
Please Contact Your Representative TODAY!
Hoosiers across Indiana were outraged last spring when the state Supreme Court ruled in Barnes v. State of Indiana (2011) that declared force against a police officer is NEVER justified. While no one supports our nation's law enforcement officers more strongly than the NRA, this court decision created a dangerous carve-out from self-defense rights, by prohibiting use of defensive force by a person even in the unlikely case of a violent, unjustified attack by an officer acting completely outside his lawful duties.
Senate Bill 1, authored by state Senator Michael Young (R-35) and sponsored by state Representative Jud McMillin (R-68), is the product of much discussion and debate on this matter. The Indiana General Assembly has been working for months on this legislation which would re-affirm the Castle Doctrine in Indiana and allow law-abiding and reasonable people the right to a defense if ever they find themselves in such a position. However, your state lawmakers have suffered constant and heavy pressure to maintain the spirit of the Barnes decision and tolerate an erosion of self-defense rights of Indiana citizens.
The NRA has maintained the position that until the Barnes decision, the touchstone of the law of self-defense (in Indiana and elsewhere) was good faith action in response to a reasonably perceived threat of illegal action or harm. The NRA has therefore been involved throughout this legislative process in order to protect these self-defense rights of law-abiding citizens in Indiana.
The state House of Representatives is set to hear SB 1 on its second reading as early as Tuesday, February 28. This second reading vote provides an opportunity for the addition of a critical amendment to restore pre-Barnes decision self-defense protections, while also preserving the legitimate safety interests of law enforcement officials who act within the boundaries of the law.
Time is of the essence! Representative McMillin’s proposed amendment to SB 1 could be voted on as early as this Tuesday. Your state Representative NEEDS to hear from you TODAY in support of the proposed amendment to SB 1 to protect your civil liberties!
Contact information for your state Representative can be found by clicking here.
Reader Comments (1)
I feel that SB1is extremely important in defending Hoosier rights. During Katrina law enforcement officials unlawfully entered homes, seized firearms, and used excesive force and agression taking weapons from citizens that needed them. Anyone who's home was violated unlawfully was dealt with force. If a law enforcement officer enters a private home without just cause and acts in a manner to threaten the safety of an individual or their family I believe it should be well within the right of the resident to use any force necessary to protect themselves. Carrying a badge doesn't give unlimited rights and not all law enforcement officers are good. My father was an Indiana State Police officer for 20 years, he was a fantastic officer that followed the laws to the letter yet not all police officers are of the same high standards as my father and his generation, in fact one of his colleagues I had met several times Dallard Tackett plead guilty to stealing money from the state. While it's a crime of a different nature, police officers aren't law-quoting robots and don't always preserve or protect the rights of citizens. Police are human and thus subject to flaws. Without SB1 private citizens have no legal means of defending themself from a LEO that steps out of bounds.