Professional Documents
Culture Documents
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A:
Each week Law of Self Defense staff review self-defense court decisions from around the country. Those
we find most interesting are summarized in each weeks Law of Self Defense: Weekly Law Report.
Q:
A:
No. Many cases that involve issues of self-defense also involve other issues unrelated to self-defense; we
only summarize the portions of the cases that directly involve issues of self-defense law. We also strip out
much of the introductory commentary of the case, for purposes of efficiency. What we do include are the
case citation, a list of the key self-defense law issues covered in that case, the date of the decision, and the
text of the decision that discusses the specific self-defense laws of interest.
The goal is to provide the reader with an efficient way of deciding if they want to read the entire case.
Q:
A:
Every case summarized here is hyperlinked back to the full-length version of that case. We do, in fact,
strongly encourage you to read the entire text of any cases of particular interest to you, as that is the best
way to understand the fullest context of the courts decisions.
Q:
How are the cases here organized, and how can I quickly know what issues are addressed in each?
A:
The cases are organized by state, in alphabetical order, first listed in summary fashion in the Table of
Contents and then by individual case.
Q:
Having access to these cases is great, but I still find a lot of the legal terminology and principles of
self-defense law confusing. Whats a good resource to really understand the law of self-defense?
A:
For almost two decades Law of Self Defense has been providing non-lawyers as well as police officers,
defense attorneys, prosecutors, and judges with world-class instruction on self-defense law. We encourage
you to start with our best-selling book, The Law of Self-Defense, 2nd Edition, (also available from Amazon
in print and Kindle, the NRA Store, and Gun Digest) which covers all 50 states at a high level. You may also
consider one of our state-specific live Law of Self Defense Seminars held all over the country or statespecific online training classes. And, of course, theres always the Law of Self Defense Blog.
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Table of Contents
CALIFORNIA
Page
People v. Aragon, 2015 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 3404 (CA Ct. App. 2015)
Key issues: deadly weapon (bicycle)
Date: May 15, 2015
4
6
People v. Gonzalez, 2015 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 3320 (CA Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Imperfect self-defense
Date: May 11, 2015
FLORIDA
Swearingden v. State, 2015 Fla. App. LEXIS 6971 (FL Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Innocence, regaining (withdrawal/escalation); stand-your-ground
Date: May 12, 2015
Helton v. State, 2015 Fla. App. LEXIS 6990 (FL Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Innocence, regaining (withdrawal/escalation); stand-your-ground
Date: May 12, 2015
10
Tramel v. State, 2015 Fla. App. LEXIS 6987 (FL Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Innocence, regaining (withdrawal/escalation); stand-your-ground
Date: May 12, 2015
12
INDIANA
Satterfield v. State, 2015 Ind. App. LEXIS 394 (IN Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Whether claim of self-defense should be considered in granting bail.
Date: May 12, 2015
14
OHIO
State v. Betliskey, 2015 Ohio 1821 (OH Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Defense of others; alter ego; duty to retreat; burden of persuasion on defendant.
Date: May 14, 2015
17
PENNSYLVANIA
Commonwealth v. Thornton, 2015 Pa. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 1302 (PA Superior Ct. 2015)
Key Issues: Concession of use of force in order to claim self-defense; burden of persuasion
on the state.
Date: May 11, 2015
19
TEXAS
Carrasco-Flores v. State, 2015 Tex. App. LEXIS 4975 (TX. Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Concession of use of force in order to claim self-defense; initial aggressor; burden
Date: May 14, 2015
Guzman v. State, 2015 Tex. App. LEXIS 4840 (TX Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Concession of use of force in order to claim self-defense
Date: May 13, 2015
23
26
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CALIFORNIA
People v. Aragon, 2015 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 3404 (CA Ct. App. 2015)
Key issues: deadly weapon (bicycle)
Date:
Decision:
[...]
[...]
surface.
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Manuel.
[...]
resulting from the defendant's action. It is "the injuryproducing potential" of those actions that is the focus
[...]
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CALIFORNIA
People v. Gonzalez, 2015 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 3320 (CA Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Imperfect self-defense
Date:
Decision:
[...]
saw how the fight began testified that Ramos did not
use any physical force against anyone until the group
Self-Defense Instruction
six feet two inches and 275 pounds, and that during
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[...]
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FLORIDA
Swearingden v. State, 2015 Fla. App. LEXIS 6971 (FL Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Innocence, regaining (withdrawal/escalation); stand-your-ground
Date:
LOSD Note: This is one of a several decisions this week by the First District Court of Appeal in Florida in which
they appear confused about how to align two distinct legal doctrines: (1) Stand-Your-Ground, which relieves a
person of an otherwise existing duty to retreat; and (2) The ability of an initial aggressor to regain innocence, on
the condition that they withdraw from the fight or if the other party escalates a non-deadly force fight to a deadly
force level. As my students will already understood, this apparent conundrum is easily resolved--SYG applies
only to non-aggressors, with initial aggressors being left then with the safe harbor of regaining innocence via
withdrawal or in the event of the other partys escalation. Nevertheless, this Court of Appeal has decided the
issue needs to be pushed up to the Florida Supreme Court.
Decision:
Appellant was convicted of second-degree murder
(emphasis added).
***
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DUTY TO RETREAT?
FORCE?
case is:
REVERSED and REMANDED for a new trial;
IN A CASE WHERE THE DEFENDANT'S SOLE
QUESTION CERTIFIED.
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FLORIDA
Helton v. State, 2015 Fla. App. LEXIS 6990 (FL Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Innocence, regaining (withdrawal/escalation); stand-your-ground
LOSD Note:
Again, this is another of the decisions this week by the First District Court of Appeal in Florida in
which they appear confused about how to align t(1) Stand-Your-Ground, which relieves a person
of an otherwise existing duty to retreat; and (2) The ability of an initial aggressor to regain
innocence, on the condition that they withdraw from the fight or if the other party escalates a nondeadly force fight to a deadly force level.
Date:
Decision:
The State charged Appellant, Timothy Donald Helton,
deadly force.
Helton's only defense at trial was that he acted in selfdefense, as permitted by the "stand your ground" law.
if you find:
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(c)
...
harm.
(Emphasis added).
rev. granted,
So. 3d
DCA March
reasoned in Floyd:
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FLORIDA
Tramel v. State, 2015 Fla. App. LEXIS 6987 (FL Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Innocence, regaining (withdrawal/escalation); stand-your-ground
LOSD Note:
Again, this is another of the decisions this week by the First District Court of Appeal in Florida in
which they appear confused about how to align t(1) Stand-Your-Ground, which relieves a person
of an otherwise existing duty to retreat; and (2) The ability of an initial aggressor to regain
innocence, on the condition that they withdraw from the fight or if the other party escalates a nondeadly force fight to a deadly force level.
Date:
Decision:
Michael Tramel seeks reversal of his convictions and
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to himself or another.
unless:
Relying on this court's decision in Floyd v. State, 151
a. The force asserted toward the Defendant
So.
3d
Key.
on our decision in Floyd,3 we conclude the justifiableuse-of-deadly-force instructions given in this case
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INDIANA
Satterfield v. State, 2015 Ind. App. LEXIS 394 (IN Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues: Whether claim of self-defense should be considered in granting bail.
Date:
Decision:
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
APPEAL
decisis, the Fry court also set out "to articulate what is
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74). We disagree.
[...]
manslaughter.
[...]
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[...]
CONCLUSION
evidence of self-defense.
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OHIO
State v. Betliskey, 2015 Ohio 1821 (OH Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues:
Date:
Decision:
[...]
637 (2008).
Unconstitutional
defendant is unconstitutional.
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[...]
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Pennsylvania
Commonwealth v. Thornton, 2015 Pa. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 1302 (PA Superior Ct. 2015)
Key Issues: Concession of use of force in order to claim self-defense; burden of persuasion on the state.
Date:
Decision:
[...]
same encounter; or
present occasion.
(b) Limitations on justifying necessity for use of
force.-The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has observed,
***
When a defendant raises the issue of self(2) The use of deadly force is not justifiable
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fact finder.
A.2d at 1074.
***
***
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of the residence.
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record.
[...]
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Texas
Carrasco-Flores v. State, 2015 Tex. App. LEXIS 4975 (TX. Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues:
Concession of use of force in order to claim self-defense; initial aggressor; burden of production
on defense; burden of persuasion on the state.
Date:
Decision:
[...]
1991)(op. on reh'g).
the defense.
SELF-DEFENSE INSTRUCTION
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9.32(a)(2)(A).
The jury also had before it Appellant's out of court
Self-defense is also one of the confession and
self-defense).
657-58.
decide.
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violence.
defense.
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Texas
Guzman v. State, 2015 Tex. App. LEXIS 4840 (TX Ct. App. 2015)
Key Issues:
Date:
Decision:
Jury Charge Error
894 S.W.2d 330, 339 (Tex. Crim. App. 1995). The trial
court is also required to instruct the jury on statutory
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harm "in light of the entire jury charge, the state of the
evidence, including the contested issues and weight
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that he did not have any gas in his car, she offered to
buy the gas to fill his car. Appellant said that they then
went to the gas station and filled up the cars with
telling her that Gay would just drop him off. Appellant
they were in her car, she pulled her gun out of her
and fell out of her car during the struggle. He said that
that he was "fighting for his life" and was "just trying to
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struggled with Gay for the gun, he did not admit that
a finding of harm.
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conviction.
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