Use of deadly force in self defense is permissible in some situations, though there is no specific stand your ground law.
The right to protect yourself when you feel your life is threatened is very important to all Americans, and California laws do provide for the ability to use deadly force in self defense. However, there are many caveats to the law and often you case may not be so cut and dried that you are able to escape prosecution entirely. If you are charged with some form of homicide after using deadly force to defend yourself, be sure to hire an expert criminal defense attorney who is intimately acquainted with the law and understands the elements that must be present in a well-crafted defense.
California Castle Doctrine
Nearly every state in the union, including California, has some sort of Castle Doctrine in place to allow residents to legally utilize deadly force to defend themselves while in their homes. In the state of California, you may attack with deadly force rather than retreat if you are inside your home and an intruder breaks in and poses what you consider to be an imminent threat of death or serious injury to yourself or your family.
Stand Your Ground Defense
Stand your ground laws give individuals the right to use deadly force in self-defense no matter where they are, even if retreat is possible, so long as they have a reasonable belief of a serious threat. Though California does not have a specific statute dealing with stand your ground as many other states do, it is still possible for a jury to acquit based on a stand your ground defense. This is because the California Criminal Jury Instructions include directions about justifiable homicide which essentially describe a stand your ground defense. The instructions state that you are not require to retreat, but can stand your ground or even pursue an assailant until the threat of death, grave injury, or “forcible and atrocious crime” has passed and still have the incident qualify as justifiable homicide.
Elements to Prove in a Defense
In order to use the California Castle Doctrine or stand your ground theory as a defense, your attorney will need to help you prove several important points. First of all, you need to prove that you were not the aggressor in the incident. Secondly, you need to prove that any reasonable person would have believed there was imminent danger in the situation. Finally, you must prove that you used just enough force to defend yourself, according to what you reasonably believed the threat to be.
