On Thursday 10 January 2002 10:51 pm, jamesd@echeque.com wrote:
Legal hassle depends on where you live. Most places, provided the burglar is inside, no problem. If lives long enough to get outside, drag the body back inside, and rinse away the blood. Police will not be interested in finding the evidence that he made it outside.
In Texas deadly force is legally justified to prevent the immenent commission of burglary. This means you can shoot if someone is getting ready to break in. You don't have to wait until they are inside. The Texas penal code requires that you retreat instead of using deadly force if you have the option unless you are using deadly force against someone who is unlawfully entering your habitation. In that case you don't have to retreat even if you can. Some states require you to retreat even if you are in your home if you can. It is a myth that if someone is crawling through your window and he falls outside after you shoot him that you need to pull the body inside. You are foolish if you think that a forensic team can't tell how the shooting took place and that the body was moved. Any jurisdiction that will prosecute and convict someone because the body of a person attempting burglary happens to be on the outside instead of the inside will certainly prosecute and get a conviction for tampering with the evidence. Tampering with the evidence will also be considered evidence of guilt of murder rather than self defense.