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Home protection act finally passed

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  • 13-01-2012 6:55pm
    #1
    boodee
    Closed Accounts Posts: 78 ✭✭


    So the Law was finally passed to give homeowners the right to protect themselves, their families and property.

    According to Ireland Am news reasonable force is allowed but if a licensed gun owner shoots someone on their lawn they will be prosecuted, as it will be obvious they lack the restraint to hold a gun license.

    So be sure to lock away your arsenal good and tight, don't get angry if you happen to be lamping your front lawn and the neighbourhood louts pass by.

    Take it handy and keep the cool, just make sure you keep your golf clubs, baseball bat, tennis racquet, pool cue, dumb bells, powertools, hatchets, pokers, hockey sticks, ironing boards, sticks, hurleys, and doga to hand.....what will you keep by the bed...


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    #2
    Sparks
    Registered Users Posts: 40,038 ✭✭✭✭Sparks


    Nothing to do with sport or hunting, and specifically against the Shooting forum charter. Moved to Legal Discussion.

    On top of which, reasonable force has been allowed since the 1300s, "reasonable" has a good definition in the law in this area, and if a licenced firearms owner used their licenced firearm for the purpose of self-defence in Ireland, they not only wouldn't be prosecuted for it, it would be unconstitutional to do so. (Yes, you'd go to court to enter your self-defence case, but that's true no matter what you'd done - the fact that you'd used a firearm wouldn't be all that relevant. The court would just ask "was that reasonable force", using a licenced firearm in extremis would be perfectly reasonable).


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    #3
    coylemj
    Registered Users Posts: 25,382 ✭✭✭✭coylemj


    Sparks wrote: »
    On top of which, reasonable force has been allowed since the 1300s

    Really can't see the purpose of this act. You have always been able to defend your person and property with reasonable force.

    Oops, only since the 1300s - was that Magna Carta?


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    #4
    Sparks
    Registered Users Posts: 40,038 ✭✭✭✭Sparks


    coylemj wrote: »
    Oops, only since the 1300s - was that Magna Carta?
    No, it's a citation from 1329 in DPP-v-Barnes.


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    #5
    Victor
    Registered Users Posts: 78,333 ✭✭✭✭Victor


    Sparks wrote: »
    if a licenced firearms owner used their licenced firearm for the purpose of self-defence in Ireland ... it would be unconstitutional to do so.
    How come?


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    #6
    Sparks
    Registered Users Posts: 40,038 ✭✭✭✭Sparks


    Victor wrote: »
    How come?
    You'd be applying case law differently to a licenced firearms owner who used their licenced firearm in extremis than any other case of self-defence (eg. where the assailant's firearm was grabbed, or where someone picked up a knife in the kitchen to defend themselves with, or a golf club or anything else). You can't licence a firearm for self-defence (personal protection firearms do exist in the ROI but they're not applied for, they're issued by the Gardai); but if it was what happened to be at hand, the law can't ban you from using it but not ban you from any other thing that was at hand.

    To do otherwise would be to say, in effect, that section 40.3.1 and 40.3.2 don't apply to licenced firearms owners. And while we do give up some rights when we get a licence (the right to medical privacy, and we give leave for random inspections of our homes by the Gardai, and so on); the right to not be killed isn't one of them :D


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