Can you defend your attached garage as you would your home?

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  • gregr

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    Good advice!

    Us folks that are rural are a little more play it by ear. Cops are 30 minutes out, if nothing much else is happening in the county.

    Armed intruder out here? Prolly looking for something more than property...
    I don`t know that this is good advice regardless of whether we`re rural or urban. If they`re in my attached garage, they`re effectively in my home! I`d love to hear from an attorney, (NOT law enforcement), as to whether Castle Doctrine dictates that I must retreat to a distant place in my home and slink about until law enforcement arrives to handle the situation. It`s a toss up as to whether 911 response times are any quicker in urban areas.
     

    Jaybird1980

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    So this still begs the question. You here a stir in your backyard, you see motion around an outbuilding such as a detached garage or barn. You grab your night stick, bat, CZ, then investigate to find an ***hole stealing your stuff, are you in the right to engage and if need be, drop the perpetrator?
    I don't believe so, unless you're threatened with force or they use force against you.
     

    Jaybird1980

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    Good advice!

    Us folks that are rural are a little more play it by ear. Cops are 30 minutes out, if nothing much else is happening in the county.

    Armed intruder out here? Prolly looking for something more than property...
    But us rural folk don't always know what is causing the commotion. I personally have dealt with animals making a lot of racket.

    Might not realize what's going on, when you start out there

    Of course if you do know, don't get out of the boat
     

    Sylvain

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    So this still begs the question. You here a stir in your backyard, you see motion around an outbuilding such as a detached garage or barn. You grab your night stick, bat, CZ, then investigate to find an ***hole stealing your stuff, are you in the right to engage and if need be, drop the perpetrator?
    What do you define as "right"? Legally right or morally right?

    There's nothing in my barn worth killing for.
     

    Jaybird1980

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    I don`t know that this is good advice regardless of whether we`re rural or urban. If they`re in my attached garage, they`re effectively in my home! I`d love to hear from an attorney, (NOT law enforcement), as to whether Castle Doctrine dictates that I must retreat to a distant place in my home and slink about until law enforcement arrives to handle the situation. It`s a toss up as to whether 911 response times are any quicker in urban areas.
    As far as I know Indiana has Stand Your Ground. The question is more where does the home begin, is an attached garage included.
     

    gregr

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    As far as I know Indiana has Stand Your Ground. The question is more where does the home begin, is a attached garage included.
    Indiana has Stand Your Ground/Castle Doctrine, yes. We are NOT duty bound to flee an attack and invasion in our homes or on the streets. But yes, an attorney needs to advise on whether an attached garage is considered to be the home. Unattached, I would say not, but attached? It`s the same thing as if they broke into any other room of the house.
     

    Sylvain

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    Legally in today’s climate, it might be muddy waters at best.

    second the tactics motion, leaving a stronghold position may not be tactically the right thing to do.

    all depends on your particular situation though. How far out is backup? Personally there is nothing in my garage worth dying over, and make no mistake about it dying when confronting an intruder is a real possibility.

    personally I can envision a lot of scenarios in which if one could see the attached garage and knew someone was in it you could probably post up in a window and see if they were going to hit the house after the garage. They move on with just stuff from the garage then I don’t send rounds down range. Move towards the house and my immediate dwelling and then The tactical situation just changed.
    :yesway:

    It's not worth getting killed, or killing someone, over whatever crap you keep in your garage.
     

    patience0830

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    What do you define as "right"? Legally right or morally right?

    There's nothing in my barn worth killing for.
    A thief's life is worth a lot less than my tractor to me. Shoot, shovel (backhoe), shut up. Abortion of innocents is OK with the left. I say post-partem abortion after they prove to be worthless thievin' assholes should be OK too.
     

    patience0830

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    :yesway:

    It's not worth getting killed, or killing someone, over whatever crap you keep in your garage.
    Sorry Sylvain, my French friend. I must disagree. You choose to violate my personal borders and steal what I've spent decades to accumulate, I will hunt you in the dark with a ghillie suit and a thermal scope.
     

    wcd

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    Good advice!

    Us folks that are rural are a little more play it by ear. Cops are 30 minutes out, if nothing much else is happening in the county.

    Armed intruder out here? Prolly looking for something more than property...
    I would suspect response time could be upwards of 45 minutes is some places. Reality no one can be everywhere.

    Back to original question if someone is stealing your stuff climbing up the felony flow chart often becomes easier when confronted.

    Pretty hard to make a case that the home owner was the aggressor when someone puts him her in a difficult situation.
     

    Sylvain

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    Sorry Sylvain, my French friend. I must disagree. You choose to violate my personal borders and steal what I've spent decades to accumulate, I will hunt you in the dark with a ghillie suit and a thermal scope.
    No need to be sorry, you can disagree with me on that.

    I'm just nearly pointing out that there's more to just legality when it comes to this kind of scenario, and deciding if you can shoot someone or not.

    You have to consider tactics, and morality on top of it and, that depends on so many factors.

    I'm not saying I wouldn't stop a thief, or that nobody should.

    Just that I wouldn't use lethal force to protect the crap I store in my garage.

    The most expensive crap is insured anyway.

    As I said earlier in that scenario you might put yourself and your entire family at risk by hunting people in the dark outside of your home.
     

    mark40sw

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    As per "the law of self defence" by andrew branca, a very good book...

    Indiana
    general duty to retreat before use of deadly force - no
    no retreat in castle 35-41-3-2(d)
    no retreat in castle+ (curtilage) 35-41-3-2(d)
    no retreat in castle++ (business) (yes, no statute given)
    no retreat in castle+++ (vehicle) 35-41-3-2(d)
    no retreat anywhere you have right to be (stand your ground) 35-41-3-2(c)

    Very interesting to view charts of states, the democrat voting states tend to restrict your rights to defend.

    Also like to add, after reading the book, life can be much easier if you convince the intruder to leave, and have police show up after or during the event.
    Contrast to having police show up to a dead body with associated biological mess, and risking the financial/time burden of a possible court case if you live in a county that has a prosecutor that wants to make an example of you. Political bent of the prosecutor can play into this.
     
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    IndyBeerman

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    If some one is in my attached garage I'm not even unlocking the door to my garage little alone opening the door.

    Everything in my garage can be replace by insurance.

    They decide to breach the entry door from the garage to the kitchen/breakfast nook, then they are in a world of hurt trying to enter through that 36 inch choke point.
     

    Mr. Habib

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    Why would an attached garage be any different than any other room of your home? If someone entered your home through a garage window or your living room window, they are still in your home. If someone is in your home illegally they are a threat to you and your family. The law allows you to use whatever force necessary to end that threat. Deadly force should always be the final resort, but the room of your home the threat is located in is irrelevant. Do what you need to do to protect yourself and your family. Remember, you didn't choose for someone to die, the threat did. Your only choice is who that someone will be.
     

    Tombs

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    There's nothing in my barn worth killing for.

    There's nothing on my property worth someone throwing their life away for.

    Letting thieves help themselves has never had a happy ending in every situation I've seen locally. First it's one, then they come back with buddies, then they want to go a little further into the property.
    Law enforcement is going to have a chuckle if you expect them to do anything about it, it's logistically unreasonable to expect much help on matters like this. Some cameras that could ID perps will actually help, but that's about all that can be done on that side of things.

    I'd rather take the risk of stopping a thief than wait until they come back with friends.

    And it's your home, it's your residence. Since when would you be unjustified in defending your residence just because your car is also in that room? A barn might be a bit of a stretch unless you have no trespassing signs.
    Also, it would be advisable for security reasons for everyone to lock out the emergency release on their garage door, as that is the easiest way for a thief to gain entry to your garage.
     
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    NHT3

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    So this still begs the question. You here a stir in your backyard, you see motion around an outbuilding such as a detached garage or barn. You grab your night stick, bat, CZ, then investigate to find an ***hole stealing your stuff, are you in the right to engage and if need be, drop the perpetrator?
    Sorry my question should have been stated more clearly. The door is open and I'm in the garage and perps stroll in and start to remove things from my vehicle that they desire without presenting any threat. Do I have options other than "please stop stealing my property and leave". It seems like the law is in the perps corner if they aren't threatening my life.. Deadly force use in the drive way is not an option to protect property but once they have entered the garage does that change the situation?
     
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    Thor

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    Why leave the relative safety of your home to possibly confront an armed intruder?
    Because they are worthless thieving sacks of **** and need to get the hell out. If they are stealing my freaking Cobra out of the garage then I'm damn sure going to tell them to leave; if they resist that is their problem.
     

    BugI02

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    I would also mention that on at least two occasions I'm aware of in the last 5 or 6 years in my city, the thief torched the garage as part of the crime. If you don't have eyes on via your security system, it would make for a very edgy wait for the sheriff to arrive
     
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