Self Defense Protections Extended After House Votes

The Philadelphia House of Representatives recently voted for a bill to extend the legal employment of deadly force in self defense for a person to utilize either to protect their property or themselves.

Known as the Castle Doctrine, or H.B. 40, the bill would extend protection to permit people to employ necessary force against an intruder, regardless of the fact that the intruder may not be the one to first threaten bodily harm. After voting took place, it passed with immense bipartisan support, 158-39, and will now move onto the state Senate for further consideration.

Many of the supporters of the bill believe that it is vital that law-abiding citizens are given the basic right to protect their families, property and themselves from any possible threats that criminals may want to cause.

However, if the Senate fails to pass the Castle Doctrine bill in the next week, then it will be taken up with the next governor to either sign or veto it. The chances of the Senate actually considering it are high, as the House successfully passed the bill without any amendments required from the bill.

Under current state law, individuals are only permitted to utilize deadly force in self defense if they are clearly threatened with kidnapping, serious bodily harm, or death. Additionally, they are permitted to employ deadly force to defend other people who face the same risks.

Furthermore, under current law an individual is required to move away from the threat prior to employing deadly force if the individual is located in a public area.

However, the new bill would eliminate that requirement, and would permit a person to employ deadly force if the individual has a right in be in the place the incident takes place, in addition to believing that the suspect intends to harm the individual.

While this bill has not been designed to neglect the responsibility of being a law-abiding citizen, it doesn’t want to see citizens second guessing what they are and aren’t allowed to when they are required to protect themselves in a dangerous situation.

With the implementation of the new bill, more individuals will now be capable of protecting their loved ones, their property and themselves without worrying about the implications involved for doing so.