Image Credit: TN General Assembly
The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –
On Tuesday, a bill seeking to lower the standard in Tennessee for the use of deadly force when protecting private property passed the House Judiciary Committee and will now receive a full House vote.
HB1802 by Rep. Kip Capley (R-Summertown-District 71) allows for the use of deadly force if a person “reasonably believes deadly force is immediately necessary to prevent the other’s imminent commission of arson, burglary, robbery, aggravated robbery, or aggravated cruelty to animals” in the event the person using deadly force cannot protect their property any other way or of the use of force by other means would expose them or someone else to risk of death or serious bodily injury.
An amendment to the bill clarifies that to fall under self-defense statutes, the person who uses deadly force in protecting their property must not be “engaged in conduct that would constitute a felony or a Class A misdemeanor” and “is in a place where the person lawfully resides.”
Committee Democrats objected to the bill, saying the lowering of the threshold would allow people to shoot and kill without compunction, like a pizza delivery person who approaches the wrong house or someone stealing a yard rake. In response, Rep. Capley reminded members that the person who uses lethal force would still have to justify that usage as the only option to the District Attorney or in court.
“We keep hearing these made-up examples about shooting the pizza man and killing the Girl Scouts and everything else, when has that actually happened? We don’t know. [Democrats] just keep bringing up the same thing over and over and over, but again, you have to prove that your life is in danger, that’s the bottom line,” he reiterated.
Rep. Johnny Garrett spoke in favor of the bill and against the Democrat conjecture about its application. “Would you agree that the scenarios we’ve heard today both by testimony and some by the [Democrat] members, if that was the only thing the DA knew, I would be pretty confident that’s murder. Would you agree that the scenario that we heard today, that if the pizza man comes to your door and they’re at the wrong house, you shoot them, that’s all we know, that person’s most likely, I’m highly confident, is going to be arrested and charged. Then it’s on that person to say why they decided to use deadly force because their life was in turn in danger.”
And Rep. Elaine Davis also pointed to the specificity of the bill’s language which “clearly states that person has to reasonably believe deadly force is immediately necessary” for the circumstances listed in the amendment. “It’s not about stealing a rake, there’s not imminent danger from someone taking a rake,” she said.
The question was called, and the committee voted 16-4 along party lines in favor of sending HB1802 to the House Calendar & Rules Committee to secure a date for a full House vote.
SB1847, the Senate companion bill, is on the full Senate calendar for Thursday, April 9.
If you support this legislation, you can use this tool to find contact information for your Representative and Senator.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
