A real eye opener...

[elwoodblues1969]

After reading this article,Britain is the last country on earth I would ever considering living in.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1212680/Millionaire-faces-jail-attack-knife-raider-home.html

-Thom

[kara]

Indeed, very strange
And this :
The Government has promised that people who fight back against burglars will find the law is on their side, so long as they do not use excessive or disproportionate violence.

doesn't realy mean anything....

On the other hand, imagine a youngster comes in your house with a knife, you take your gun and shoot him ! Would this be justified ? Open for discussion I guess....

k

[Oren]

After reading this article,Britain is the last country on earth I would ever considering living in.

Most of us in North America don't realize how lucky we are. The freedoms and rights that we take for granted are not available to everyone, everywhere. We have our faults, and our politicians are a silly and dangerous bunch, but the principle of "government by the people, for the people" works. The right to defend oneself from a violent attack is fundamental.

Gratuitous violence, in the name of self-defense, however, is a whole other matter.
Upon reading this article again, the retaliation involved may have constituted more vengeance than self defense.

[kara]

After reading this article,Britain is the last country on earth I would ever considering living in.

Most of us in North America don't realize how lucky we are. The freedoms and rights that we take for granted are not available to everyone, everywhere. Folks who bash the U.S.A. and Canada (like it was some kind of hobby) are pathetic. We have our faults, and our politicians are a silly and dangerous bunch, but the principle of "government by the people, for the people" works. The right to defend oneself from a violent attack is fundamental.

Gratuitous violence, in the name of self-defence, however, is a whole other matter.

I do agree with you Oren, but here in Europe the possession of an arm isn't that general accepted as it is in the states.
Alltough it is true the right of defending oneself is fundamental.
But the way of defending isn't obvious... imagine someone gets beaten up by a good karateka. Now in principle the karateka 'could' kill the guy, does this give the other guy the right to shoot the karateka ?

As you see it can get complicated.

k

[Marc JX8P]

I would add that the right to a fair trial for all parties is another very important right. And although these kind of cases sometimes seem to show a strange kind of bias in what seems a very clearcut case to outsiders, you have to remember that a trial is about hearing all arguments and then reaching a decision. And unfortunately, even in those cases judges and juries can reach a 'wrong' verdict. Which is why you can go to higher courts.

In any case, this case is hardly an argument for saying that Britain isn't a good country to live in.

And like Kara says, you DO have the right to defend yourself. For example, this is specifically mentioned in Dutch law and it's a reason why you can't be charged with the acts you commit to protect yourself or another person. However, this is also tightly bound the principle of proportionality (though there are also rules in which any act of protection which is above proportional to the threat might be ok after all). The most important thing here is that nobody and nothing is above the law.

[Oren]

...The most important thing here is that nobody and nothing is above the law...

Agreed.

In Canada, much of our law is based on British Common Law. Then Canadian lawyers/politicians created more laws - many of them conflicting - and the various provincial and municipal governments have added their own laws - once again, many of them conflicting. Corporate law has further complicated the process.
Fortunately, most often, reason prevails

[elwoodblues1969]

Just as in Canada,America's legal system is based on British Common Law,but the level of gun control & the rights of the individual,varies from state to state,but as Oren mentioned,overall,reason does prevail.

-Thom

[Marc JX8P]

Good to hear - I think in the end all we can hope for in the conflict between laws, rights and perceived rights - is for reason to come through. And that's all any legal system can hope for.