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TALLAHASSEE -- A gun barrel to the head was enough to convince state Sen. Jim King to favor broadening the state's deadly force laws.
Another senator on the Criminal Justice Committee is a believer, having twice faced intruders in her bedroom.
The National Rifle Association-backed bill, introduced by Sen. Durell Peaden, R-Crestview, establishes a legal presumption that a home intruder is there to do bodily harm. Any use of deadly force by a homeowner is then justified by definition. The same presumption applies to someone who forcibly enters a car.
"I became an NRA enthusiast after I was attacked," King said of an incident 10 years ago. "I was in bed, he came into my bedroom, held a gun to my head and said, 'I'm going to kill you.' "
The Jacksonville Republican had a weapon in the house but couldn't get to it. The intruder, a disgruntled business associate, left without harming King.
Under current law, King could have shot the intruder and been justified in doing so -- a loaded weapon to the head would constitute reasonable fear of serious bodily harm or death that's now the standard.
Peaden's bill would remove all doubt.
It would impact the experience of Sen. Evelyn Lynn, R-Ormond Beach, who said she twice has awakened to intruders in her bedroom. Twice, she screamed and they ran off. Twice, police came to her house and warned her that if she had shot a fleeing intruder she could have been subject to prosecution.
In Peaden's bill, an intruder, while in a home, is fair game for deadly force by the resident.
"The basic premise: Shoot the sucker in the house," King said.
Lawmakers on the committee were of one mind that such a state policy would be welcomed and supported. On Wednesday, the committee passed the bill unanimously and sent it on the way to one more committee before the full Senate can consider it.
"There's nothing that's aroused the support that this has," King said. "As far as our area of Florida, they think it's long overdue and ought to be just the start and not the finish."
State prosecutors and associations for sheriffs and police needed changes to overcome their differences. They objected to original provisions in the bill that would have made them personally liable for wrongful arrest and prosecution of people who are found to have used justifiable deadly force.
Sen. Rod Smith, D-Gainesville, a former prosecuting attorney, led the efforts to amend Peaden's bill to make it more palatable to law enforcement. Smith introduced an amendment that took out the personal-liability provisions and protects law enforcement officers who announce themselves before entering a house.
Another senator on the Criminal Justice Committee is a believer, having twice faced intruders in her bedroom.
The National Rifle Association-backed bill, introduced by Sen. Durell Peaden, R-Crestview, establishes a legal presumption that a home intruder is there to do bodily harm. Any use of deadly force by a homeowner is then justified by definition. The same presumption applies to someone who forcibly enters a car.
"I became an NRA enthusiast after I was attacked," King said of an incident 10 years ago. "I was in bed, he came into my bedroom, held a gun to my head and said, 'I'm going to kill you.' "
The Jacksonville Republican had a weapon in the house but couldn't get to it. The intruder, a disgruntled business associate, left without harming King.
Under current law, King could have shot the intruder and been justified in doing so -- a loaded weapon to the head would constitute reasonable fear of serious bodily harm or death that's now the standard.
Peaden's bill would remove all doubt.
It would impact the experience of Sen. Evelyn Lynn, R-Ormond Beach, who said she twice has awakened to intruders in her bedroom. Twice, she screamed and they ran off. Twice, police came to her house and warned her that if she had shot a fleeing intruder she could have been subject to prosecution.
In Peaden's bill, an intruder, while in a home, is fair game for deadly force by the resident.
"The basic premise: Shoot the sucker in the house," King said.
Lawmakers on the committee were of one mind that such a state policy would be welcomed and supported. On Wednesday, the committee passed the bill unanimously and sent it on the way to one more committee before the full Senate can consider it.
"There's nothing that's aroused the support that this has," King said. "As far as our area of Florida, they think it's long overdue and ought to be just the start and not the finish."
State prosecutors and associations for sheriffs and police needed changes to overcome their differences. They objected to original provisions in the bill that would have made them personally liable for wrongful arrest and prosecution of people who are found to have used justifiable deadly force.
Sen. Rod Smith, D-Gainesville, a former prosecuting attorney, led the efforts to amend Peaden's bill to make it more palatable to law enforcement. Smith introduced an amendment that took out the personal-liability provisions and protects law enforcement officers who announce themselves before entering a house.