Texas-Book-Gun Law Armed And Educated - Flipbook - Page 141
II. GUN OWNERS NEED TO KNOW CHAPTER 9 OF THE TEXAS
PENAL CODE
In Texas, legal justifications appear in numerous places and areas
of the law. Of particular importance to gun owners are the defenses
found in Chapter 9 of the Texas Penal Code entitled “Justification
Excluding Criminal Responsibility,” which we cover in detail
throughout this book.
III. TO LEGALLY USE FORCE OR DEADLY FORCE, YOU MUST BE
“JUSTIFIED.” WHAT IS LEGAL JUSTIFICATION?
A. Basic definition of justification: an acceptable excuse
So, when is it legal to use force or deadly force against another
person? When is it legal to even threaten to use force or deadly force
against another? The answer is when there is a legal justification or
defense. A legal justification is an acceptable reason or excuse under
the law for committing an act that would otherwise be a crime.
EXAMPLE:
Richard sees Ben standing on the guardrail at the top of the
Galveston Causeway, and Ben is threatening to end it all. Richard
runs up behind Ben and grabs him and throws him to the ground.
Ben breaks his arm and claims that Richard has assaulted him,
causing bodily injury.
Richard intentionally made physical contact with Ben that caused
bodily injury, which is ordinarily the crime of assault. Why will
Richard likely be not guilty of the crime of assault causing bodily
injury? The reason is that he was legally justified under Texas Penal
Code Section 9.34 because he prevented Ben’s suicide. That is, the
law will likely say the excuse for assaulting Ben—preventing him
from jumping off the bridge—makes Richard’s action of pulling
Ben to the ground reasonable and, therefore, legally justified.
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