Texas-Book-Gun Law Armed And Educated - Flipbook - Page 163
guessing by prosecutors as to when and how much force was
used, including arguments that there was no imminent threat and
as such, the force or deadly force was not really “immediately
necessary.” If the prosecutor convinces a jury that a person used
force or deadly force when or to a degree that was not “reasonably”
believed to be immediately necessary, a person’s use of force or
deadly force will not be legally justified, and that person will be
guilty of using unlawful force or deadly force. However, under
certain circumstances, Sections 9.31 and 9.32 give persons a
powerful additional protection in the form of a legal presumption
of reasonableness in their belief that the use of force or deadly force
was immediately necessary.
B. Presumption under Sections 9.31 and 9.32
Sections 9.31 and 9.32 of the Texas Penal Code contain several
circumstances when the law gives far more protection than is
available under the general self-defense standard. Under certain
circumstances, a person’s belief that it was immediately necessary
to use force or deadly force will be legally presumed reasonable.
This legal presumption, if available, is a potentially powerful legal
argument and limits prosecutors in court from second-guessing
either when, or the amount of force used by the accused, in defending
himself or herself (e.g., should have used non-deadly force, dispute
resolution methods, or should have retreated, and so forth). If a
defendant meets the conditions enabling him or her to be afforded
the protection of this presumption, the law will deem “reasonable”
a belief that the force used was immediately necessary, limiting any
argument that the force used was unreasonable.
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