Texas-Book-Gun Law Armed And Educated - Flipbook - Page 422
frightened by the knock, the fake gun, and the late hour of Ronny’s
arrival. She fires through the door, injuring Ronny.
In the civil suit that follows by Ronny against Carol, the jury
will be permitted to consider whether Ronny’s negligence, if any,
contributed to cause the resulting injuries. The jury could determine
that Ronny was 0% at fault, 100%, or anything in between. This
will reduce the amount of damages that Ronny can recover. By way
of example only, if the jury awarded Ronny $100,000 in damages,
but found he was 30% at fault and Carol 70%, Ronny would only
be able to recover $70,000 of his damages.
In Texas, this rule applies only where the damaged party is 50%
or less at fault. In other words, if the plaintiff bringing the lawsuit
is determined to be more than 50% responsible for the injuries,
he or she cannot recover any damages. This can be important for
the average gun owner in that a carjacker/home invader who is the
overwhelming cause of an incident cannot recover just because the
judge or jury finds you made a slight misstep in defending yourself
or your home.
V. WHAT ABOUT THIRD PARTIES?
Texas law provides a different standard when it comes to injuries to
third parties. In this section, a third party generally means someone
who is not a party to the encounter with the firearm (e.g., bystanders,
witnesses, folks nearby who were not the intended target, etc.).
“Acts of self-defense or in defense of one’s property have always
been in accord with the public policy of Texas, and those persons
having sufficient courage to so act legally enjoy the privilege. It
is only when acts in self-defense or in defense of one’s property
I’m Being Sued For What? | 411
