In Wisconsin, the Self-Defense Act generally states that you can use lethal force to defend yourself or another person if you have a well-meaning fear of imminent death or major bodily harm. The castle doctrine changes the rules of retreat and when one can use force in one`s home, workplace or motor vehicle to provide increased protection from lawsuits and civil liability when using defensive force. DISCLAIMER: This article is NOT intended to be legal advice. You will need to contact a highly trained Wisconsin firearms attorney who can provide specific recommendations tailored to your situation. Under the Castle Doctrine, if someone uses violence intentionally or likely to cause death or serious bodily harm (such as shooting another person) to defend themselves, they have civil immunity from prosecution. This is called “Stand Your Ground” protection. It is presumed that the person is not breaking the law himself or herself and believes that he or she had a well-founded fear of imminent death or serious bodily injury when a person illegally and violently entered his or her home, motor vehicle or place of business. This article explores the similarities, differences, and legal interpretations of Castle Doctrine and Stand Your Ground in the state of Wisconsin. It is important to note that each of these doctrines applies to certain types of shooting. Whether you`ve been charged with something as mitigated as a misdemeanor or something as serious as premeditated first-degree murder, the doctrines might apply to you. You can find other law firms to take on your case, but you won`t be able to find an attorney with as much knowledge of Wisconsin`s gun laws and 2nd Amendment advocacy skills as Tom Grieve. Your choice of lawyer can mean the difference between free walking and time spent behind bars.

Litigate your 2nd Amendment rights and contact Grieve Law today. Wisconsin doesn`t have a stand-your-ground law. If your basic laws are in other states, your basic laws generally allow a person to assert self-defense without having to retire first when they are away from home or business. Wisconsin also has no positive obligation to withdraw. If you`re like most people, you`ve heard of other states with “Stand Your Ground” laws. But what are they, and is Wisconsin a so-called Stand Your Ground State? Here`s what you need to know. It can be extremely difficult to interpret how Wisconsin`s self-defense laws apply to your particular case, and to determine the best defense strategy in the event of murder, assault, or illegal use of a weapon, you need an experienced attorney who can prove that your actions were in self-defense. At Gimbel, Reilly, Guerin & Brown LLP, we have the experience to handle these complex matters. Contact a Milwaukee criminal defense attorney today at 414-271-1440. You can`t use lethal force to stop a simple intrusion into a property like your Wisconsin backyard. Entering your lawn or legally entering your home does not trigger the doctrine of the castle. Accordingly, you cannot use lethal force against intrusion without a normal allegation of self-defense supported by solid evidence.

The court or jury can no longer consider whether the actor (owner of his apartment, owner or operator of a business in his business, or motorist in his motor vehicle) had the opportunity to escape. They can now “assert themselves” in these places. If someone breaks down the front door of your apartment or is about to break down the front door, you don`t have to flee through the back door. Instead, you can choose to assert yourself, and the new law will assume that you reasonably assume that lethal force was necessary to prevent imminent death or serious bodily harm. Wisconsin is a Castle Doctrine state. This means that if you are in your home, car or business, there is a legal presumption that lethal force can be used against a person if they have broken into one of these places or are breaking and entering any of these places while you are inside. Wisconsin doesn`t have a stand-your-ground law. However, we have a law called the castle doctrine. Overturn your basic laws, which upset centuries-old legal traditions and allow a person to use lethal force in public self-defense, even if that violence can be safely avoided by withdrawing or when non-lethal force would suffice. It is important to understand what the castle doctrine does not do. It does not allow a person to use lethal force against a guest who notices that your wife`s meatloaf is exaggerated or that your beer is too hot.

I hope this was obvious, and if it surprised you, I urge you to contact one of our Milwaukee gun advocates as soon as possible. The doctrine of the castle and standing defense are subsets of the broader rubric of self-defense. In Wisconsin, however, only the castle doctrine is explicitly codified by law. Section 939.48 (1m) of the Wisconsin Regulations contains the castle doctrine. The Castle Doctrine statute provides for two specific instances in which individuals can protect themselves and others by using force that can cause death or serious bodily harm: The above laws apply to an attack that takes place virtually anywhere in Wisconsin, but since 2011, Wisconsin has offered special protection to people attacked in their homes. Vehicles or commercial premises. The laws that provide this protection are known as the Castle Doctrine and allow you to use force to cause death or serious bodily injury against a person who has entered your residence, vehicle or workplace illegally, violently or is entering your residence, vehicle or workplace. In these circumstances, you are not required by law to retreat or flee before using force.

However, to assert this defence, you must be in the property at the time and have had reason to believe that it was illegal to enter the person. While there is no specific law dealing with Stand Your Ground, some lawsuits have focused on whether Wisconsin people are required to retire. The general rule is that there is no positive obligation to retreat unless the individual provokes confrontation. This general rule reflects the law on self-defence. Let`s say the person provoked the attack. As a general rule, he cannot invoke self-defence. The only exception is if he believes he has exhausted all other means of escaping death or serious bodily harm. Van Severen`s defence lawyers devote their entire practice to criminal defence.

If you think your case involves a self-defense issue, contact us immediately. We answer calls 24/7 at (414) 270-0202. And we aggressively defend all criminal charges. If you provoke an attack, you may not be able to invoke legal self-defense against the attack unless it is likely to cause your death or serious bodily harm. Even then, you should try all other reasonable options to escape, avoid, or prevent the attack before resorting to lethal force yourself. Also, you may not have the right to self-defense if you provoked another person`s attack as an excuse to kill or seriously injure that person. There are many charges that can follow if you use your firearm for self-defense. The doctrine of the castle as a defense does not work 100%. If it proves successful, you may not have any charges on your file.

Recent events in Kenosha have raised questions about Wisconsin`s laws regarding the use of firearms in self-defense. While we do not pass judgment on pending cases, it is important that all Wisconsin residents understand their rights to self-defense under state law, especially if they are attacked or sued. Self-defense cases can be complicated, and if you are facing charges, your best option for avoiding conviction is to hire an experienced criminal defense attorney who can develop a strategy based on a thorough understanding of the law. Wisconsin law allows the use of lethal force if you can fully affirm that the castle doctrine applies. This may mean that the intruder broke into your home, car, or business while you were there.