Free Talk Live

A state Supreme Court ruling last year that “there is no right to reasonably resist unlawful entry by police officers,” when a man was charged with assaulting an officer during a domestic-violence call. The NRA pushed for a new law that allows residents to use deadly force in response to the “unlawful intrusion” by a “public servant” to protect themselves and others, or their property. Police lobbied against it. The measure requires those using force to “reasonably believe” a law-enforcement officer is acting illegally and that it’s needed to prevent “serious bodily injury.”

Indiana is one of several states that require civil asset forfeiture proceeds to go to a fund for public schools. Many states passed such laws in the late 1990s after media and public backlashes against civil forfeiture abuse. The states saw the funds as a way to remedy the incentive problems that arise when police and prosecutorial offices benefit directly from the money they seize. In Indiana, the requirement is actually written into the state's constitution.

Citizens could legally defend themselves with deadly force against police officers who enter their home under a bill passed by the Indiana House.

A state bill aiming to give residents limited rights to resist police officers who enter their homes illegally was passed by the Indiana House of Representatives on Thursday with several amendments.
The bill is a direct response to the Indiana Supreme Court decision in Barnes v. State of Indiana.
The state’s highest court ruled that a citizen never has the right to resist an officer in pursuit of an investigation. But state lawmakers disagree.

As someone who believes in the right to self-defense, I support the existence of “Stand Your Ground” laws and believe that every person has the right to defend themselves wherever they have a right to be. I draw the line at instigating or provoking someone to attack so that you can then “defend” yourself and/or using unwarranted or excessive force to defend yourself; as it seems may have been the case with Zimmerman, who admittedly followed Trayvon Martin before an altercation that lead to Martin's death.

English common law recognizes to right to resit unlawful arrest by reasonable force.
That right should be dusted off and reasserted.

The so-called “sovereign citizens” movement — men and women who believe they are exempt from most state and federal laws, regulations and tax codes — is spreading like a prairie fire. While many of these are tax resistors or perpetrators of “paper terrorism” – the filing of nuisance liens and such – some sovereign citizens have demonstrated a willingness to resist police and government authority with violence.

In 2005, seven-months pregnant Melanie Williams was chased by police into the St. Vincent's Medical Center emergency room, where she was tackled, handcuffed, and dragged back outside... because she had run a red light while on her way there under doctor's orders.

A panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta said the officers used reasonable force, so Williams can sue only for unlawful arrest.

75 years in for videotaping the police. Shied laws increasingly popular in US. 12 states now have laws prohibiting citizens from recording police.