Opinion ID: 2032711
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: the self-defense instructions

Text: Jaques challenges the trial court's use of two instructions to the jury which were based, he alleges, on the law of self-defense, not justifiable or excusable homicide. [1] We are urged to reject them on the grounds that the instructions reflect an objective reasonable person standard, which is appropriate only in cases involving a defendant threatened with simple assault or other non-lethal offenses, but not when facing a charge of homicide. As support, defendants cite the California Pattern Jury Instructions regarding justifiable homicide (CALJIC § 5.12) and self-defense against assault (CALJIC § 5.30), indicating that these are separate defenses. Rather than an objective reasonable person standard, defendants assert that in cases involving threatened homicide or serious bodily injury, a defendant may respond with whatever force he deems necessary. [2] While justifiable or excusable homicide doctrine is separate from self-defense against a non-lethal assault, the division between the doctrines is not based on applicability of a reasonableness standard. The California pattern instructions cited by the defendants do not indicate that an objective standard is used in one defense and a subjective standard in the other. On the contrary, CALJIC § 5.12 (Justifiable Homicide in Self-Defense) and CALJIC § 5.30 (Self-Defense Against Assault) both utilize an objective reasonable person standard. Jaques' main argument, although never stated as such, is that they were justified in using lethal force because the evidence showed that Gray threatened Sitting Crow with serious bodily injury, in his own dwelling, and Instruction No. 62 indicates that force used must be limited to what a reasonable person would believe necessary. As stated in State v. Woods, 374 N.W.2d 92, 97 (S.D.1985), any force ... would have been lawful force in repelling a burglar from one's home under SDCL 22-16-34. The defendant's point is well taken that the court's jury instructions (No. 54) [3] regarding justifiable homicide when opposing a felony within one's dwelling apparently conflicts with the reasonable force available under No. 62. This conflict, however, is more of form than substance. The court's instructions, taken as a whole, indicate that the jury could find Jaques not guilty if he reasonably believed he was faced with a felony (serious bodily harm) within the dwelling and killed Gray to prevent the harm. Some testimony depicted Gray as fighting until he collapsed, which, if believed by the jury, could justify Instruction No. 54 or Instruction No. 52 (heat of passion). However, extensive evidence indicated that Gray was beaten, kicked, and clubbed after he had been disarmed (he lost the bottle and skillet early in the engagement, inside the house, and from then on was unarmed). There being no threat of serious bodily harm to defendants at that point, the use of force becomes limited to that which is reasonable in the circumstances, and, as the threat of harm dissipates, so does the reasonableness of the force used. This Court faced a similar question in State v. Stumbaugh, 28 S.D. 50, 132 N.W. 666 (1911), where the decedent assaulted the defendant with an axe on the defendant's property: The defendant admits that he made no attempt to retreat, and the evidence quite clearly shows that the statement made by the deceased that the defendant immediately drew his pistol and commenced firing at him, after the alleged assault by the deceased, was in fact true, as it is quite apparent from the place where the pool of blood and ax were foundsome 12 feet distant from the fencethat the deceased had retreated, and was in the act of going away, before the shots were fired by the defendant; and this theory is strongly corroborated by the fact that the deceased was shot in the back, and at a point quite distant from the fence. It is quite clear, therefore, that the evidence was such as to warrant the jury in believing that there was no such actual or apparent danger to the defendant, or danger of great personal injury, as authorized him to take the life of the deceased, and that he could have avoided the killing by withdrawing from the scene without danger to himself, either actual or apparent. Stumbaugh, 28 S.D. at 69, 132 N.W. at 674. Here, where evidence established that Gray was disarmed inside defendant's dwelling, and the neighbors testified that Gray was clubbed, kicked, and beaten while outside the house, and Gray's head exhibited multiple boot imprints, the jury was properly instructed to consider the reasonableness of the force applied by defendants. The court's instructions, taken as a whole, were adequate. Jaques' argument is without merit.