The final draft of Stand-Your-Ground law is below. The bill is awaiting a bill number currently, but this is the final copy. Please also note our Stand-Your-Ground law ‘Fact Sheet’ which describes what this bill would, and would not, do.
Please review this, share with your friends, and be sure you contact your Senator and Representative to cosponsor this important legislation!
READ AND DOWNLOAD THE BILL HERE
Stand-Your-Ground Fact Sheet from Wyoming Gun Owners
Basic Definition and Overview:
Stand-Your-Ground (SYG) law removes an otherwise law-abiding person’s obligation to retreat from a violent attacker, before taking defensive action on behalf of themselves or a third party.
SYG law also provides important criminal and civil immunities to the gun owner who presented or used a firearm in self-defense by stating that he can not be arrested without probable cause that a law was broken, and by denying the attacker the ability to sue in civil court if the gun owner was never charged or found ‘Not Guilty’ in court.
Does Not Change the Current Laws of the Justifiable Use of Force:
SYG law does not change the currents use of force statues. It simply says that if you meet the criteria in code to use force in a self-defense setting, you may do so without having to first retreat. So any claim that SYG law leads to a ‘shoot first, ask questions later’ scenario is simply false.
Can Not Be Used to Protect Criminals:
SYG can not be invoked by criminals at trial as the law specifically states that a person using a SYG law defense has to be ‘lawfully present’ when using force in self-defense. Any claim that this bill increases crime then is bogus, as it only applies to law abiding citizens.
Already Law in Over Half the Country:
SYG has already been enacted, legislatively, in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia. 27 in total.
SYG has been enacted, through case law/jury instructions/other are California, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, New Mexico, Oregon, Virginia, and Washington. 8 in total.
This Bill has Momentum:
SYG was passed into law in September of 2016 in Missouri, when the legislature overrode then-Governor Nixon’s veto and it was signed into law in Iowa in April of 2017. SYG has also been filed in a number of states this year.
Wyoming is in the Extreme Minority By Not Already Having SYG Law in Place:
Every single state west of Wyoming already has SYG law in practice. In fact, we are one of just six states west of Ohio that don’t have this protection in place.