Legal Definition and Related Resources of Self-defense

The right of a man to protect his own life and limb from attack and injury is recognized as a defense in criminal law. The force employed by the person pleading self-defense must not be out of proportion to the apparent urgency of the occasion. The onus of proving that he acted in self-defense is on the accused . This right of self-defense extends not only to the person of the accused himself but also to the person of a third party if such a third party was, in the view of the accused, the subject of a physical attack leading the accused reasonably to believe that physical interference was justified. Also, this right extends to the right of the accused to possess and enjoy his property and thus he may use reasonable force to eject a trespasser who refuses to leave the premises of the accused after being asked to do so.

The protection by force of one’s person or property from unlawful injury. The force used must be no more than is reasonably necessary to repel the threatened injury, and must be proportioned to the nature of the injury appre-‘ hended. Thus, an assault with the hand cannot be repelled by the use of a deadly weapon. 77 Ind. 274; 34 Ohio St. 98. As a general rule, an assault threatening death or serious bodily injury, the infliction of which would amount to a felony, may be resisted to the taking of life (29 Ohio St. 186; 8 Mich. 150), but not an assault which is but a misdemeanor (2 N. Y. 193). Unlawful injury to property may be resisted by force short of the taking of life (148 Mass. 529; 56 Vt. 703), but the taking of life in defense of property is only justifiable when it is necessary in order to prevent a felony attempted by violence or surprise, as burglary, robbery, or arson (4 Bl. Comm. 180; 25 Grat. [Va.] 887; 31 Conn. 479) , but not secret felonies, such ais larceny (71 Ala. 330).

Browse or run a search for Self-defense in the American Encyclopedia of Law, the Asian Encyclopedia of Law, the European Encyclopedia of Law, the UK Encyclopedia of Law or the Latin American and Spanish Encyclopedia of Law.

Self-defense in Historical Law

You might be interested in the historical meaning of this term. Browse or search for Self-defense in Historical Law in the Encyclopedia of Law.

Search for legal acronyms and/or abbreviations containing Self-defense in the Legal Abbreviations and Acronyms Dictionary.

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This definition of Self-defense is based on the The Cyclopedic Law Dictionary . This entry needs to be proofread.

Vocabularies (Semantic Web Information)

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Meaning of Self-defense in the U.S. Legal System

Definition of Self-defense published by the National Association for Court Management: Claim that an act otherwise criminal was legally justifiable because it was necessary to protect a person or property from the threat or action of another.

Meaning of Self-defense in Spanish

Description/ translation of self-defense into Spanish: legítima defensa[1]

Note: for more information on related terms and on the area of law where self-defense belongs (criminal procedure law), in Spanish, see here.

Notes and References

1. Translation of Self-defense published by Antonio Peñaranda