In a win for law-abiding gun owners, the great state of Oklahoma has passed a law protecting citizens who are forced to point a weapon at or otherwise intimidate a would-be attacker with a gun, to protect their home or business. This seems like it would be rather an obvious thing, but the law frequently can be unclear on the Second Amendment; in this case, in Oklahoma at least, it's now rather less so.
An Oklahoma law now makes it legally clear you can point or intimidate an individual with a weapon if you are defending your home, private property, or business.
Governor Kevin Stitt signed House Bill 2818 on Thursday, which went into effect immediately. Oklahoma already has “stand your ground” laws when it comes to protecting your life, but language in the bill now expands to your property as well.
That's as it should be; one of the purposes of the Second Amendment, as well as a fundamental right of the citizenry, is the right to be secure in one's liberty and property, and also the right to protect that property from attack or theft. Oklahoma, we should note, was already a Castle Doctrine state; this new law just clarifies some of the aspects of that legal right.
“What this bill does is provide some clarity for where the Castle Doctrine is applied, and in this statute, thankfully signed by the governor two days ago, expands that boundary of our castle doctrine up to the edge of your property,” said Rep. Jay Steagall (R-Yukon), who authored the bill in an interview over the phone with News 4 Friday.
Steagall said it’s an effort that’s been in the works for years, and was tentatively dubbed the “Private Property Protection Act.” During debate on the Oklahoma House floor in March, Steagall used Oklahoma’s constitutional right to bear arms in reference to the law’s justification. He said the bill was drafted with help from the Oklahoma Second Amendment Association, but at the time said he hadn’t spoken with any law enforcement agencies or District Attorney’s offices about potential implications of the bill.
The primary implication of this law will be that homeowners and business owners will be more secure in their homes and businesses.
See Also: Two Bills in Congress Could Be Huge Wins for the Second Amendment
Every year, armed citizens prevent crimes and shootings, sometimes even by simply brandishing their weapons. Several studies have shown that armed citizens actually have a better record of resolution in shooting incidents than police officers, and in every state that keeps records, armed citizens have a lower rate of "bad" shoots or injuries in shooting events than police officers. Not to mention that self-defense is a basic, natural right, and firearms are the most effective way to defend oneself.
As of this writing, there are 45 states that have some form or another of "Castle Doctrine" laws, and 18 "Stand Your Ground states", with a fair amount (obviously) of overlap. Twenty-nine states are now "Constitutional Carry" states, in which citizens may carry, concealed, any firearm they may legally own.
Nationwide, our right to self-defense is being recognized more every year. That alone makes us far safer than any amount of hot air blown forth by would-be gun-grabbing politicians.
[Editor's Note: This article was edited for clarity after publication.]
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