Unger wants stronger ‘Castle Doctrine’ bill

Mannix Porterfield
Register-Herald Reporter

CHARLESTON — No one tried to amend it Monday, but Sen. John Unger beat the filing deadline by offering a stronger Castle Doctrine bill, one that extends civil immunity to property owners who wound or kill intruders.

Sen. Shirley Love, D-Fayette, has sought the past two sessions to gain passage of a bill backed by the National Rifle Association to add teeth to West Virginia’s existing law on dealing with burglars.

His bill is up for a vote today in the Senate.

This year’s version allows a homeowner to use deadly force, if needed, to protect one’s home and family, but leaves the door open for lawsuits by the intruder.

What it would do is provide that a homeowner may use as “a strong defense” the need to use deadly force when victimized by an intruder.

Unger’s bill, however, goes a step further, removing an intruder’s ability to take civil action if he is wounded in the course of a burglary.

“If someone breaks and enters into your home, regardless if they’re attacking you or not, you have the right to protect yourself, using force, and if that intruder gets injured or killed, you’re not held liable,” Unger, D-Berkeley, said.“Right now, the law says if they get injured breaking into your house, they can sue you.”

Unger said senior citizens in his district are alarmed over the rash of burglaries at their homes, and shouldn’t be exposed to civil litigation if they feel the need to use force to deal with intruders.

“If someone breaks into your home and gets injured, or gets killed, as far as a burglary, it’s assumed it’s already a violent force by breaking and entering,” the senator said.

“We’ve had a lot of burglaries in the Eastern Panhandle, particularly preying on seniors, who are scared to death.”

Unger said his proposal could serve as a deterrent to such break-ins, since there no longer would be the option to file suit against the homeowner.

The senator emphasized his bill would only cover force applied once a burglar is actually inside a residence, and not while outside on the property.

“If you’re in the act of committing a crime, I think you waive all your rights as far as liability is concerned,” Unger said.“It just makes common sense to me that someone ought to have the right to be able to protect themselves and protect their property.”

Twenty states have enacted the so-called Castle Doctrine, a term that is derived from old English law centuries ago, based on the premise “a man’s house is his castle and the wind, but not the king, may enter.”

A similar bill was approved last year by the Senate but died in the House Judiciary Committee.