Burglars break into the house, how to defend legally?

Recently, the Bac Tu Liem District Police, Hanoi City, decided to prosecute Mr. Le Minh Phuong (50 years old) for murder, when he used a sword to seriously injure a teenager who had sneaked into a house to steal.

The incident has left many people wondering how to protect their property and lives and how to defend themselves when a thief breaks into their home?

According to initial information, in the early morning of November 23, Mr. Phuong heard his wife report that a thief had broken into the house. Angry because the house had often been robbed before, he took out a sword and slashed wildly in the dark (where there was a rustling sound) and hit N.D.T (15 years old, the intruder), causing T. to suffer a 61% disability.

Lawyer Nguyen Trung Chinh (Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association) said that when swinging a sword, the perpetrator must be aware that his actions are dangerous and can cause injury to others, so whether he sees it or not, it constitutes a crime.

“The homeowner may have been robbed many times and was upset, but the law stipulates that acts that exceed the limits of legitimate self-defense are a crime. Being mentally agitated due to the thief’s fault can only be considered a mitigating circumstance for the homeowner’s criminal responsibility,” said Attorney Chinh.

What is “legitimate defense”?

Master, jurist Pham Duc Hoan (People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City) said that Vietnamese law does not currently specifically stipulate the right of the homeowner to respond when others illegally invade their home. A thief entering a house, whether with the intention of robbery or theft, is a violation of the law, but the homeowner's resistance must be at a necessary level to be considered legitimate defense.

Article 15 of the Penal Code stipulates: “Legitimate defense is the act of a person who, in order to protect the interests of the State or an organization, to protect his or her own or another person's legitimate rights and interests, necessarily fights back against a person who is infringing upon the above-mentioned interests.”

According to Mr. Vu Phi Long, former judge and Deputy Chief Justice of the Criminal Court of Ho Chi Minh City, in this case, it is necessary to consider the correlation between the homeowner's behavior and the thief's behavior.

"If the homeowner knows that there is only one thief, a teenager, no weapon in hand and no significant signs of intimidation, but still uses a weapon to attack and cause injury, then the homeowner's actions constitute a crime," said Mr. Long.

However, according to Mr. Long, it is not only when the thief attacks first that the homeowner fights back that it is considered legitimate defense. “There are cases where the homeowner does not know the thief, because the house is broken into unexpectedly, or the thief carries a gun, knife, sword... in a moment of panic, the homeowner swings a large weapon to hit the thief even though the thief has not yet attacked, in order to prevent dangerous consequences that may occur, then the authorities must consider very carefully and it can still be considered legitimate defense,” Mr. Long analyzed.

Lawyer Bui Quang Nghiem (Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association) also said that this case needs to be considered in specific circumstances. "Legitimate defense is when the homeowner is forced to fight back, otherwise his life and health may be threatened. Thus, if the thief attacks the homeowner, or has not attacked but if the homeowner does not attack first, it may lead to the life and health of himself and his family members being threatened. At this time, the homeowner's attack cannot be considered murder but must be considered legitimate defense," said Lawyer Nghiem, but also acknowledged:

“In reality, determining whether it is legitimate defense or not is not simple and depends on many factors, including the conditions and circumstances of the act and even the subjective consciousness of the litigant,” said Lawyer Nghiem.

Respond calmly

According to a Ho Chi Minh City police officer, when a thief breaks into a house, the homeowner needs to stay calm. If the thief has not discovered that the homeowner is awake and watching them, they should try to stay quiet and take the opportunity to remember the thief's identifying features to provide to the police later.

In case the thief is aggressive, you must also handle it calmly, you can use words (such as persuasion) or other actions to distract the thief's concentration and then take advantage of the opportunity to escape the danger. You should only fight back, control and capture the thief when you feel you are capable, but also within the necessary limits. When you catch and control the thief, you must immediately report to the authorities, absolutely do not assault or cause injury to the thief because the law does not allow it.

“People need to consider human life as the most important thing, find every way to escape, protect their lives and those of their loved ones, do not take actions that endanger yourself because of regret, and do not be too upset and cause damage to the life and health of the thief, then you yourself will become a criminal,” said the police officer.

According to TNO