A bipartisan bill that would give homeowners more legal protection if they injure or kill an intruder may be taken up by the Wisconsin Senate today.
The legislation, known as the Castle Doctrine and passed during Tuesday’s floor meeting of the Assembly, gives homeowners the right to shoot an intruder out of self-defense without having to prove first the intruder was a threat.
Rep. Dean Kaufert, R-Neehah, author of the legislation, said in a situation where a homeowner encounters an intruder, the homeowner would be granted civil immunity under this bill if he or she injured or killed the intruder.
Consequently, if the homeowner was prosecuted for harming the intruder, a jury would presume that he or she had the right to do so until the prosecution could prove otherwise.
“[The bill] makes it more difficult for that intruder to bring a case of action,” Kaufert said. “[However,] if the prosecutor felt the homeowner did go too far, he can still press charges.”
Kaufert said the bill has received support from both parties, having two Democratic co-sponsors and the support of nearly three quarters of the Assembly floor during the bill’s passage.
Rep. Kelda Roys, D-Madison, voted against Kaufert’s bill during Tuesday’s assembly meeting. She said the bill is an excuse for homeowners to “shoot first, ask questions later.”
Roys said she felt the law as it stood provided enough of a protection for homeowners, given that they were already protected if they killed or injured someone in self-defense with reasonable proof. She said not having to prove the intruder poses a threat first opens the door for accidental killings.
Kaufert said the bill will now go to the Senate, where the body will either vote on it during the last scheduled floor meeting of the fall regular session Thursday or postpone action on the bill until it reconvenes in January.
Wisconsin is not the first state to propose such a measure, Kaufert said, saying some 30 other states have passed similar legislation. He said the rights provided in the bill do not apply to a homeowner who is engaged in a criminal activity at the time of the intrusion or if police enter the home.
He said the bill gives homeowners the right to protect themselves without worrying about whether or not they will be charged for doing so.
“If person unlawfully breaks into your home, it’s assumed that you believe he’s there for a criminal purpose,” Kaufert said. “You don’t have to ask them; you’re afforded that protection.”
Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause in Wisconsin, said the bill is part of the Republican Legislature’s agenda to pass far-right social and economic bills while they have control of both Legislative houses and the governor’s office.
He said the bill itself is not something he believes Wisconsinites are particularly worried about, saying the Republican majority is putting too much emphasis on socially conservative bills and not focusing on creating jobs.
If the Senate decides to vote on the bill Thursday, Heck said the current one-member Republican majority may make it difficult for the bill to pass, as more moderate Republicans may feel the bill does not have enough of a jobs focus to be taken up by the body.
