Originally Posted by The_Real_Hawkeye
Originally Posted by grouseman
So what happens if the guy dies because his head hit the pavement - concussion, brain bleed, whatever. Is this possibly manslaughter, or something else? You never know how a DA is going to look at this. I don't think you can count on every DA looking at it and saying "Oh yeah, fully justified. No charges." Hell, there could be a horrendous civil suit depending on the injuries.

Yeah, FAFO. Maybe for both of them.
When someone corners you against your car in a rage, then violently knocks something out of your hand while remaining in a hostile posture, you are permitted in the law to neutralize him with anything short of the kind of force reasonably calculated to be lethal or to create serious bodily injury. A single punch to the face (even if it might cause death or serious bodily injury) is not considered force calculated to bring about death or serious bodily injury, but rather calculated to neutralize any further aggression from the attacker.

Andrew Branca would certainly phrase it that way. But would you want to gamble your life that the jury will see it that way?

It takes a village to raise an idiot.