House lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a bill Monday to expand Indiana’s “Stand Your Ground” law to cover civil lawsuits.
The “Stand Your Ground” law says you can use force – even deadly force – to defend yourself, someone else, and your property. That protects you from criminal charges.
But Rep. Jim Lucas (R-Seymour) says it didn’t shield people from civil lawsuits. And he says some Hoosiers were sued after they wounded or killed criminals.
“Accruing a lawsuit in the amount of tens of thousands of dollars…for anybody, that could be crippling,” Lucas says.
Lucas’s bill extends the self-defense protections to civil court.
Some lawmakers felt the bill could go further, while others have philosophical issues with “Stand Your Ground” laws at all. But no one spoke against it on the House floor. And it passed easily, with just a handful of Democrats voting "no."
The measure now goes to the Senate.
