Outsourcing Reasonableness: Redefining Defensive Force in State v. Phillips.

Coke claimed the common law was the perfection of reason. Our Supreme Court began its recent opinion in State v. Phillips, No. 281A23 (N.C. Aug. 23, 2024), by citing Coke, albeit for a different proposition (i.e., a person’s home is his castle). Construing G.S. 14-51.2, our Supreme Court held that the legislature has abrogated the common law rule that prohibited excessive force in defense of the home. The trial court erred therefore in instructing the jury that the defendant homeowner did not have the right to use excessive force. This post examines the recent opinion in Phillips. The Phillips Scenario The facts in Phillips were contested. In April 2021, the victim approached the defendant’s home angry with a grievance (and possibly intoxicated), entered the front porch, and knocked on the door. The defendant answered and a brief confrontation followed, during which the defendant struck the victim (possibly with a gun). The defendant then fired multiple shots at the victim, one shot striking the victim’s left side, leaving her permanently disabled. Phillips, Slip Op. at 2. The defendant was charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury. At trial, the defendant asserted self-defense and defense of habitation. Over objection, the trial court instructed the jury that the defendant did not have the right to use excessive force in defense of the home. The defendant was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury and appealed, arguing error in the instruction. Phillips, Slip Op. at [...]