Thank goodness that the government have published their advice on what I can and cannot do should I be attacked in my own home! I recommend downloading the PDF and pinning it up somewhere so that you can regularly consult it.
I certainly needed to know what the definition of “reasonable force” is. For example, can I just ward off the blows or can I pulp the interloper’s head with a baseball bat?
It also seems that I don’t have to wait to be attacked, which is a good thing. But only if I’m in my own home. Hmmm. What about the garden?
There are a few rules and regulations regarding me actually murdering the intruder, but I suspect that they’re all just legalese. And I can chase the intruder away, but since it’s no longer self-defence I can only use reasonable force. Those who played rugby at school, like myself, will be pleased to learn that a rugby tackle or single blow is fine. It’s unclear whether having rugby tackled the attacker to the ground, I can then strike him a single blow. Also, if the blow glances off, say, the side of the head, or the intruder manages to block the blow, it’s unclear whether I’m allowed another shot at it. Do we then enter the realms of multiple blows and, therefore, unreasonable force?
One big no-no is that if I get into a squabble with my dealer, I shouldn’t then beat him to a bloody mess and then pretend he was trying to burgle me. The police, it seems, are onto that little game.
So, all in all, some useful pointers. However, it does open up more questions. And I feel certain that potential intruders to my home will not now arm themselves to the teeth in case vigilante residents such as myself now decide to take the law into our own hands Tony Martin-style.
The Home Office can spend as many hundreds of thousands on useful leaflets such as this in my opinion, because it all makes this country a safer place!