Louisiana Criminal Jury Instructions (2017)
§ 6:20 Justifiable homicide—Prevention of violent of forcible felony

A homicide is justifiable when committed for the purpose of preventing a violent or forcible felony involving danger to life or great bodily harm by one who reasonably believes that such an offense is about to be committed and that such action is necessary to prevent the violent or forcible felony.

The circumstances must be sufficient to excite the fear of a reasonable person that there would be serious danger to his own life if he attempted to prevent the felony without killing.

[A person who is not engaged in any unlawful activity and is in a place where he or she has a right to be has no duty to retreat before using deadly force for the purpose of preventing the commission of a violent or forcible felony involving danger to life or great bodily harm. Under such circumstances a person may stand his ground and meet force with force. The possibility of retreat shall not be considered as a factor in determining whether or not the use of deadly force was reasonable and apparently necessary to prevent the commission fo the violent or forcible felony.]

Thus, if you find:

(1) that the defendant killed for the purpose of preventing the commission of a violent or forcible felony involving danger to life or great bodily harm; and

(2) that the defendant reasonably believed that such a felony was about to be committed; and

(3) that the defendant reasonably believed that the killing was necessary to prevent such a felony from being committed; and

(4) that the defendant reasonably believed that there would be serious danger to his own life if he attempted to prevent the felony without killing; then you must find the defendant not guilty.

I. If you find that

(1) the defendant was lawfully inside a [dwelling][place of business][motor vehicle] and

(2) the person against whom the force or violence was used was in the process of unlawfully and forcibly entering or had unlawfully and forcibly entered the [dwelling][place of business][motor vehicle] and

(3) the defendant knew or had reason to believe that an unlawful and forcible entry was occurring or had occurred,

you should [must] presume that the defendant held a reasonable belief that the use of force or violence was necessary to prevent unlawful entry thereto [or compel the intruder to leave the [premises]][motor vehicle].]

II. If you find that the defendant was not engaged in unlawful activity and was in a place where he [she] had a right to be, the defendant had not duty to retreat before using force or violence and had the right to stand his [her] ground and meet force with force.

III. If you find that the defendant used force or violence in defense of his [her] person or property, you shall not consider the possibility of retreat as a factor in determining whether or not the defendant had a reasonable belief that such force or violence was reasonably and apparently necessary to prevent the forcible offense or prevent the unlawful entry.

Updated: 7/12/2017