In the wake of the Zimmerman trial, various people have asked me to explain Alabama's laws on “standing your ground” when being attacked. Alabama is a “Castle Doctrine” state. The “Castle Doctrine” gets its name from the old saying that a man's home is his castle and states generally that when someone is attacked in their home, he or she is legally allowed to use certain force (up to and including deadly force). Typically, deadly force is only considered justified in cases where the homeowner reasonably fears “imminent peril of death or serious bodily harm to him or herself or another”.

Alabama also has certain laws about “standing your ground” outside of the home. A “stand your ground law” is a type of self-defense law that gives individuals the right to use reasonable force to defend themselves and not retreat from a dangerous situation. Just as in the Castle Doctrine, deadly force is only considered justified in situations where the person being attacked reasonably fears “imminent peril of death or serious bodily harm to him or herself or another.”

Alabama Code Section 13A-3-23 outlines the use of force in defense of an attack. Basically, under this law, a person is justified in using physical force on another person in order to defend himself or herself or someone else from the use or attempted use of unlawful physical force by another. In such a situation, he or she may use a degree of force reasonably necessary to defend him or herself. A person may even use deadly physical force in self-defense or the defense of another person if he or she reasonably believes that the attacker is (1) Using or about to use unlawful deadly physical force; (2) Using or about to use physical force against an occupant of a dwelling while committing or attempting to commit a burglary of the dwelling; and/or (3) Committing or about to commit a kidnapping, assault, burglary, robbery, forcible rape, or forcible sodomy;
The legal presumption that a person is justified in using deadly physical force does not apply, however, if: (1) The person against whom the defensive force is used has the right to be in or is a lawful resident of the dwelling, residence, or vehicle; (2) The person sought to be removed is a child or grandchild, or is otherwise in the lawful custody or under the lawful guardianship of, the person against whom the defensive force is used; (3) The person who uses defensive force is engaged in an unlawful activity or is using the dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle to further an unlawful activity; or (4) The person against whom the defensive force is used is a law enforcement officer acting in the performance of his or her official duties.

Now, don't read this and go around shooting people. Keep in mind that in order to use deadly force, a person has to be reasonably certain that he or she is about to killed or seriously hurt by the attacker.