Civil Rights | Mild
Admiring the indomitable spirit of all living creatures to preserve themselves against all odds;
Believing that the need to use lethal force is a tragedy, regardless of how necessary it may be;
Concerned that, though intended to ensure peaceful and rational social interactions, some societies nonetheless punish the use of violence when used to defend an individual against exigent risks to self and others;
Seeking to strike a balance between society's efforts to reduce violence and the individual's inherent right to survive when attacked;
The World Assembly hereby establishes the following:
- "Reasonable force" is the minimal amount of force an ordinary person would use to prevent or stop a similar attack in similar circumstances.
- Member states must permit the accused to plead a rebuttable affirmative defense of self-defense to any charge of which an element is causing willful physical harm to another individual.
- Member states may establish domestic policies requiring that the claimant:
- Satisfy a factual burden of proof not greater than that of the charge for which they are accused; or
- Prove that they used reasonable force based on the circumstances.
- Member states may further limit the aforementioned affirmative defense if the victim of the accused had the authorization to lawfully act on the state's behalf.
- Member states otherwise have complete, exclusive jurisdiction over legal regulation of individual self-defense or defense of others in their territory for the purposes of criminal prosecution, the associated civil proceedings thereof, and any self-defense education and training policies.