Arsenal Attorneys' George Lyon debated control today on ABC-affiliate WJLA's Good Morning Washington. The segment coincided with the Washington, DC premier of a new film entitled "Making a Killing: Guns, Greed and NRA," by director Robert Greenwald.  Mr. Lyon took exception with factual errors in the film's trailer, including the claim that the AR15 platform is not used by hunters.  Additionally Mr. Lyon detailed the reduction in violent crime across the board during a time when the number of guns owned by Americans has doubled.  

The full video can be seen here.   

Arsenal Attorneys represents gun owners and firearms-related businesses in over 40 states.  The firm offers a wide range of legal services, including criminal defense, business services, family law, and estate planning.  We are particularly renowned for our Arsenal Gun Trust solution for NFA firearms and firearms-specific estate planning. 

by George L. Lyon, Jr, Esq. of Arsenal Attorneys

A recent case from Montgomery County, MD illustrates vividly many of the concepts typically taught concerning armed self-defense and the use of deadly force. The facts below come from media reports and are thus not independently verified.

On December 20, 2015, Mario Perez, his son and girl-friend came to a holiday get together at the home of Frank Trujillo in Montgomery County, Maryland. At home with Mr. Trujillo was his wife and two children, ages 8 and 4. Trujillo was the Vice President of a local construction company. Perez had worked at the company where the two became friends. Trujillo had invited his friend over for the evening for dinner and drinks and to stay over until the morning.

Perez was a big guy. A football player in high school, he enlisted in the Marine Corps after graduation. He outweighed Trujillo by some 50 pounds and was into MMA fighting according to Mr. Trujillo. In the course of the evening, Perez consumed a substantial amount of alcohol. The toxicology report would peg his blood alcohol content at between 0.22 and 0.28 percent. This amount of alcohol is roughly equivalent to a 200 pound man drinking in excess of two six packs of regular beer over a short period of time. At this level of intoxication Perez’s judgement and reasoning would have been radically diminished. Indeed, at slightly higher blood alcohol levels, such as 0.30 percent, unconsciousness is likely.

Perez may indeed have had an alcohol problem, having been previously convicted of driving under the influence at least twice before. In fact, Trujillo had been a character witness for him at one of his trials. According to Trujillo, a discussion concerning a work matter turned into an argument during their holiday get together. Perez became agitated. The situation escalated to the point where Perez threatened to kill Trujillo and his family. Trujillo’s attempts to deescalate the situation failed. He left Perez, retrieved a handgun, and stood outside his children’s bedroom door while his wife tried to call 911. According to Trujillo, Perez charged him and Trujillo shot him once fatally in the chest.

Police arrested Trujillo on first degree murder charges. He was initially held without bail for more than a week. He was released on bond December 29, 2015. Prosecutors then sought a first degree murder indictment from the grand jury arguing that Trujillo escalated the situation by retrieving his gun, that he should have simply called the police and that he should have retreated from the confrontation. After hearing Trujillo’s testimony, however, the grand jury refused to indict, essentially finding that he acted in self-defense.

This case illustrates numerous concepts involved in the use of deadly force in self-defense. There are five inter-related elements necessary to justify use of deadly force in self-defense: Innocence, imminence, proportionality, avoidance and reasonableness. They are well illustrated here. Of these five elements, the overriding one here and in most cases is reasonableness. Thus, you may use deadly force to stop what you reasonably believe to be an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm to an innocent person. Let's analyze this case under the five elements set forth above.

Innocence. Perez was the aggressor, he threatened Trujillo’s life and the lives of his family. Trujillo and his family were innocent.

Imminence. Trujillo could reasonably believe the attach was imminent. He testified that Perez was charging him after threatening to kill him and his family. In fact, Perez charged a man holding a firearm.

Reasonableness. Trujillo could reasonably conclude that Perez was capable of causing death or serious bodily harm. Perez outweighed him by 50 pounds, had been a Marine and studied MMA. Significantly, Trujillo knew Perez was a trained fighter. Reasonableness includes what you know about an assailant, including their training and their violent nature. Generally, you are not privileged to use deadly force against an unarmed attacker. The exception is where there is a disparity of force. Typical examples of disparity of force include a big guy attacking a smaller guy, a man attacking a woman, a healthy person attacking an infirm person, or a trained fighter attacking an untrained person. Here there was a disparity of force both in terms of size and training and Trujillo was aware of these facts. These facts justified Trujillo’s use of a deadly weapon.

Avoidance. Maryland is a duty to retreat jurisdiction, which means that before using deadly force a victim must retreat from the threat if he can do so safely. Despite the prosecutor’s statement to the contrary, retreat was not an option here. First, Trujillo was in his own home where there is seldom a duty to retreat. Second, he had protectees in the house he could not leave alone with Perez nor marshall them to safety while under attack. Third, there is never a duty to retreat if it cannot be done safely. The situation as described by Trujillo appeared to escalate very rapidly. Retreat was not an option. Likewise, faulting Trujillo for not calling the police at an earlier stage of the confrontation, is simply Monday morning quarterbacking by the prosecutor. It is likely that it was not until he realized how dangerous the situation was that Trujillo understood he had to take action. Had he tried to call the police without having armed himself, he likely would have been beaten to a pulp before he could have told the 911 operator what was happening. Under the circumstances, Trujillo did what he could to avoid the situation by leaving Perez, getting his firearm, and standing watch outside his children’s door.

Proportionality. Trujillo shot Perez once, which stopped him. You are only allowed to use enough force to stop the attack. Anything in excess, is not self-defense, but a crime. With the threat stopped, Trujillo ceased using force.

Under the circumstances of this case, the grand jury concluded that Trujillo acted in self-defense. A win for Trujillo? Not really. Trujillo lives in anti-gun Maryland and in anti-gun Montgomery County. Trujillo spent a week in jail for defending his family. He was charged with first degree murder. The prosecutor alleged he premeditated the crime of murder by retrieving the tool that saved his life and the lives of his family members. He had to hire a lawyer for presumably thousands of dollars, and he may very likely face a civil action by Perez’s survivors for wrongful death. And now he has to live with the psychological scars of having had to kill someone he trusted enough to invite into his home, not to mention the social stigma of having killed someone. This case illustrates vividly not only the various legal concepts involved in using deadly force in defense of self and family, but the toll that choice may take on your life.

How would you handle a similar situation?

This case challenges us to consider how we might prepare ourselves to exercise our right to self-defense. Obviously the need for tactical tools and skills, such as a gun and good marksmanship, cannot be separated from the need to know the law. Arsenal Attorneys works with firearms instructors to develop self-defense seminars combining the law, practical skills and decisionmaking in emergencies. Watch for our upcoming seminars. 

The National Capital Friends of NRA is raffling a Barrett .50 BMG Rifle System (similar but not necessarily identical to the rifle pictured at left). Only 200 tickets will be sold, $100 each. The drawing will be held June 17, 2016 at the National Capital Friends of NRA Inaugural Banquet (attendance not required to win).  

Tickets for the raffle and the banquet can be purchased online at this link. 

Arsenal Attorneys is proud to lead the organizing committee for the National Capital Friends of NRA. Our banquet will feature drawings and auctions of firearms as well as adventure travel packages and other prizes.

The Friends of NRA raises money to support the shooting supports.  We are particularly excited to foster such programs in the vicinity of Washington, DC, where school-based shooting programs have enjoyed renewed interest.  You can support these efforts through your purchase of raffle tickets and by attending the banquet in June.  

Arsenal Attorneys' George Lyon was featured in a recent article of Matt Kibbe's column 'Essential Liberty' in the Conservative Review. The article, entitled "The Responsibility of Gun Ownership," is part of a series inspired by what Kibbe proclaims as his endorsement of "the entire Bill of Rights." In embracing the Bill of Rights completely, Kibbe began the new year by resolving to buy a gun, but he did not proceed to a gun shop. Instead he contacted our George Lyon for firearms safety and shooting instruction. Kibbe was joined by his wife Terry Kibbe, who chose Lyon as an instructor because of his work in Second Amendment issues.  

The article quotes Lyon's biography from the Arsenal Attorneys' website:

In 2003 he joined with five other plaintiffs in the landmark case that resulted in the United States Supreme Court confirming that the Constitution guarantees an individual right to own a functional firearm. That decision, District of Columbia v. Heller, overturned DC’s prohibition on owning a handgun and now stands as a bulwark against infringements on second amendment rights. In 2009, he joined with three other plaintiffs and the Second Amendment Foundation to challenge the District of Columbia’s absolute ban on carrying a firearm for personal protection outside the home. That case, Palmer v. District of Columbia, resulted in the first issuance of DC concealed carry licenses in some 40 years.

"I found the guy," Terry Kibbe said after reading Lyon's biography.

The Kibbes' training began with a thoughtful discussion in the comfort of Lyon's home in Washington, DC, during which they discussed gun ownership, firearms safety, and the Second Amendment. Lyon said:

You will likely not see a special report on the news explaining that gun ownership can make us all safer from potential assault or murder, even though defensive gun uses occur scores if not hundreds of times a day. But if one careless gun owner breaks the rules of proper gun safety, and someone innocent gets hurt, expect to always hear about it, another hit in the constant drumbeat against gun ownership by responsible individuals.

This article is expected to be just one in a series by Matt Kibbe for Conservative Review about his resolution to buy a gun in 2016. We expect him to share his experiences at the range, at a gun shop, and in the gun registration bureaucracy of the District of Columbia. You can follow Matt Kibbe on Twitter @mkibbe, we recommend his column, Essential Liberty, with Matt Kibbe, at Conservative Review. 

Arsenal Attorneys' provided firearms instruction to students, including journalists and political activists, concerned with developing their own marksmanship as well as learning about Second Amendment issues. The instruction took place at the range inside the headquarters of the National Rifle Association in Fairfax, Virginia, where many friends and clients of Arsenal Attorneys shoot.

The practical experience of our lawyers in the safe and legal handling of firearms helps us advise our gun-owning clients, including firearms manufacturers, instructors, and ordinary gun owners.  We particularly use our knowledge in firearms to ensure our Arsenal Gun Trust services provide clear guidance to the successors and beneficiaries who will receive our clients' firearms in the future. 

To learn more about our services, contact our office.  We serve clients in over 40 states in matters related to firearms, as well as estate planning, criminal defense, business law, family law, and more.

Do you know the feeling when someone hands you a stack of legal documents and says, "You figure it out?"  That can cause a pain in the pit of your stomach.  We like to think clients of Arsenal Attorneys™ instead feel peace of mind when they receive the user-friendly documents in our Arsenal Gun Trust™ services. 

Our Turnkey Package has several important purposes:

First, it simplifies the execution of the documents.  We'll print your documents on heavy-duty, acid free, archival quality, 32lb paper, and we will flag the signatures lines for you, your witnesses, and your notary public.

Second, our custom binder includes a variety of labeled tabs to organize your Arsenal Gun Trust™ and all your other gun-related documents, such as NFA tax stamps, receipts, warranties, training certifications, concealed handgun permits, hunting licenses, etc.  If you think of all the scattered locations where you currently keep such papers, you'll know how the Turnkey Package will make your life easier.

Third, the Turnkey Package helps you comply with the law.  We provide you military-grade document bags to help you remember the necessary photocopies of your trust documents and tax stamps that must be kept with your NFA firearms.  We recommend clients make multiple sets of copies to store in every location where their NFA firearms might be taken, including range bags and gun cases.

Fourth, and finally, this package will help your successors.  Missing tax stamps is a common problem faced by people inheriting NFA firearms, but your successors will know where to find all of your trust and gun-related documents thanks to the Turnkey Package.  Additionally this optional package includes a Tax Identification Number--otherwise your successor would have the burden of obtaining one.

New and existing clients may request a Turnkey Package.  We will ship it to your doorstep by priority delivery.

If you obtained a trust elsewhere, we can revise it to match the Arsenal Gun Trust™ design, and we'd be happy to prepare a Turnkey Package for you.  For a limited time only, we will include a $2 bill as part of the Turnkey Package to serve as the initial funding of clients' Arsenal Gun Trusts™ and as a reminder of the 2nd Amendment.

Contact Arsenal Attorneys™ to obtain your Arsenal Gun Trust™ and Turnkey Package today.