The laws are different in each state regarding trespassers. In some places, them just being on your property isn't enough of a reason to consider your life as being in danger. In others, it seems it is.
But there are problems with signs that suggest horrific ends to trespassers, regardless of the law.
A lot of gun people like to talk tough. Others just think it's funny, but the truth is that there are a lot of signs and stickers for homes and vehicles that joke about shooting those who break into what isn't their's. I've seen them and gotten a chuckle, at least the first time I come across a cleverly worded one. I've never thought about using one, though.
Why? Because of the threat of this.
Signs and stickers warning that anybody who messes with the owner’s vehicle or house could end up catching some lead are popular in Wyoming’s gun culture.
But experts say there’s a chance such signs could be a liability if the owner ever is involved in a defensive shooting that ends up in court.
Those signs also can be an open invitation for gun thieves.
In any criminal or civil legal case that might stem from a shooting, there’s a chance such a sign could be used as evidence of previous intent on the shooter’s part, University of Wyoming law professor George Mocsary told Cowboy State Daily.
Messages such as “Trespassers will be shot. Survivors will be shot again” frequently have an element of dark humor wrapped in a warning.
Jason Crotteau, who runs the Riverton-based Wyoming Tactical shooters’ training company, said he has a few signs like that in his home as novelty items.
They’re not, however, posted outside as a general warning to the public, he said.
“They go in the gun room,” he told Cowboy State Daily. "They go in the bar. It’s not a ‘take-it-seriously’ sort of thing."
Crotteau said he wouldn’t hang those signs on his property boundaries because, “That could open the door to litigation."
..."Private property" must also be posted in order for criminal trespass charges to be filed, and whether the signs have “harsh messaging” is irrelevant, he added.
A judge or jury in a post-shooting case will scrutinize the defensive shooter’s conduct leading up to and during the incident, but probably won’t be concerned with a supposedly threatening sign as an indication someone is just itching to shoot someone.
However, “in a really close case” where a shooter’s conduct is in question, a prosecutor might cite an allegedly threatening sign to nudge the needle toward a conviction, he said.
Now, in theory, it shouldn't matter. A good shoot is a good shoot.
The problem is that private citizens don't have body cams. We usually don't have security cameras covering every inch of our homes or yards. If there's any doubt, a prosector looking to make a name for themself might just decide that your sign is proof that you went looking for someone to kill.
No, most gun owners don't want to shoot anyone. They might talk big from time to time, but the reality is that most are trying to prepare themselves mentally should they ever need to. Others know they can, because they've had to do it in places like Iraq or Afghanistan, but since they use dark humor to cope with all of that, these signs kind of fit that, too.
But the truth is that you never know what a prosecutor is going to take as evidence you're really the bad guy. Kyle Rittenhouse had to endure a trial where many argued he was guilty because he crossed state lines. George Zimmerman was the bad guy because he didn't stay in his car and decided to follow Trayvon Martin. Do you really want to chance your local prosecutor being cool?
I don't.
These things can be amusing, but I wouldn't put one of those up at my home if I were you.
