The following is copied in its entirety from an Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL)
Action Alert:
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One of the most important bills in the last decade, SB 1145, which restores "innocent until proven guilty" in self-defense situations, is in jeopardy of being gutted in the House Rules committee.
Information on SB 1145 can be found here:
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http://www.azleg.gov/DocumentsForBill.asp?Bill_Number=SB1145
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SB 1145 (self-defense; home protection) restores the presumption of innocence in cases of self-defense. On February 13, 2006, amendments adopted by the Senate Judiciary Committee changed this "castle doctrine" bill into the most significant legislation ever introduced affecting anyone faced with a self-defense situation in Arizona. The text of SB 1145 as amended can be found here:
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http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/47leg/2r/bills/sb1145s.pdf
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Present law, passed in 1997 without proper discussion or debate, places the burden of proof on the VICTIM in self-defense cases. You are now in effect guilty unless you can prove your own innocence. You must admit to the underlying criminal conduct, and then demonstrate that the guilt you admitted is false, by proving you were justified. It is a prosecutor's dream and the public's worst nightmare. A criminal now has better legal protection than a person who claims self-defense after an attack: http://tinyurl.com/bn5ks
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SB 1145 enjoys broad bipartisan support. It passed Senate by a unanimous (28-0) vote. On March 16, 2006, SB 1145 passed the House Judiciary committee by a vote of 6-3 and was referred to the Rules committee.
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Opponents to YOUR right to be "innocent until proven guilty" are pressuring the Rules committee chairman, Representative Bob Robson ( http://www.azleg.gov/MembersPage.asp?Member_ID=51 ) to amend SB 1145, gutting the provisions that restore YOUR right to be "innocent until proven guilty" in a self-defense situation.
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We must not let this happen!
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Rules committee members, especially Chairman Robson, need to be contacted by YOU and told that SB 1145 must be referred out of the Rules committee without amendments to the House Committee of the Whole (COW).
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Below are the email addresses and telephone numbers of the committee members. Following that is a sample letter to cut-and-paste into an email message.
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Bob Robson (R) - Chairman - brobson@azleg.gov - (602) 926-5549
Bob Stump (R) - Vice-Chairman - bstump@azleg.gov - (602) 926-5413
Phil Lopes (D) - plopes@azleg.gov - (602) 926-3278
Linda Lopez (R) - llopez@azleg.gov - (602) 926-4089
Gary L. Pierce (R) - gpierce@azleg.gov - (602) 926-3163
Doug Quelland (R) - dquelland@azleg.gov - (602) 926-4639
Pete Rios (D) - prios@azleg.gov - (602) 926-5761
Stephen Tully (R) - stully@azleg.gov - (602) 926-5977
James P. Weiers (R) - jweiers@azleg.gov - (602) 926-4173
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Representative Robson especially needs to hear from you.
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Below is a sample letter to cut-and-paste into an email message.
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Dear Representative (Name):
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The Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL) has informed me that SB 1145 is under consideration by your committee. I strongly urge you to vote the bill out of committee with a recommendation for passage by the full House.
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SB 1145, a "Castle Doctrine" bill, is modeled after legislation recently passed in Florida and introduced this year in many states. It bolsters the right of self-defense against violent criminal attack. However, the most critical component of this legislation was adopted as a Senate committee amendment. SB 1145 restores the burden of proof in self-defense cases to the state, where it appropriately rested from Arizona's territorial days until a change was quietly inserted into the Omnibus Criminal Code Bill of 1997. This change in the law runs contrary to one of the basic tenets of the American justice system – a citizen is innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, a belief held dear for centuries. The current burden of proof in self-defense cases is unjust by every objective measure, evidenced by the fact that only one other state has a similar provision, and must be corrected immediately.
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Prosecutors enjoy the current law because it makes their jobs easier. The current system favors the conviction of an innocent citizen rather than the release of the guilty. This is contrary to the foundation of the American justice system.
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Imagine one of your constituents being attacked by a knife-welding robber outside a bank ATM. She responds by drawing her gun. The robber flees. She calls the police and reports the incident. The police respond and take her statement and her gun. The robber is located nearby, walking along the street, but no knife is found. He tells police he is glad to see them because a woman just pointed a gun at him without provocation outside the nearby bank.
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Here is what the prosecutor is faced with: If the robber is charged, the State must prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, based entirely on the victim's testimony. A unanimous jury verdict is required. That means the prosecutor must work to prove a case. But, if the prosecutor charges the victim, her statement and her gun establish an aggravated assault, thereby satisfying the State's burden. The prosecutor has no further work to do. The robber's testimony further establishes that the victim pointed a gun at him "without provocation." The victim must prove that she was justified to act in self-defense based entirely upon her testimony. She must convince each juror that she acted justifiably. The robber's extensive prior criminal record is inadmissible to prove that he attacked the victim or that she acted in self-defense. It's a "slam-dunk" for any prosecutor in our current system where legal protection for the innocent was ripped from State law in 1997.
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To stop scenarios like that from continuing to happen, you must support the passage of SB 1145 in its current from.
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Opponents of SB 1145 will claim that, if passed, it will be impossible to convict gang members of violent crimes because they will claim self-defense. Prosecutors have yet to explain how 48 other states are surviving the scourge of gangs while their states bear the burden of proof, beyond a reasonable doubt, in self-defense cases. They weakly claim that Arizona is different that other states. While this may be true of the weather, it is false as it relates to the justice system. Gang affiliation can be introduced into evidence. Many jurors, no doubt, consider this. The most significant problem with prosecuting gang crimes is finding willing witnesses, not the burden of proof.
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Again, I ask for your support and vote on this important legislation.
Sincerely,
Your Name
Street Address
City, AZ zip-code
(telephone number)
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These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Join today!
AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html
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