Massachusetts is not known as a bastion of gun rights, and the state Supreme Judicial Court has a checkered history of not respecting the Second Amendment.
That’s why this week’s ruling in a case involving a mall shooting is refreshing. The high court ruled in favor of a defendant who accidentally shot a bystander while attempting to defend himself from a violent criminal.
Intended victim accidentally shot a bystander while defending himself from an attacker
Kenneth Santana-Rodriguez was charged with first-degree murder after a January 2023 incident in which he used his firearm in self-defense. Irving Sanchez reportedly initiated the confrontation by brandishing a weapon, prompting Santana-Rodriguez to respond in kind.
The intended victim fired a shot that killed an innocent bystander.
The defendant was charged and convicted of first-degree murder, and he appealed to the high court. Justices determined that Santana-Rodriguez could claim “self-defense to justify the death of an unintended victim.”
Self-defense rights had their day in court—and won
The court wrote: “We conclude that a defendant’s lawful self-defense against an assailant may excuse the killing of an unintended victim, such as an innocent bystander. This is not, however, a defense to wanton or reckless conduct. A defendant may therefore be held criminally liable for the lesser included offense of involuntary manslaughter if the Commonwealth proves that a defendant’s exercise of self-defense was wanton or reckless so as to create a high degree of likelihood that substantial harm would result to the unintended victim.”
The Gun Owners Action League (GOAL), which represented Santana-Rodriguez, celebrated “a complete and total victory for lawful self-defense in the Commonwealth.”
GOAL Attorney Daniel Hagan noted that for the first time in Massachusetts’ 250-year history, “the court has made clear that those who act lawfully to defend their own lives are not to be treated as murderers for a tragic accident beyond their control.”
Prosecutors may yet pursue an involuntary manslaughter charge, though that is not a certainty and is far preferable to first-degree murder.
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