By Funmilayo Olagunju
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Black’s Law dictionary defines Self-defense as the use of force to protect oneself, one’s family, or one’s property from a real or threatened attack. Generally, a person is justified in using a reasonable amount of force in self-defense is he or she believes that the danger of bodily harm is imminent and that force is necessary to avoid this danger.
From ancient times, the concept of seeking self-protection against an attacker is justified in reasonable circumstances. The Latin maxim “vim vi repellere licet” captures this principle. It means it is lawful to repel violence with violence.
By the provision of Section 33(2) of the 1999 Constitution, the use of reasonable force permitted by Law for self defense is an exception to the right to life.
Sections 286-293 of the Criminal Code Act make provisions for self-defense. It is worthy of note that while defending a property or seeking to reclaim it, harm must not be done to a trespasser.
In the case of MOHAMMED V. STATE (2020) LPELR-50919(CA), the Court stated as follows:
“The defence of self defence is clearly a child of necessity. It is a defence that is not pleaded as a matter of course, but one in which the defendant is expected to establish that he was at the time of the killing in reasonable apprehension of death to himself or grievous harm and that it was necessary at the time to use the force which resulted in the death of the deceased in order to preserve his life. As an important aspect of the force used by the defendant must be shown to be proportionate to the force used or imminently threatened against him and reasonable in the circumstances in which it was used. The defense of self-defense, of course is not available where the person attacked used a greater degree of force than was necessary in repelling the attack.”
It is not every retaliatory or vindictive attack that constitutes self-defense.
“If a thief is caught breaking in at night and is struck a fatal blow, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed; but if it happens after sunrise, the defender is guilty of bloodshed.”
Exodus 22:2-3.