The justices responsible cite 'current Fourth Amendment jurisprudence' in their decision- said 'jurisprudence' ignores both the letter, and the intent, of the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution, and the substantially similar Article 1, Section 11, of the Indiana State Constitution. It also ignores the current laws of your state, which permit the use of reasonable force for such purpose, and which only prohibit the forcible resistance of lawful police acts.
This decision violates nearly 800 years of legal precedent, from the Magna Carta of 1215 to, most recently, a United States Supreme Court ruling in 1948 (one of two such rulings in the 20th century) authorizing the use of reasonable force to resist such unlawful entry of a home by police. I write to you to express my severe outrage regarding a recent decision of the Indiana Supreme Court, and to implore you to take action in this matter.Īs you are undoubtedly aware, on Thursday the 12th of this month, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled that a private person is not entitled to forcibly resist the burglary of his home by law enforcement officers acting under 'the color of law'.
