We are very pleased to report that Senator Richard Alloway has introduced the “Castle Doctrine” Bill in the Pennsylvania Senate. Introduced as Senate Bill 842, it would, according to the NRA, “permit law-abiding citizens to use force, including deadly force, against an attacker in their homes and any places outside of their home where they have a legal right to be. It is clearly stated that there would be no “duty to retreat” from an attacker, allowing law-abiding citizens to stand their ground to protect themselves and their family. SB842 would also protect individuals from civil lawsuits by the attacker or the attacker’s family when force is used. ”
This bill stands a good chance of getting heard and passed out of committee if we look at the composition of the Senate Judiciary Committee, but only if we make our voices heard. Below is a list of committee members with links to contact information, along with their NRA grades, to aid in messaging.
Majority (R)
- Greenleaf (chair), B rated
- White (vice chair), A rated
- Browne, A- rated
- Earll, A rated
- Gordner, A rated
- Orie, A rated
- Piccola, A+ rated
- Rafferty, A rated
Minority (D)
Please contact the committee members, and ask that they support this bill. The question will be where Stu Greenleaf is going to stand on this bill, and whether he’ll want to bring it up. But pretty clearly, we have a lot of highly rated Republicans on this committee, and we could do worse with the Democrats, so it has a good chance. Let’s get it passed, get it on Rendell’s desk. Even if he vetoes it, we can make it a campaign issue in the 2010 Governor’s race.
