§ 20.01 Property and Habitation: Comparison and Contrast

§ 20.01 Property and Habitation: Comparison and Contrast

This chapter focuses on two related defenses. The first is the defense of property, which is implicated when a person uses force to prevent another person from dispossessing him of real or personal property, or in order to regain possession of the property immediately after dispossession. The second is the defense of habitation, which is involved when the dweller of a home uses force to prevent unlawful entry into the actor's "castle" by an intruder. This defense is distinguishable from the property defense in that its purpose is to safeguard the dweller's bodily security and privacy in his home; dispossession of the home or its contents need not be implicated.

Some courts and statutes treat the habitation defense as part of a broader property defense. It is easy to see why: When V enters D's home wrongfully and forcibly in order to dispossess him or to take property from within it, D simultaneously has the right to protect his property from dispossession (defense of property) and to protect his right to inhabit his home in...