Exceptions to the Florida Castle Doctrine in Jacksonville, Florida

The Florida Castle Doctrine (also referred to as the Florida Self-Defense Law and the Florida Stand Your Ground Law) govern when a person can use deadly force in Jacksonville. This doctrine is set forth in Florida Statute Section 776.013.

This Florida law creates a presumption that a person acts in reasonable fear of death or great bodily harm when confronted with certain circumstances. There are exceptions to the law. The presumption of reasonable fear does not apply if:

“(a) The person against whom the defensive force is used has the right to be in or is a lawful resident of the dwelling, residence, or vehicle, such as an owner, lessee, or titleholder, and there is not an injunction for protection from domestic violence or a written pretrial supervision order of no contact against that person; or
(b) The person or persons sought to be removed is a child or grandchild, or is otherwise in the lawful custody or under the lawful guardianship of, the person against whom the defensive force is used; or
(c) The person who uses defensive force is engaged in an unlawful activity or is using the dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle to further an unlawful activity; or
(d) The person against whom the defensive force is used is a law enforcement officer, who enters or attempts to enter a dwelling, residence, or vehicle in the performance of his or her official duties and the officer identified himself or herself in accordance with any applicable law or the person using force knew or reasonably should have known that the person entering or attempting to enter was a law enforcement officer.