VA · jury_instructions
Va. Model Jury Instr. Crim. No. 52.515
Defense of Property
A person is entitled to use force for the protection of [his/her] property, but the force used must
be reasonable in relation to the harm threatened. [Force that endangers human life or does great
bodily harm, or that threatens human life or great bodily harm, is an unreasonable use of force when
used in defense of property.] You must decide whether the use of force by (name of defendant) was
reasonable under all of the particular circumstances of this case to protect [his/her] property.
If you find that the defendant used reasonable force in defense of property, then you shall find
the defendant not guilty.
History
Virginia Model Jury Instructions – Criminal, Release 26, October 2025. The unannotated set, posted by the Supreme Court of Virginia at vacourts.gov; the book states that it is made available with the permission of the publisher, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc.
Provenance
- Source
- vacourts.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-11
- Edition
- crim-2025-10-01
- Content hash
1c5fb366b00337acdcedfab953ca34838b2953dffb27f72794f6d9e166eefb5c
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