The bill amends Section 11-8-8 of the General Laws in Chapter 11-8, which pertains to "Burglary and Breaking and Entering." It introduces a new legal framework regarding self-defense in cases where a person dies or sustains injury while committing a criminal offense. Specifically, it establishes a rebuttable presumption that if any person dies or sustains a personal injury while in the commission of any violent criminal offense against a person, and that person is lawfully in a place they have a right to be, it shall be rebuttably presumed that the owner, tenant, or occupier of the property acted in self-defense and in the reasonable belief that the individual engaged in the criminal offense was about to inflict great bodily harm or death upon them or any other individual lawfully present in that location.

The bill also clarifies that there is no duty on the part of an owner, tenant, or occupier to retreat from any person engaged in the commission of a violent criminal offense if that person is lawfully in a place they have a right to be. This presumption applies to offenses listed in sections 11-8-2, 11-8-6, and the newly included 11-39-2. The act is set to take effect immediately upon passage.

Statutes affected:
561: 11-8-8