Laws to protect yourself in your home -, Albany News, Weather,
Sports  Laws to protect yourself in your home  October 23, 2003
Albany- No one likes to think about their home being
burglarized. Especially if you're inside. But there are things
you can do to protect yourself.  "Obviously the best thing is
for people to have burglar alarms and that sort of thing," said
Dougherty County District Attorney Ken Hodges.  Many security
systems monitor homes 24 hours a day. And it never hurts to have
a dog, of any size. But if you do catch someone in your house,
you can't use deadly force to protect your property .  "If you
flip on your light and see somebody in your house and they turn
to run the other way, you can't shoot them in the back or
something like that," Hodges said.  The law does allows people
to have a concealed gun in their home or business.  "Anyone,
other than a convicted felon can have a gun in their home. They
don't have to have a permit for it or anything. Doesn't matter
if it's a shotgun, rifle or a