Here’s an uncomfortable truth about defensive gun use: winning the criminal case isn’t the end of it. You can be cleared of all charges, or never charged at all, and still get sued for everything you own. I’m Lance Rankin, owner of Western Sport in Roanoke, Texas, and while I’m a gunsmith and FFL rather than a lawyer, this topic comes up at my counter often enough that it deserves a straight treatment. None of this is legal advice. It’s a reason to go get some.
Two different courtrooms, two different rules
A criminal prosecutor has to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. A civil plaintiff only has to show it’s more likely than not that you were negligent. That’s a much lower bar. It means the same set of facts that gets you acquitted in criminal court can still lose you a civil case, because the jury isn’t asking whether you’re guilty of a crime. They’re asking who should pay for the harm.
Who can sue you
The obvious plaintiff is the person you shot, or their estate. Less obvious, and honestly scarier, is the innocent bystander. Say your shooting of an attacker is fully justified, but a round passes through or misses and hits someone down the hall or across the parking lot. Your justification against the attacker doesn’t shield you from a negligence claim by the bystander’s family. Their lawyer will argue you fired without accounting for what was behind your target.
That’s why the fourth rule of gun safety, know your target and what’s beyond it, is more than range wisdom. In a civil courtroom it’s the standard you’ll be measured against. It’s also why I harp on practicing in realistic conditions and thinking through your home’s angles ahead of time. My home defense setup post and the one on surviving a home invasion both touch on this.
What civil immunity statutes actually cover
Some states, Texas among them, have civil immunity laws that can get a lawsuit tossed before trial when the force you used was justified. That’s real protection and it matters. But read the fine print: these statutes generally cover claims brought by the aggressor or the aggressor’s family. They usually do nothing for you against a claim from an injured third party. Don’t let “my state has civil immunity” lull you into thinking you’re bulletproof, legally speaking.
What I’d actually do about it
A few practical moves, none of them expensive compared to a lawsuit. Look hard at a self-defense legal protection plan that covers civil defense costs, not just criminal. Get formal training and keep the certificates, because documented training is evidence you take safe gun handling seriously. Learn your state’s specific rules on duty to retreat and immunity instead of relying on gun-counter folklore, mine included. And find a self-defense attorney before you need one, because the hours right after a shooting are a terrible time to start googling. I wrote about those first hours in what to do and not do immediately after a self-defense shooting, and it pairs with this post.
Carrying a gun means accepting that the fight might not end when the threat does. Plan for the courtroom the same way you plan for the encounter. If you want to talk gear, training, or anything else, I’m at the shop most days: 817-393-4000 or [email protected].
Lance Rankin is the owner and Chief Gunsmith of Western Sport, a family-run Type 07 FFL and Class 3/SOT dealer in Roanoke, Texas, serving shooters since 2007. Born and raised in Texas with over 50 years of experience handling firearms, Lance purchased Western Sport in 2017 and turned his lifelong passion into his profession. He specializes in AR-15 and AR-10 platform rifles, manufactures Western Sport’s own AR-15 line under the Rankin Industries brand, and runs the shop’s in-house Cerakote coating operation. When he’s not behind the counter or the workbench, you’ll find him on his ranch deep into the night, hunting coyotes with an AR-15 and thermal optics. Lance holds an MBA and personally shoots and tests the products Western Sport sells.
