Crossbow Self-Defense Case Shows the Law Isn't Just About Guns

A Mercer County, Pennsylvania prosecutor has cleared a person of charges in the September crossbow shooting death of 24-year-old Billy Colwell, ruling the killing was self-defense during a domestic incident in Sharon.

Key points

• The incident: Police responded to a domestic disturbance in Sharon early on September 24 and found Colwell with a crossbow bolt wound to the chest; he died at a hospital.
• The ruling: Mercer County District Attorney Jacob Sander announced that the shooter acted in self-defense and will not face charges.
• What's missing: Bearing Arms notes officials haven't released who fired the crossbow, their relationship to Colwell, or details of the underlying dispute, and likely never will since no charges are being filed.
• The weapon angle: Bearing Arms points out that self-defense law generally doesn't restrict the tool used, contrasting this with New Jersey's current ban on carrying anything but a firearm or chemical spray for self-defense, a law now facing a legal challenge.

Quick take

The specifics of this case are thin by design, since a no-charges outcome means no public record gets built. But the legal principle underneath it is standard self-defense doctrine: a reasonable belief in imminent deadly threat justifies deadly force, whatever happens to be in your hands. Bearing Arms is right that this won't spawn concealed crossbow legislation, but it's a solid reminder that the right to self-defense isn't a firearms-only conversation.

Read the full story: bearingarms.com