Manslaughter — Conviction Reversed

The defendant — accused of shooting the unarmed victim five times — faced homicide charges for shooting his brother after his brother had gone on a rampage in the family home, destroying property, bullying their mother and threatening to kill not only his family, but any police officers that might try to intervene.

• The trial judge in Sullivan County Superior Court refused to allow the defendant to claim he acted in self-defense, however, because when he shot his brother five times, his brother was unarmed.
• The Court reversed the conviction for Manslaughter!
• Right Vindicated: The right to defend oneself and one’s family with deadly force when terrorized in one’s own home.
• Read NH appeal attorney Ted Lothstein’s Brief on Appeal
• Read the Court’s Decision Overturning the Conviction. State v. Ethan Vassar,154 N.H. 370 (2006).