Can you plead self defence if you kill a copper in self defence?

Totally depends on the evidence,and your attorney proving to the court that you had no choice and your life was truly in danger.
But most courts are always going to takes the cops side of the story before anyone elses,better hope there is a ton of evidence in your favour.

Let us know how your trial turns out.

Self defense pleas are difficult in the most obvious of circumstances, but such a plea against a policeman would be exceptionally hard to win. The facts would have to totally unambiguous and irrefutable.

Keep in mind that in the US (not sure about other countries) there is usually very tight cooperation between the police department and the DA’s (prosecutor’s) office, and your ability to defend yourself by showing police misconduct would be doubly hard.

Not impossible, but very difficult.

highly unlikely, which is a shame since cops are known for higher rates of domestic violence.

The outlook is very poor as police tend to cover each others backs. There would almost have to be a video and a Judge and your Attorney standing next to you when the incident occurs.

If it was truly self defense what choice do you have. I’d much rather be around to defend my actions than be dead.

Not if the officer is wearing a uniform or is otherwise identifiable as a police officer. There is an assumed defense for law enforcement if someone does not submit. Anything less is considered resisting arrest and failure to cooperate.

What if I say that, because of the rampant and epidemic police brutality, corruption and abuse of power, I am therefore justified in presuming such when a pig uses violence against me?
Alternatively, what if I say I thought the pig to be an impostor because he refused to show me his ID card?

You can plead whatever you want but it’s not likely to get you anywhere.

@ragingloli – that won’t get you anywhere, Making broadbased, unproven, and insulting comments about corruption and power is highly unlikely to you any sympathy.

Wouldn’t that be nice?

This entire question makes it premeditated so I wouldn’t recommend trying to kill a cop in the future. Even if it’s in self defense.

@ragingloli Wouldn’t an imposter be preferable to a real pig?

The legal principle that would be investigated here is that of “proportionate force”. You are innocent until proven guilty, but chances are a trained police officer had good reason to be in a conflict situation with you in the first place. For you to use force against a police officer is a crime in itself, and if things got that out of hand you were likely resisting arrest also.

Therefore you must prove that the officer’s use of force was unwarranted AND that your own use of force was proportionate to the threat posed by the officer. I dare say that unless you had no criminal record, did not fit the description of a suspect in any reported crimes in the area, and that you attempted to remove yourself from the situation peacefully, your case would amount to zero.

You wouldn’t get a fair trial.

The presumption is is that the police are credible and moral actors who perform their duties in good faith.

It doesn’t even matter when it’s caught on video. I remember a few years ago the first time I saw video footage of a policeman shooting an unarmed man from point-blank range. As far as I know, the cop wasn’t charged at all.

Since then, I’ve seen dozens of videos of police shooting and beating to death people who pose little to no immediate mortal threat. I was also acquainted with someone online who shot multiple times and paralysed by cops (as far as I know, he successfully sued) and who later died from his resulting ill-health and injuries a year or so later.

In almost every case, the cop gets to claim self-defence and the case rarely ever goes to criminal trial.

The opposite is practically unheard of. I don’t think there’s any precedent of anyone successfully pleading self-defence in the killing of a cop.

I can imagine some scenarios where you may succeed in a self-defence plea. The key is to have a higher social status than a typical police man—like a CEO, rich banker, or a
high-profile public official. The difference is is that the police protect those people, rather than threaten them with death.

You would need video and several credible witnesses that indicate that your were being attacked by a crazy, drugged-up, out of control cop for no good reason. In such a case I think that a reasonable jury would would likely conclude that you were defending yourself and vote that you are not guilty murder.

@gondwanalon – but that is one great big huge set of IFs—

if the copy were:
crazy
drugged up
out of control
no good reason

(your words)

What sort of proof will you have?

@elbanditoroso This question is a what if question. So that’s how I answered it.

You can plead it, but don’t hold your breath on it working, even if it were true.