[Arvon]

Found this today...
British government lawyers arguing to deny
parole to imprisoned Norfolk farmer Tony Martin claimed May 1 that burglars are members of the public who must be protected from violent householders. Martin's rural home had been burglarized and robbed at least two dozen times when on the night of Aug. 21,1999, he heard burglars and confronted them with a shotgun. He wounded one thief and killed another, A third criminal escaped.
Despite the fact that the three burglars had been hauled before the court on criminal offences more than 110 times between them, it was Tony Martin who was prosecuted with the greatest zeal. He was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison. The conviction was later reduced to manslaughter and a five-year prison sentence.
Home Office lawyers disputed Martin's contention that he poses no risk to the public because he only represents a threat to burglars and other criminals who trespass on his property.
According to The Independent, Martin's legal-representatives attacked the decision "to use the case as a platform for setting out its position on burglars' rights," and said any risk Martin poses "is significantly diminished since he no longer owns a gun and has agreed to fit an air-raid siren to his home,"
Legal experts say the case for treating criminals as ordinary litigants will have been boosted by the arguments raised by the Home Office lawyers in the Martin case.