New Hampshire's self-defense law is codified in RSA Chapter 627 (Justification). RSA 627:4 governs physical force in defense of a person. RSA 627:7 governs...
Reviewed by Will Luker, Founder of CCW Hub. USCCA Training Counselor, USCCA Certified Instructor, NRA Certified Instructor, Law Enforcement.
New Hampshire's self-defense law is codified in RSA Chapter 627 (Justification). RSA 627:4 governs physical force in defense of a person. RSA 627:7 governs use of force in defense of premises. RSA 627:8 governs use of force in property offenses. RSA 627:9 supplies the definitions (curtilage, deadly force, dwelling, non-deadly force) that the rest of the chapter relies on.
New Hampshire codifies both a castle-style rule for the dwelling and a stand-your-ground rule that removes the duty to retreat anywhere a person has a right to be. There is no general duty to retreat before using deadly force in lawful self-defense if the actor is somewhere they have a right to be and was not the initial aggressor. These rules are limited by the specific bars in RSA 627:4, III, discussed below.
RSA 627:4, I: "A person is justified in using non-deadly force upon another person in order to defend himself or a third person from what he reasonably believes to be the imminent use of unlawful, non-deadly force by such other person, and he may use a degree of such force which he reasonably believes to be necessary for such purpose."
That justification is lost under RSA 627:4, I(a)-(c):
RSA 627:4, II authorizes deadly force when the actor reasonably believes that the other person:
The (a) prong is the classic deadly-force-in-response-to-deadly-force rule. The (b)-(d) prongs are broader and reflect New Hampshire's burglary, sexual-assault, and felony-in-the-dwelling rules. Every prong still requires a reasonable belief, judged objectively.
"Deadly force" is defined at RSA 627:9, II as "any assault or confinement which the actor commits with the purpose of causing or which he knows to create a substantial risk of causing death or serious bodily injury." The statute adds that "Purposely firing a firearm capable of causing serious bodily injury or death in the direction of another person or at a vehicle in which another is believed to be constitutes deadly force." Firing toward a person is deadly force whether or not anyone is hit.
RSA 627:4, III opens: "A person is not justified in using deadly force on another to defend himself or herself or a third person from deadly force by the other if he or she knows that he or she and the third person can, with complete safety:"
RSA 627:4, III(a) is the no-duty-to-retreat provision: "Retreat from the encounter, except that he or she is not required to retreat if he or she is within his or her dwelling, its curtilage, or anywhere he or she has a right to be, and was not the initial aggressor."
The "anywhere he or she has a right to be" language is the stand-your-ground codification. It was added by 2011, 268:1, effective November 13, 2011, and it removes the duty to retreat that previously applied. Subject to the not-the-initial-aggressor requirement, a New Hampshire defendant who is somewhere they have a right to be need not retreat before responding with deadly force when a RSA 627:4, II condition is met.
RSA 627:4, III is not only about retreat. It lists three more ways a person can avoid deadly force "with complete safety," and if one of them is available the deadly force is not justified:
For an armed civilian, III(b) and III(c) matter in practice. If a safe alternative to deadly force exists (surrendering property to someone claiming it, or simply complying with a demand you have no legal duty to resist), deadly force is not justified, and the III(c) provocation bar independently strips the justification from someone who provoked the encounter intending to cause death or serious bodily harm.
RSA 627:4, II(d) authorizes deadly force when the assailant is "likely to use any unlawful force in the commission of a felony against the actor within such actor's dwelling or its curtilage." Inside the dwelling and its curtilage, the felony-prevention threshold is lower than the general II(a) deadly-force-in-response-to-deadly-force standard.
RSA 627:4, III(a) reinforces this by expressly carving out the dwelling and its curtilage from any duty to retreat. After the 2011 stand-your-ground amendment that no-retreat rule already extends anywhere a person has a right to be, so the dwelling carve-out is the strongest case, not the only one.
"Dwelling" is defined at RSA 627:9, III as "any building, structure, vehicle, boat or other place adapted for overnight accommodation of persons, or sections of any place similarly adapted," and "It is immaterial whether a person is actually present." "Curtilage" is defined at RSA 627:9, I as "those outbuildings which are proximately, directly and intimately connected with a dwelling, together with all the land or grounds surrounding the dwelling such as are necessary, convenient, and habitually used for domestic purposes." Whether a detached structure is curtilage turns on how proximately and habitually it is connected to and used with the dwelling.
RSA 627:4, II-a: "A person who responds to a threat which would be considered by a reasonable person as likely to cause serious bodily injury or death to the person or to another by displaying a firearm or other means of self-defense with the intent to warn away the person making the threat shall not have committed a criminal act."
This provision was added by 2010, 361:1. Displaying a firearm in response to what a reasonable person would consider an imminent threat of serious bodily injury or death, with the intent to warn the threatening person away, is not a criminal act. It shields a carrier from charges such as criminal threatening when the display is a defensive warning. RSA 627:9, IV reinforces the point at the definitional level: "The act of producing or displaying a weapon shall constitute non-deadly force." Drawing without firing is treated as non-deadly force, not deadly force.
RSA 627:4, I covers defense of "a third person" on the same terms as defense of self. The actor must reasonably believe the third person faces the imminent use of unlawful force.
For deadly force in defense of others, the RSA 627:4, II conditions apply: the actor reasonably believes the other person is about to use unlawful deadly force against the third person, is likely to use any unlawful force against a person present during a burglary, is committing or about to commit kidnapping or a forcible sex offense, or is likely to use any unlawful force in the commission of a felony against the actor within the actor's dwelling or its curtilage. The paragraph III bars, including the duty to retreat where it applies, are measured against what the actor knows about both the actor's own safety and the third person's safety.
RSA 627:7 governs defense of premises: "A person in possession or control of premises or a person who is licensed or privileged to be thereon is justified in using non-deadly force upon another when and to the extent that he reasonably believes it necessary to prevent or terminate the commission of a criminal trespass by such other in or upon such premises, but he may use deadly force under such circumstances only in defense of a person as prescribed in RSA 627:4 or when he reasonably believes it necessary to prevent an attempt by the trespasser to commit arson."
Two points follow directly from the text. First, non-deadly force to stop a criminal trespass on premises you possess, control, or are privileged to be on is broadly authorized. Second, deadly force in defense of premises is authorized on only two grounds: (1) in defense of a person, as already governed by RSA 627:4, or (2) when the actor reasonably believes it necessary to prevent an attempt by the trespasser to commit arson. The arson ground is independent. A person does not have to satisfy a RSA 627:4 trigger to use deadly force against a trespasser who is attempting arson. RSA 627:7 is a single paragraph with no subsections and no request-to-desist condition.
RSA 627:8 governs property offenses: "A person is justified in using force upon another when and to the extent that he reasonably believes it necessary to prevent what is or reasonably appears to be an unlawful taking of his property, or criminal mischief, or to retake his property immediately following its taking; but he may use deadly force under such circumstances only in defense of a person as prescribed in RSA 627:4."
Non-deadly force to stop a theft or criminal mischief, or to immediately retake taken property, is authorized. Deadly force to protect property alone is NOT authorized. Deadly force becomes available only when the situation also satisfies RSA 627:4, for example a burglary in which a person is present (627:4, II(b)) or a felony against the actor within the dwelling or curtilage (627:4, II(d)). Property value, by itself, never justifies deadly force.
The initial-aggressor doctrine bars a self-defense claim by the person who started the encounter. For non-deadly force, RSA 627:4, I(b) provides the exception: if the initial aggressor withdraws and effectively communicates the intent to withdraw, and the other party continues unlawful force, the justification is restored. This requires both an actual disengagement and a clear communication of it. The stand-your-ground rule in III(a) is likewise conditioned on the actor not being the initial aggressor.
New Hampshire does not have a freestanding statutory civil-immunity provision for defensive force comparable to those in some other states. A defendant who acted in lawful self-defense under RSA 627:4 may still be sued civilly. The justification doctrine is raised as a defense in that suit, and the outcome of any criminal matter can bear on the civil case. Treat lawful self-defense as a defense to liability, not as an automatic bar to being sued.
Federal law does not displace New Hampshire self-defense law. The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, 15 U.S.C. 7901 et seq., limits certain civil lawsuits against firearm manufacturers, distributors, dealers, and importers for harm caused by the criminal or unlawful misuse of firearms by third parties. It is an industry-liability statute. It does not change who may use force, when, or how under state law.
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