Ohio law allows you to use force in self-defense, defense of another, or defense of your residence. You have no duty to retreat first if you are in a...
Reviewed by Will Luker, Founder of CCW Hub. USCCA Training Counselor, USCCA Certified Instructor, NRA Certified Instructor, Law Enforcement.
Ohio law allows you to use force in self-defense, defense of another, or defense of your residence. You have no duty to retreat first if you are in a place where you lawfully have a right to be. If trial evidence tends to support self-defense, the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you did not act in self-defense.
The statute text quoted in this section says "a person." It does not mention a concealed handgun license or permitless carry. The burden rule applies at the trial of a person accused of an offense that involved the person's use of force against another. For purposes of any Revised Code provision that sets forth a criminal offense, a person has no duty to retreat in a residence or anywhere else the person lawfully has a right to be. The rules also cover force used to protect another person, not only yourself.
R.C. 2901.05(B)(1) allows a person to act in self-defense, defense of another, or defense of that person's residence. Once trial evidence tends to support any of those defenses, the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused did not act in that defense. The accused does not carry the burden of proving self-defense.
The Revised Code does not set out the elements of when deadly force is justified in self-defense, such as a reasonable belief of imminent danger, and those elements come from Ohio case law apart from the residence and vehicle presumption. That presumption is the subject of our Ohio Castle Doctrine section.
The same structure applies to defense of another. Statute authorizes force in defense of another and puts the burden on the prosecution under R.C. 2901.05(B)(1). The conduct standard for when force in defense of another is permitted is not set out in the Revised Code and comes from Ohio case law.
On retreat, you have no duty to retreat before using force in self-defense, defense of another, or defense of your residence if you are lawfully present, R.C. 2901.09(B). A trier of fact shall not consider the possibility of retreat when deciding whether you reasonably believed the force was necessary, R.C. 2901.09(C).
Having read O.R.C. 2901.05 in full, the statute that would carry such a rule, we found no Ohio statute that sets a standard for using force other than deadly force to defend a person. The R.C. 2901.05(B)(2) presumption covers only defensive force that is intended or likely to cause death or great bodily harm, and force short of that is judged under the general self-defense rule without the presumption.
Ohio adds a presumption for the places you occupy. A person is presumed to have acted in self-defense or defense of another when using deadly or great-bodily-harm-level force against someone unlawfully entering the residence or vehicle the person occupies. Our Ohio Castle Doctrine section sets that presumption out in full, including the places it protects and the entries that trigger it.
The presumption does not apply if either of these is true:
The presumption is rebuttable by a preponderance of the evidence, R.C. 2901.05(B)(4). Even so, the prosecution's burden of proof remains proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
Each row states one rule and where it comes from.
| Rule | What the law says | Citation |
|---|---|---|
| Self-defense | A person is allowed to act in self-defense; the deadly force elements come from case law | R.C. 2901.05(B)(1) |
| Defense of another | A person is allowed to act in defense of another; the conduct standard comes from case law | R.C. 2901.05(B)(1) |
| Burden of proof | Once evidence tends to support the defense, the prosecution must disprove it beyond a reasonable doubt | R.C. 2901.05(B)(1) |
| Duty to retreat | No duty to retreat where you lawfully have a right to be | R.C. 2901.09(B) |
| Retreat as a factor | A trier of fact shall not consider the possibility of retreat | R.C. 2901.09(C) |
| Residence and vehicle | Presumed self-defense for deadly force against an unlawful entrant | R.C. 2901.05(B)(2) |
| Rebutting the presumption | Rebuttable by a preponderance of the evidence | R.C. 2901.05(B)(4) |
The statute text quoted in this section speaks of "a person." It does not mention a concealed handgun license or permitless carry. What Ohio's training requirement does reach is the license itself: an applicant must submit a competency certification and a certification of having read the safety pamphlet before a license can issue, R.C. 2923.125(D)(1)(l).
No, if you are in a place where you lawfully have a right to be. Ohio law states that you have no duty to retreat before using force in self-defense, defense of another, or defense of your residence in that place, R.C. 2901.09(B).
The trier of fact shall not consider the possibility of retreat when deciding whether you reasonably believed the force was necessary, R.C. 2901.09(C).
No. Once evidence at trial tends to support self-defense, the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you did not act in self-defense, R.C. 2901.05(B)(1).
You are presumed to have acted in self-defense when using deadly or great-bodily-harm-level force against someone unlawfully entering the vehicle you occupy, R.C. 2901.05(B)(2). The prosecution may rebut that presumption by a preponderance of the evidence, R.C. 2901.05(B)(4).
The presumption does not apply where the other person has a right to be in, or is a lawful resident of, the residence or vehicle, or where the person using the force is themselves unlawfully present there, R.C. 2901.05(B)(3). Without the presumption, the prosecution still must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you did not act in self-defense once evidence tends to support it, R.C. 2901.05(B)(1).
Ohio statute states that a person is allowed to act in defense of another, R.C. 2901.05(B)(1). The standard for when that force is permitted comes from Ohio case law, not the Revised Code.
This page covers one part of our Ohio concealed carry guide.
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