Self-Defense Laws in Minnesota

Minnesota imposes a duty to retreat when reasonably possible; the rule comes from case law, not the statute. The Minnesota Supreme Court reads the self-defense statute (§ 609.06, subd. 1(3)) to include four elements, the fourth being 'the absence of a reasonable possibility of retreat to avoid the danger.' In State v. Blevins (July 31, 2024), the court held that this judicially created duty applies to a person claiming self-defense who committed felony second-degree assault-fear with a device designed as a weapon capable of producing death or great bodily harm. Intentionally taking a life is authorized only when necessary to resist or prevent an offense the actor reasonably believes exposes the actor or another to great bodily harm or death, or to prevent a felony in the actor's place of abode (§ 609.065).

There is no duty to retreat from one's own home when acting in self-defense in the home, 'regardless of whether the aggressor is a co-resident' (State v. Glowacki, 630 N.W.2d 392, 402 (Minn. 2001), as quoted in Blevins). The lack of a duty to retreat does not remove the requirement that force be reasonable. In State v. Devens (Minn. 2014) the court declined to extend the castle doctrine to an apartment hallway. By statute, deadly force may be used to prevent 'the commission of a felony in the actor's place of abode' (§ 609.065). A person lawfully in possession of property may use reasonable force to resist a trespass or unlawful interference (§ 609.06, subd. 1(4)).