Some folks out there have the apparent impression that dead guys can’t sue. This is not true except in the most narrow technical sense. Dead guys sue people all the time — or rather, their estates do. And so do their surviving loved ones. It’s called a Wrongful Death Lawsuit, and it’s one of the most common types of lawsuits in America.

Other people have the apparent impression that dead guys can’t testify against you in court. This may be technically true — but the physical evidence left on scene, including the dead guy’s body, certainly can and will testify to the facts of what happened.

For some reason, these two myths just won’t die in the self defense community. It’s probably because they reflect a strong desire to make the attacker pay for the things he and others like him have done over the years.

But as I’ve said before, self defense isn’t about justice. It’s not about fairness. It’s not about punishing the bad guy. It’s just about survival. It’s just about staying alive until the authorities arrive to clean up the mess and haul the bad guys off to jail. That’s it, that’s all, end of story. All the fancy lawyer words on the books pretty much amount to making sure that when you use deadly force in self defense, self defense is your entire purpose and goal.

The only way to protect yourself from a bad outcome in either type of court, civil or criminal, is to be absolutely righteous in your actions when you defend yourself in the first place. Guard your mindset so that your plan and your goals always stay on the right side of the law, and your actions will most likely follow.

If you’re not sure how to do that, the first step is to do your homework. Learn the law and how it applies to you.