Mich. Comp. Laws » Michigan Compiled Laws / Chapter 780 / Act 309 of 2006
Michigan Compiled Laws

Mich. Comp. Laws § 780.971 (2026)

Short title.

✓ current as of July 2026
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SELF-DEFENSE ACT


Act 309 of 2006


780.971 Short title.

Sec. 1.

    This act shall be known and may be cited as the "self-defense act".

History: 2006, Act 309, Eff. Oct. 1, 2006

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 140 cases (59 in the last 5 years), 2008–2026 · leading case: People v. Reese, 815 N.W.2d 85 (Mich. 2012).
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People v. Reese, 815 N.W.2d 85 (Mich. 2012). · cites it 2× “In 2006, the Legislature enacted the Self-Defense Act, MCL 780.971 et seq. This Court has not interpreted the act beyond stating that it does not apply to crimes committed before the act’s effective date, see Dupree, 486 Mich at 708 .”
People v. Dupree, 788 N.W.2d 399 (Mich. 2010). · cites it 2× “[ [19] ] With the enactment of the Self-Defense Act (SDA), MCL 780.971 et seq., the Legislature codified the circumstances in which a person may use deadly force in self-defense or in defense of another person without having the duty to retreat.”
People v. Guajardo, 832 N.W.2d 409 (Mich. Ct. App. 2013). “In 2006, the Legislature enacted the Self-Defense Act (SDA), MCL 780.971 et seq. Effective October 1, 2006, the SDA “codified the circumstances in which a person may use deadly force in self-defense or in defense of another person without having the duty to retreat.”
People v. Orlewicz, 809 N.W.2d 194 (Mich. Ct. App. 2011). “The Self-Defense Act, MCL 780.971 et seq., which became effective before the killing in this case, continues to require an honest and reasonable belief of imminent death or harm.”
People v. Conyer, 762 N.W.2d 198 (Mich. Ct. App. 2008). “1 Defense counsel requested that the trial court instruct the jury, consistently with the recently enacted Self-Defense Act (SDA), MCL 780.971 et seq., that defendant did not have a duty to retreat before he engaged in defense of himself or of someone else under the…”
Jeremy Hoven v. Walgreen Co., 751 F.3d 778 (6th Cir. 2014). “Mich. Comp. Laws § 780.971 et seq. Moreover, unlike § 780.”
People v. Goree, 819 N.W.2d 82 (Mich. Ct. App. 2012). “Because the incident underlying Dupree occurred before the 2006 enactment of the self-defense act (SDA), MCL 780.971 et seq., the Court applied the common-law *304 defense.”
People of Michigan v. Theodore Paul Wafer (Mich. 2018). · cites it 2× “16, each of which is consistent with the Self-Defense Act, MCL 780.971 et seq.2 1 A medical expert testified that at the time of this incident, the deceased had “very high alcohol levels,” “active marijuana in her system,” and likely suffered a concussion in the car accident a…”
People Of Mi V Micheline Nicole Leffew (Mich. 2022). · cites it 2× “The Court of Appeals distinguished Dupree on the basis that it was decided before the effective date of the Self- Defense Act (SDA), MCL 780.971 et seq. But this analysis misread Dupree and the SDA.”
People of Michigan v. Micheline Nicole Leffew (Mich. 2022). · cites it 2× “The Court of Appeals distinguished Dupree on the basis that it was decided before the effective date of the Self- Defense Act (SDA), MCL 780.971 et seq. But this analysis misread Dupree and the SDA.”
People of Michigan v. Jeremiah James Leffew (Mich. 2022). · cites it 2× “The Court of Appeals distinguished Dupree on the basis that it was decided before the effective date of the Self- Defense Act (SDA), MCL 780.971 et seq. But this analysis misread Dupree and the SDA.”
People of Michigan v. Deneko Alfred Childs (Mich. Ct. App. 2024). · cites it 2× ““With the enactment of the Self–Defense Act (SDA), MCL 780.971 et seq., the Legislature codified the circumstances in which a person may use deadly force in self-defense .”
Show all 140 citing cases →
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 780.971(1) — 1 case
People of Michigan v. Deneko Alfred Childs (Mich. Ct. App. 2024). ““With the enactment of the Self–Defense Act (SDA), MCL 780.971 et seq., the Legislature codified the circumstances in which a person may use deadly force in self-defense .”
— Mich. Comp. Laws § 780.971(2) — 1 case
People of Michigan v. Chantal Lorily Lister (Mich. Ct. App. 2024).
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