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Posted by Microgunner: I think we've given in enough.
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I'm not aware of any real shift in the dynamics of murder trials and defenses of justifications over the years.
Yes, the realities of pursuit and capture and of the kinds of crimes classified as felonies have strongly limited the justification for shooting a fleeing felon.
But on the other hand, the centuries-old duty to retreat has been somewhat relaxed.
But when and where was it ever lawful for a citizen to use more force than was necessary for self defense?
There's really not a lot of difference between the pertinent legal principles that were in effect in Colonial Williamsburg and those extant in twent-first century Virginia.
The idea that we are now somehow constrained by having to avoid willfully causing excessive harm to someone else than were our ancestors is, I think, a figment of popular imagination.