Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
He was burgled on a Tuesday night. On the Wednesday night, they came back. He had a legally held shotgun, and he used it. Then he spent the next 26 months waiting to find out if he'd go to prison for it.
On 1 May 2024, police were called to Mosley Hall Farm near Whaley Bridge at around 1.20am. Nineteen-year-old Marcus Smith was found dead inside the property from a gunshot wound. The farmer, Rob Lomas, 52, was arrested on suspicion of murder — and then released on bail, where he stayed for over two years.
This week the CPS confirmed there will be no charges. In their words, this was a householder who discharged a legally held firearm when confronted with burglars in his home, and the decision was made in accordance with the law surrounding a householder's right to defend themselves. Three men still face proceedings for burglary — both for that night and for a break-in at the same farm the night before.
So the law worked. Eventually. But it took 26 months, and I want to talk about what those 26 months actually mean — and about what the law genuinely permits, because almost everyone gets this wrong.
In this video:
The timeline — two burglaries in two nights at a remote Peak District farm
What the CPS actually said, and why the wording matters
The householder defence explained — the "grossly disproportionate" test under Section 76, and what it really means
Why "reasonable force" isn't what most people think it is — and why you're judged on what you believed at the time
The Tony Martin comparison, and why this case landed differently
The 26 months — when the process itself becomes the punishment
A word about Marcus Smith, his mum, and why nobody should be celebrating here
Here's my thesis: two things are true at once. A man was entitled to defend his home, and a nineteen-year-old is dead and his mother is grieving. Anyone telling you this is a simple story is selling you something. But if the law is genuinely on the householder's side — and the CPS has just confirmed it is — then explain to me why it takes 26 months to say so.
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🔔 Subscribe for straight-talking legal and security awareness from someone who's spent 23 years on the front line
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#SelfDefence #HouseholderDefence #UKLaw #ReasonableForce #HomeDefence #ThatGearGuy #UKNews #KnowYourRights #Burglary #LegalAwareness
He was burgled on a Tuesday night. On the Wednesday night, they came back. He had a legally held shotgun, and he used it. Then he spent the next 26 months waiting to find out if he'd go to prison for it.
On 1 May 2024, police were called to Mosley Hall Farm near Whaley Bridge at around 1.20am. Nineteen-year-old Marcus Smith was found dead inside the property from a gunshot wound. The farmer, Rob Lomas, 52, was arrested on suspicion of murder — and then released on bail, where he stayed for over two years.
This week the CPS confirmed there will be no charges. In their words, this was a householder who discharged a legally held firearm when confronted with burglars in his home, and the decision was made in accordance with the law surrounding a householder's right to defend themselves. Three men still face proceedings for burglary — both for that night and for a break-in at the same farm the night before.
So the law worked. Eventually. But it took 26 months, and I want to talk about what those 26 months actually mean — and about what the law genuinely permits, because almost everyone gets this wrong.
In this video:
The timeline — two burglaries in two nights at a remote Peak District farm
What the CPS actually said, and why the wording matters
The householder defence explained — the "grossly disproportionate" test under Section 76, and what it really means
Why "reasonable force" isn't what most people think it is — and why you're judged on what you believed at the time
The Tony Martin comparison, and why this case landed differently
The 26 months — when the process itself becomes the punishment
A word about Marcus Smith, his mum, and why nobody should be celebrating here
Here's my thesis: two things are true at once. A man was entitled to defend his home, and a nineteen-year-old is dead and his mother is grieving. Anyone telling you this is a simple story is selling you something. But if the law is genuinely on the householder's side — and the CPS has just confirmed it is — then explain to me why it takes 26 months to say so.
——————————————
🔔 Subscribe for straight-talking legal and security awareness from someone who's spent 23 years on the front line
——————————————
#SelfDefence #HouseholderDefence #UKLaw #ReasonableForce #HomeDefence #ThatGearGuy #UKNews #KnowYourRights #Burglary #LegalAwareness
