## Facts

- Aubrey Ivan Anderson was an invited guest in the home of Joe Alvey and Chris Wilson.
- Two men, Joe Younger and Chris Harris, forcibly broke into Alvey and Wilson’s home while Anderson was inside.
- Anderson shot Younger and Harris.
- The State charged Anderson with first-degree murder and shooting with intent to kill.
- Anderson asked the trial court to instruct the jury on Oklahoma’s statutory affirmative defense (21 O.S. § 1289.25), which allows an occupant of a dwelling to use deadly force against an unlawful intruder under specified conditions.
- The State objected, arguing the defense did not apply because Anderson was a visitor, not the homeowner or a continuous resident.
- The trial court gave the requested instruction, ruling that Anderson qualified as an “occupant” under the statute even though he was only a visitor.
- The jury found Anderson not guilty on both counts.
- After the acquittal, the State appealed only on a reserved question of law: whether “occupant” in § 1289.25 includes persons other than the homeowner or continuous resident.

## Issues

1. Whether the term “occupant,” as used in Oklahoma’s Make-My-Day statute (21 O.S. § 1289.25), includes an invited guest lawfully inside a dwelling, or is limited to the homeowner or continuous resident.

## Decision

- The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals answered the reserved question by holding that “occupant” in 21 O.S. § 1289.25 includes persons other than the homeowner or continuous resident, including lawful invited guests.
- The court explained that a State appeal on a reserved question of law does not revisit the trial evidence or disturb an acquittal; it addresses only the specific legal issue reserved.
- Because the appeal was limited to statutory meaning, the decision left Anderson’s not-guilty verdicts intact while clarifying the statute for future cases.

## Legal Principles

- A State appeal on a reserved question of law is confined to the precise legal question presented and cannot function as a review of the defendant’s acquittal or a re-litigation of the facts.
- Statutory interpretation focuses on legislative intent as expressed in the statute’s text, read in context and in light of the consequences of competing interpretations.
- The term “occupant” in 21 O.S. § 1289.25 is not limited to homeowners or continuous residents; it includes lawful invited guests inside the dwelling.
- The Make-My-Day statute’s affirmative defense is tied to lawful presence in the dwelling, not ownership or a property interest.

## Conclusion

State v. Anderson held that an invited guest may qualify as an “occupant” under Oklahoma’s Make-My-Day statute, allowing the guest to assert the statute’s affirmative defense when using deadly force against unlawful intruders; the ruling arose through a reserved-question appeal and did not affect Anderson’s acquittal.


State v. Anderson, 972 P.2d 32 (1998)