Legal Question in Criminal Law in Virginia

Re: minors

As with most legal matters, the courts apply a "reasonable man" standard. If you are attacked, you have the right to use "reasonable" force to defend yourself. Just because you find someone in your home you do not immediately have the right to hack the person to death with a machete just for being there. Booby traps for unwary burglars may seem right and reasonable to the average citizen but courts have pretty consistently held for the burglar in subsequent civil suits against the homeowner.

Too some extent your question is really overbroad and difficult to answer. Just remember, the question would be "what would a reasonable man do under the particular circumstances?" If you are, in fact, reasonable, you shouldn't have too much trouble coming up with a "reasonable" answer to just about every variation of the question you asked.