You are presuming that the owner of the vehicle threatened the occupant, instead of saying something like "that is my truck, it is stolen property, I am calling

You are presuming that the owner of the vehicle threatened the occupant, instead of saying something like "that is my truck, it is stolen property, I am calling the police to resolve this." That would not justify force on the part of the occupant of the vehicle. > Finally, theft doesn't carry the death penalty, and the people whose truck was stolen were not in danger. If the thief drew a gun they should have withdrawn. This is such a tired cliche. All consequences follow from the criminal's initial action. If things escalate to the point where the criminal aggressor is pulling a gun, they have just made deadly force appropriate. Because that isn't theft, that's aggravated assault and an imminent threat of death.