“If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him; for he should make full restitution; if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.”
But if it happens after sunrise, the defender is guilty of bloodshed. A thief who is caught must pay, but if they have nothing, they must be sold to pay for their theft. The daylight distinction changes the calculus: a daytime intruder can be seen, identified, and restrained without lethal force. The killing of a daytime thief is disproportionate — it is not justified self-defense but an excessive response to a property crime. The thief who cannot pay is sold — not executed — demonstrating that the law values human life above property even for the guilty. The principle that theft is a property crime redeemable by labor rather than a capital offense reflects the law's hierarchy of values: human life is worth more than property.
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