take the law into own hands

take the law into your own hands

to do something illegal in order to punish someone because you know that the law will not punish that person. One day, after years of violent abuse from her husband, she decided to take the law into her own hands.

See also: hand, law, take

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take the law into your own hands

to do something illegal in order to punish someone. Her mother took the law into her own hands when she heard that her child had been abused. She decided to take the law into her own hands and rescue the dog from its owner, who beat it.

Usage notes: usually said about someone who does something because they believe that the authorities will not take action

take something into your own hands

See also: hand, law, take