I'll vote for whoever the Democratic nominee is for FL governor but I think they're all making a mistake when they say they wish to fully repeal the Stand Your Ground law. I wish they would consider adjusting or overhauling it. SYG is popular for a reason. Some overzealous prosecutors were intent on denying citizens any right to defend themslves and SYG was intended, at least in part, to get them under control. These are the same kind of prosecutors who would rather keep an innocent person in prison instead of admit a mistake. I agree with many that the recent tragedy in a Clearwater parking lot was a severe abuse of the law but I believe that a sizable majority of voters will fear being stripped of their right to self defense and Repubs will seize that issue. Adjust, not repeal.
Self defense has been legitimate defense against a murder charge long before Stand Your Ground was enacted and will be long after Stand Your Ground is repealed. The Stand Your Ground law added only one thing to the self defense laws. That is ".....and does not have a duty to retreat". Now, if a person feels threatened by another, he has the right to kill that person even if he or she has the ability to exit or diffuse the situation without harm, which practically negates the "imminent threat" aspect of self defense. It makes a situation like the murder of Markeis McGlockton defensible because, even though McGlockton raised his hands and began to back away when he saw that Michael Drejka had a gun, the Stand Your Ground law allowed Drejka to say he perceived that his life was in imminent danger, even though the evidence clearly shows that he was not. Stand Your Ground must be repealed in its whole. The ONLY times I have known that Stand Your Ground has been used as a defense has been in situations where an unarmed person was literally executed by another.
3 comments:
I'll vote for whoever the Democratic nominee is for FL governor but I think they're all making a mistake when they say they wish to fully repeal the Stand Your Ground law. I wish they would consider adjusting or overhauling it.
SYG is popular for a reason. Some overzealous prosecutors were intent on denying citizens any right to defend themslves and SYG was intended, at least in part, to get them under control. These are the same kind of prosecutors who would rather keep an innocent person in prison instead of admit a mistake.
I agree with many that the recent tragedy in a Clearwater parking lot was a severe abuse of the law but I believe that a sizable majority of voters will fear being stripped of their right to self defense and Repubs will seize that issue. Adjust, not repeal.
Self defense has been legitimate defense against a murder charge long before Stand Your Ground was enacted and will be long after Stand Your Ground is repealed. The Stand Your Ground law added only one thing to the self defense laws. That is ".....and does not have a duty to retreat". Now, if a person feels threatened by another, he has the right to kill that person even if he or she has the ability to exit or diffuse the situation without harm, which practically negates the "imminent threat" aspect of self defense. It makes a situation like the murder of Markeis McGlockton defensible because, even though McGlockton raised his hands and began to back away when he saw that Michael Drejka had a gun, the Stand Your Ground law allowed Drejka to say he perceived that his life was in imminent danger, even though the evidence clearly shows that he was not. Stand Your Ground must be repealed in its whole. The ONLY times I have known that Stand Your Ground has been used as a defense has been in situations where an unarmed person was literally executed by another.
Correction McGlockton did not put his hands up but rather out to his sides. He was clearly unarmed and defenseless against a firearm.
Post a Comment