MIAMI – Florida State Sen. Chris Smith, frustrated by what he calls “stalling” by Gov. Rick Scott following the shooting death of unarmed teen Trayvon Martin, is launching a task force to review the controversial law at the center of the case.
“Instead of waiting on the governor to act, I’ve decided to lead in the state of Florida,” the Fort Lauderdale Democrat said Tuesday. “I’ve assembled a task force to look at the controversial Stand Your Ground law.”
The governor created a task force to review Stand Your Ground two weeks ago, but has said the group will not convene until after the investigation into the Trayvon Martin shooting is completed.
Отметим, что нет еще хорового вопля про оружие – соответствующие энтузиасты пока заняты криками про профайлинг.
Еще про Stand Your Ground:
In addition, the media has consistently described the laws incorrectly. The “Stand Your Ground” or “Castle Doctrine” laws replaced the original requirement to retreat with a “reasonable person” standard, that a reasonable person would believe that a criminal intends to inflict serious bodily harm or death. For example, you can’t shoot a fleeing criminal in the back. You can’t provoke the attacker into attacking. You can’t use unnecessary force to stop the attack. Anyone who thinks that the law lets them “shoot first, ask questions later” will end up jail.
The Washington Post’s description is almost laughable, claiming the law “immunizes an individual from criminal charges if he asserts he had a ‘reasonable’ fear of grave harm.” It isn’t that the individual firing the gun who gets to say that he had a “reasonable” fear.
Ultimately, a judge or jurors get to decide if the fear was reasonable.
The Wall Street Journal ran a story implying that the increase in justifiable homicides from 176 in 2000 to 326 in 2010 arose from a ‘shoot first’ mentality. But the article fails to acknowledge that the laws increased the number simply by changing what is classified as self-defense. The important issue here is whether the law increased total murders.
Mirrored from Gears and Springs.