Research Paper – Stand Your Ground
On the evening of February 26, 2012 a 17-year old unarmed boy, Trayvon Martin, was shot and killed in Sanford, Florida. Trayvon was killed by a man named Andrew Zimmerman, who stated that self-defense justified the murder of this young boy. An individual who doesn’t know the background of this case would reasonably believe that Trayvon Martin may have attacked Zimmerman, in which he used self-defense. However, Zimmerman was the initial aggressor in this case, whereas he sought after Trayvon Martin for reasons of suspicion. At Zimmerman’s trial on July 13, 2013 the jury reached a verdict of “not guilty” of the murder of Trayvon Martin. So we ask, how does one become acquitted of a murder on self-defense,
…show more content…
This is not an upcoming issue; this has been around for years since these laws have taken effect in the 24 states. Throughout the nation there are documented cases where stand-your-ground laws have caused controversy and suspects were acquitted of criminal charges. There are a few significant cases that represent the threat and repercussions posed by these SYG laws. One of these cases took place in Houston, Texas in November 2007. A 61- year old man named Joe Horn made a 911 call stating that there were two burglars in the home next door. Despite Horn being instructed to stay in his home by the 911 dispatcher, he still remained absorbed in taking matters into his own hands. On the 911 call Horn stated “The laws have been changed…since September the first and I have a right to protect myself,” Horn said. “I ain’t gonna let them get away with this shit. I’m sorry, this ain’t right, buddy … They got a bag of loot … Here it goes buddy, you hear the shotgun clicking and I’m going.” (Lee, 2012) While the dispatcher was still on the phone, Horn fired three gun shots and the two Colombian men were both hit in the back. After, he returned to the line justifying to the dispatcher why he killed the two men. When officers arrived at the scene Horn was not arrested and nor was he indicted by the grand jury. This particular case portrays how the …show more content…
It allows people the opportunity to handle fear and anger in a deadly way as well as revenge and retaliation. Every one person handles situations differently; some may be sensitive to events and some may handle it well. Therefore, by allowing people to enforce the law by using deadly force will offer a sense of shoot-to-kill freedom. It sends a nation into outrage when senseless murders are justified by the court system. When a racially biased system allows for the killings of innocent people based on skin color. In addition to, the killing of young teens that are unarmed and have a right to be where they are. SYG laws allow for a greater fear against other persons, than the fear that it is meant to
On the night of February 26, 2012 “George Zimmerman who was the coordinator for his Sanford neighborhood watch association is charged with second-degree murder in the death of a young boy. Trayvon Martin, an unarmed high school student from Miami, Florida. (Alvarez) The case began in a small city of Sanford as a routine homicide but soon evolved into a civil rights case, examining racial profiling. On the night of the attack Zimmerman was told not to get out of his car when he was following Trayvon. He described Trayvon as a “guy who looks up to no good, or he’s on drugs or something” Trayvon had his back to Zimmerman the whole time he was on the phone with the Dispatcher, from what the conversation was saying. When the dispatcher asked Zimmerman “is the guy white, black, or Hispanic? “Zimmerman says that he “looks” black, Zimmerman still has yet to see if Trayvon was black, white, or even Hispanic because Trayvon was walking the other direction. Later on in the conversation is when Zimmerman said “now he’s just staring at me”. That would have been the right time to mention the race of Trayvon. As the dispatcher was asking mo...
The case involved a neighborhood watchman, who happened to be on duty when he saw a young black man wearing a sweater jacket called a “hoodie”, walking through the neighborhood. George Zimmerman, the watchman, who was twenty-eight years old at the time, called authorities about a suspicious character walking around in his neighborhood. The authorities told him not to do anything; just continue with his rounds and not worry. Zimmerman, however, decided he would take matters into his own hands. He confronted the young man; they got into a brawl and Zimmerman pulled out a gun and shot and killed Martin. That premise will play a role in this paper as an argument as to why George Zimmerman should have been convicted of committing a crime. Even if the jury could not have reasons to convict him of the second degree murder of Trayvon Martin; they had other choices.
Saturday July 13, 2013 the George Zimmerman trial began. The jury returned a verdict of not guilty for both second-degree murder and the lesser charge of manslaughter. The jury deliberated for sixteen hours before arriving at a verdict, which was read in court shortly after 10
Individuals’ right to keep and bear arms in self-defense should be further restricted. For example, George Zimmermann – neighborhood watch citizen responsible for the teenager Treyvon Martin’s death
On March 12, 2012 Bill Lee, the Chief of Police for Sanford Florida, explained Zimmerman had not been arrested because the police found no evidence to refute Zimmerman’s self-defense claim (Timeline of events: Trayvon Martin shooting case). Then the media decided to bully the state of Florida into bringing Florida by influencing public opinion. One of the ways the media achieved this was by making it seem like the reason there was no evidence to refute Zimmerman’s claim of self-defense, and Zimmerman’s eventual acquittal, was because of the controversial law in several states, including Florida, known as “Stand-Your Ground.”
The “Stand Your Ground” law was first adopted in the state of florida in 2005. This law did not gain national attention until the shooting death of unarmed teenager, Trayvon Martin, in Sanford, florida, where the shooter, George Zimmerman used the “Stand Your Ground” law as his basis for defending himself against Trayvon Martin to the Sanford Police Department. However, George Zimmerman’s legal defense team did not utilize the law to argue his innocence during his trial. But the damage had been done because soon after other cases in florida began to sprout up with “Stand Your Ground” as the driving force.
The Zimmerman case allowed me to be aware of something that was right in front of me. At a young age, my mother's significant other was arrested and imprisoned for "trafficking drugs". My mother had always maintained that he was initially arrested due to racial profiling, as there was no sufficient evidence to warrant the police to search his car. Despite this information being told to me as a child, I remained blind to the effects that such a system of injustice could have on your economic status, mental health, etc. However, I believe that the outcome of the Zimmerman trial opened my eyes to this effect. I believe that Trayvon Martin's family most likely received the same financial and emotional stresses due to the racial injustice associated with their experience. However, they had lost their son. Following the shooting of Trayvon Martin, I began to understand the effect that systemic racism could have on the lives of Black people, and how it had already been affecting
Shooting innocents just by the way they dress or walking it’s a disgrace in our country. In the case of Trayvon Martin he was shoot on February 26, 2012 just because he was wearing a hoody and he was black. George Zimmerman the man that killed him said that he acted in self-defends. What would a 17 year old have done that Zimmerman acted in self-defends? I disagree George Zimmerman acted in self-defense and I feel there is something wrong with the stand your ground law. He already had previous problems with his ex wives and ex girlfriends.
The case in summary sparks room for debate on whether Zimmerman should be punished for his actions; however, many allegations lack raw evidence to support their claims. In “The Facts In The George Zimmerman Trial”, by Jeffrey Toobin, the known facts are laid out as the picture of what actually happened on that night is painted. This was conveyed when Toobin wrote, “On the night of February 26, 2012, Zimmerman was patrolling the Retreat at Twin Lakes, a town-house development in Sanford, Florida, At 7:09 P.M.” (Toobin). Later that night “Zimmerman asks that the police call him upon their arrival so he can provide his location. Zimmerman ends the call at 7:13 P.M. The first police officer arrived on the scene at 7:17 P.M., by which time Tray...
All in all, the man accused of murdering Trayvon Martin, was not found guilty and will undoubtedly be imprinted in America’s history. As a result of the verdict, many citizens were alarmed around the nation and has generated an immense amount of controversy. The three academic government reports I have used explained why crimes occur within certain neighborhoods and what can be used to prevent and deter individuals from committing the same type of offense.
Although race may be a tragic decision in some people’s decision to kill somebody, Cynthia does no justice on providing that evidence or swaying individuals to her cause. Whether it be the poor lack of evidence thrust upon the reader, her clearly biased opinions, or simply her poor claims with the Zimmerman and Dunn cases it felt as so much went unjustified. Such a noble cause to stand for with the right technique and the right mindset. However, to try to scare citizens into being afraid to protect themselves out of fear of prosecution or persecuted as a racist is not the way to do that. It is in this sense that Cynthia’s argument falls short in convincing the reader to see her point of view.
Stand-your-ground laws state that an individual has no duty to retreat from any place they have lawful right to be, and may use any level of force, including lethal, if they reasonably believe they face an imminent and immediate threat of serious bodily harm or death. This laws are an extension of the“Castle Doctrine,” an established legal principle which says that a person is protected under the law to use deadly force in self-defense when his or her property or home is being invaded. More than 30 states in the U.S. have adopted some form of “Castle doctrine” or “stand your ground” laws on their books.
Imagine that your daughter is walking home from the store. A man in a black car starts following her. He gets out and begins to follow her by foot. You daughter begins to run in fear. The suspicious character begins running after her. She stops and decides to face her fear. She knees him and pepper sprays him. Seconds later, shots were fired leaving your daughter dead. She is the aggressor and he is justified for shooting her in “self-defense” under the stand your ground law. The stand-your-ground law is a law that states that an individual has the lawful right to use any level of forces, including lethal force, if they are faced in any situation where they feel harmed. The first “stand your ground” law was passed in April of 2005 in Florida.WHile the “Stand Your Ground” law can be used as self defense, it puts the lives of African American youth in danger by allowing people to take unfair advantage of the law: therefore, O.C.G.A 16-3-23.1 should be prohibited.
Was justice really served in the “State of Florida vs. George Zimmerman” case? Is our justice system fair to all races? This case is about a 16 year old kid from Miami named Trayvon Martin. On the night of February 26th, Trayvon walked from his father's house in a gated community to a nearby store. When walking back he was spotted by George Zimmerman, a 28-year-old neighborhood watch volunteer. There had been a number of break-ins in the neighborhood over the last few weeks and Zimmerman though that a young black man walking in the rain and wearing a hooded sweatshirt looked suspicious. Zimmerman then called 911 to report this person who "might be on drugs." He then got out of his car and...
Police officers primary responsibility is to protect and serve citizens and communities, not to abuse the laws by hurting innocent people. In most states Stand-Your-Ground laws allows innocent citizens the right to use deadly force to defend and protect themselves. But what if they were protecting themselves from police brutality. Police brutality has been going on for many years; they can cause riots, injuries, and even mistrust for the police.