The Pros And Cons Of Stand Your Ground Laws

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.

Stan your ground laws and the castle doctrine have been supported by many groups, because they argue that this allows citizens to protect their family, home or property without the fear that they will be persecuted for their actions.

However this laws have sparked a lot of controversy since they were passed in 2005. Many saying that this gives people a license to kill. One of the most famous cases that initiated this controversy is the shooting of Trayvon Martin in Florida. Who was shot by George Zimmerman, an armed neighborhood watch patrolman, who shot and killed the unarmed Martin after pursuing him. Although Zimmerman

apparently perceived Martin as a threat, at the time of his death Martin had no weapon, but was instead carrying a bag of Skittles candy. Zimmerman claimed he killed Martin in self-defense, and under Florida’s stand your ground law the police were forced to let him walkway in the night of the homicide.

In Florida, self-defense claims tripled in the years since this law went into order.

The law's critics argue that Florida's law makes it very difficult to prosecute cases against people who shoot others and then claim self-defense. The shooter can argue that he felt threatened, without there being any threat, and in most cases, the only witness who could have argued otherwise is the deceased. Before passage of the law, Miami police chief John F. Timoney called the law unnecessary and dangerous in that "whether it's trick-or-treaters or kids playing in the yard of someone who doesn't want them there or some drunk guy stumbling into the wrong house, you're encouraging people to possibly use deadly physical force where it shouldn't be

used”.

According to state crime stats, Florida averaged 12 “justifiable homicide” deaths a year from 2000-2004. After “Stand your Ground” was passed in 2005, the number of “justifiable” deaths has almost tripled to an average of 35 a year, an increase of 283% from 2005-2010. But supporters of this law claim that the numbers are going up because the laws are working,

This law can be a double edge sword, because in the past it has been used for criminal purposes. It's happened on multiple occasions, say critics of the law. According to “One such case occurred in 2008, when a wild gunfight broke out between rival gangs outside an apartment block in Tallahassee. Some 30 shots were fired, and one of them resulted in the death of 15-year-old Michael Jackson. Two young men were arrested for his murder, but they were subsequently freed after claiming they had acted in self-defense. An angry Judge Terry Lewis said he had no choice but to order their release.”