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| Getty Images photo |
According to CBSMiami.com, justifiable homicide deaths have tripled since "Stand Your Ground" took effect in 2005, a statistic corroborated by a Tampa Bay Times analysis of cases that applied that law. Further, the Times found evidence of people who claimed self-defense while victims lay on the ground bleeding and even in circumstances when victims were shot in the back.
Although George Zimmerman was acquitted, the question of his responsibility in creating the situation that provoked Trayvon Martin to defend himself looms large. The 911 dispatcher told Zimmerman not to pursue Martin and wait, instead, for the police to arrive. Zimmerman ignored that advice and continued to follow Martin. None of us will ever know what really happened in that case, but this blogger does know that Martin's only crime was that Zimmerman didn't know who he was and suspected he had nefarious intent. He was simply walking through the neighborhood.
Thus, the death of Trayvon Martin reveals two glaring issues with "Stand Your Ground" as a defense of killing someone. The first involves the failure of the police to thoroughly investigate the killing and hold Zimmerman until evidence had been collected and examined. The second actually allowed the first to occur because of the manner in which the law is written.
Until Florida has elected officials that study a potential law and its many ramifications more thoroughly, it will maintain its reputation as a state that promotes gun ownership at any cost. As a former long-time resident of the state, "Stand Your Ground" was one of the many reasons I left. The current political environment does not promote reasoned debate and has become a rubber stamp for ridiculous laws. After all, its governor presided over an organization that paid $1.7 billion in Medicare fraud fines but escaped punishment because the board booted him just in time. Wake up, voters! Florida needs reasoned, fair-minded people making the laws.
