Could Nevada’s ‘stand your ground’ law spark a Trayvon-like case?
By Karoun Demirjian, Las Vegas Sun
As the country tries to understand how Trayvon Martin — a hoodie-clad 17-year-old armed with nothing more than a cellphone, can of iced tea and bag of Skittles — was shot to death in Florida in February without anyone being charged, every possible culprit is being considered.
There’s the shooter, neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman, who has offered a questionable claim of self-defense, and the conduct of Sanford law enforcement officials who decided not to prosecute.
But some of the sharpest outcry has focused on Florida’s “stand your ground” law, which justifies use of deadly force in self-defense, with no obligation to first attempt to retreat.
In Las Vegas, officials and academics are taking a close look at the Martin case, and for good reason: Nevada recently passed a law nearly identical to Florida’s, leading many to believe a similar tragedy could play out in the Silver State.
“The circumstances are ripe for a Trayvon situation to happen here,” said Sylvia Lazos, a law professor at UNLV’s Boyd School of Law. “We have a lot of crime. We have a lot of people with guns. We have a lot of people who are untrained. We have to watch it. … These combinations can be quite toxic.”
Nevada is one of 25 states, according to the Legal Community Against Violence, with a law allowing individuals to use deadly force when they feel threatened with no obligation to stand down or try to avoid violence once reasonable fear is established.
Nevada’s “stand your ground” law was approved by the 2011 Legislature and took effect in October. It allows that as long as a person who feels threatened didn’t initiate the altercation and isn’t doing anything criminal, that person can stand and use deadly force and it would be considered “justifiable homicide.”
It is reporters like this who should be investigated. They are holding court without evidence. They are assuming innocence and guilt without having been at the scene or investigated the evidence. Let the justice system handle its job. Report on what they are doing, not your opinion based on only ethers in the air.
“opinion based on ethers in the air”? Would that non- evidence be like the 9-1-1 call tapes from George the wannabe cop? The dispatcher obviously knew who this psycho/rightwingnut was since he had called about 50 times in the last year as he “hunted” his neighborhood.. How about the ABCNews video of him being escorted into the PD? No injuries, no broken nose, no blood, no nothing. Defending this murdering creep and this ALEC/NRA purchased law is low-down twisted thinking, even for a teabagger.
Video of him with no injuries?
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Journalism/2012/04/02/hd-zimmerman-head-gash-abc
Observe.
Oh, and here’s a response from a LIBERAL source for you.
http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2012/04/nbc-jumps-shark-george-zimmerman
You need better news sources, Smedley.
breitbart.com enhanced photo for the foxnation crowd is what is to be expected. Didn’t the Daily Mail have some gruesome blood photos? They’re another super-source for bagger/bigot nonsense.
As usual. Attack the source, not the issue.
Defending this guy is despicable. I’m out on this.
No one is defending or attacking either of the people in this incident. Let people who are there make the decisions and don’t let raving supportors of either person influence the press. There is another horrible crime which happened in Florida last week but it’s being investigated by the system without the national media’s help as it should be. See for yourself.
http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2012-04-02/news/os-two-arrested-seminole-beating-20120402_1_victim-arrest-affidavits-crimeline
Regardless of what transpired when Trayvon was shot, Mr. Zimmerman embarked on a mission of a vigilante the minute he decided to follow Trayvon after the police told him not to! In my PERSONAL opinion that should completely negate the stand your ground law defense. AND had he been killed by Trayvon, Trayvon would have had every right to a self defense legal defense.
EVERYONE has the right to a defense. Isn’t that how our judicial system is supposed to work? The man hasn’t even been arrested yet (is there not enough evidence? Possible.) Yet Smedley has him convicted and anyone who defends him is despicable. Two little articles with information contrary to his chosen stance and he says he is “out” of this discussion. Won’t even CONSIDER the possibility that he was misinformed. Is that the liberal way? Is that the attitude of the majority of our country? I would hope not.
Smedley- if you do check back I’d like you to think about something the Original Smedley Butler said in 1933. “A racket is best described, I believe, as something that is not what it seems to the majority of people. Only a small inside group knows what it is about. It is conducted for the benefit of the very few at the expense of the masses.”
Do honor to your namesake (a double medal of honor awardee} and consider that if the supporters of the boy who was killed aren’t running a racket for their own benefit, not justice.
I am confused on the basic premise of Florida law, shouldn’t a jury or a judge, if they end up in court without a jury trail, decide if it was self defense. I think the facts should come out in a court with both sides presenting their case and if the State has a strong self defense or “defend your castle law” then it would be decided at that point. I guess I don’t understand the concept of someone firing a weapon/shooting at another person and it not moving past this point.
tahoeadvocate, That is beyond repulsive. Truly a dishonorable subhuman/fox response blaming the victims and their supporters and accusing them of running a racket because they want the ignorant brain-scrubbed dupe serial stalker zimmerman arrested, disarmed and off the streets. And please don’t besmirch the General’s memory by using quotes of his to defend your asinine positions. He despised warmongering murdering liars and bigots.
Then he would have despised what Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson are doing right now. There is no honor in their rhetoric.
I wonder if Smedley is aware that George Zimmerman, the person he refers to as a “psycho/rightwingnut ignorant brain-scrubbed dupe serial stalker”, is a registered Democrat?
“The circumstances are ripe for a Trayvon situation to happen here,” said Sylvia Lazos, a law professor at UNLV’s Boyd School of Law. “We have a lot of crime. We have a lot of people with guns. We have a lot of people who are untrained. We have to watch it. … These combinations can be quite toxic.”
Untrained? Is she kidding? Or is she part of the left wing gun ban crowd? To get a carry permit in NV, you have to go through specific training regarding NV laws concerning the use of firearms & prove you can handle a firearm adequately.
Also, if the alleged victim were a white gang looking person & shot by a black, this uproar wouldn’t be happening & the media would have ignored it completely. The left wing groups are using this to push their racial agenda, not find the truth.
In our present society there is no presumption of safety anywhere. I have no problem with Nevada’s “stand your ground” provision in the NRS.
Another, there is a huge difference between being trained on using a gun and the training a police officer goes through on how NOT to use the gun in all circumstance. That is the training she is talking about.
Lisa, I must disagree with your premise on training. She is specifically referring to private citizens. In NV the standards for use of deadly force are much different for law enforcement & private citizens. Officers (in most cases) have a higher level of physical conditioning than most private citizens. Additionally, they have other options at their disposal, i.e. nightstick & physical methods of subduing a violent person that the private citizen does not have prior to the use of deadly force. Private citizens are not law enforcement & are held to a different standard when it comes to dealing with an assailant & self defense. This can be verified by contacting any reputable, licensed firearms training facility who provides carry permit training in NV or the Washoe County Sheriff’s office. Carry permit training includes a review of the applicable statutes & when deadly force is or is not an acceptable response by a private citizen.
Another X Local,
True, the disparity of force is always considered. An elderly 110 lb woman is not required to get on the ground and wrestle with a young, 250 lb violently aggressive male before she can pull her weapon and shoot. And the “Stand your ground” law simply states she doesn’t have to try to outrun her assailant either. She is entitled to stand her ground, produce her weapon and if in fear of imminent attack or already in struggle, fire without warning.
The “Stand your ground” law doesn’t have any application in this case. Mr.Zimmerman’s choice to follow Trayvon Martin even after being told not to by the police dispatcher was unwise, but not unlawful. But once he decided to follow Mr. Martin, the “Stand your ground” provision becomes moot.
However, at no time does Zimmerman have to reliquish his right to self defense. CCW Permit holders are routinely trained to avoid confrontation and to disengage whenever possible, (something Zimmerman clearly did not do, but again, that’s not illegal) and only escalate to lethal force when in fear for one’s life or serious bodily harm, and no other option remains. If you’re on your back, being pummeled, you could certainly make a case for self defense espcially if there is a struggle for posession of the firearm.
The full facts of this case have not been made public, but a large segment of the public seems to think they have… and have already made their pronouncement of the guilt of Mr. Zimmerman. I think I’ll wait for the trial, the presentation of evidence and a defense and the decision of the jury, assuming there is enough cause to bring a prosecution.
And yes, Smedley, even though Mr. Zimmerman is a registered Democrat, he is still entitleld to the presumption of innocence until proved otherwise in a court of law, not the court of the opinionated liberal media.
Thanks for the cop wannabe point of view, that’s going to be important to this case.
Smugley, still haven’t heard any reasonable response from you regarding evidence contrary to your opinion on this case. Only snide remarks. Please, look at the available evidence before you smear a possibly innocent man. Or move to Florida and become a potential impartial jurist. Yeah.
So did Zimmerman utter a racial slur before he left the car, or not? (the word in question is really common in Florida).
Why hasn’t a detailed report on his alleged injuries been released?
How do we know the victim wasn’t defending himself? Man comes up to you, its dark, who knows what they were saying… you don’t fight back?
The man picked a fight he didn’t need to, and killed someone. The stand your ground law doesn’t apply when you pursue someone and initiate the confrontation.
Lock him up.
There are very few reasons to kill someone, or put yourself into that position. This was not one of them.
He went after someone, with a gun, who he suspect of possibly wanting to commit a crime later. Even if the victim was running from a house with loot, and an alarm going off, you don’t kill them. Period.
Thing fish– none of us were there. We don’t know what happened, only what the press is allowing to be released which is biasing a potential jury. A young man was killed- Horrible. A neighborhood volunteer trying to help beacuse the police were undermanned is being tried in the media- Unacceptable. If you’ve never been confronted by someone you thought could harm you, you can’t understand what was going through either of their minds or what actions they would take. Allow the justice system to do its job without your interference.
Hmmm…. NBC has now admitted doctoring (editing) the 911 tape and has feebly apopogized for doing so. ABC had been forced to admit that after enhancing the Police station video, they now CAN determine there were indeed injuries to the back of Mr. Zimmerman’s head, contrary to their earlier version. And now CNN must confess that the what they had pronounced to be a racial slur was only Zimmerman mouthing “f***ing cold”.
I suppose Smedley can be excused for being an ignorant dupe if all he listens to is the “Lamestream Media”.
We were planing to go to a Wildcat game this year wearing an OSU Duck hoodie. Like John Boehner once said “HELL NO” not now.