Gun Violent USA: "Stand Your Ground" Law #1 Excuse But Now Losing Argument

 

Over half the country's acceptable law

(Recent shootings are call for change)

From the Insider this timely topic: Guns for self-defense, protect your property is all well and good and so is the so-called “Stand Your Ground” law now in some 30 states, but that law lately has been taken to the extreme with examples below that seem to mean: “Shoot first and then ask why.”

According to The NY Times the “Stand Your Ground” laws — operate on the principle that a person has the right to use deadly force to defend themselves against a threat. But those laws largely remove the obligation of the gun owner to retreat if possible which is not happening in key recent cases.

Experts speak on this topic:  

1. Dave Workman, a gun rights advocate and spokesperson for the Second Amendment Foundation, told Insider: “In the U.S, guns are discussed primarily as a tool for self-defense against criminals, intruders, or threats. Most people are buying guns nowadays for personal protection. The reason they're doing that is for self-defense and defense of their families.”

2. Christian Heyne, the VP of Policy and Programs at the Brady Campaign, a gun control advocacy nonprofit, told Insider: “Some gun violence experts and gun control advocates said the way guns are marketed is in part responsible for fueling an ideology of self-preservation mixed with fear. If [gun owners] are being told repeatedly by the gun industry that the reason why they need their firearm is to be ready to shoot at any given moment, then that's the mentality that they have in having the firearm. Certainly we're seeing a horrifying trend with how certain states are describing and discussing self-defense. What is terrifying is the fact that now we have corrupted and upended that idea of self-defense in certain states with these 'shoot-first' laws, where now people are emboldened and empowered to shoot first and ask questions later.”

Recent Shooting Examples: These three cases highlight simply being at the wrong place at the wrong time.

1. On April 13, an elderly homeowner in Kansas City, MO shot 16-yeaer old Ralph Yarl in the head after Yarl rang the wrong home doorbell. He survived and is recovering now.

2. Then just days later, 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis was shot by a homeowner after the car she was riding in pulled into the wrong driveway in a rural part of New York. Ms. Gillis died at the ER

3. Now, more recently, two cheerleaders were shot after one of them mistakenly climbed into the wrong car in a Texas parking lot. One survived and one still has serious injuries.

The senseless shootings of Kaylin Gillis and Ralph Yarl have sparked new scrutiny of these “Stand Your Ground” laws.

But in both cases, Ralph Yarl and Kaylin Gillis, law enforcement determined the homeowners' actions went beyond what is protected by self-defense laws and both have been charged in the shootings.

The Texas man who shot the cheerleaders is in police custody pending charges.

It's not yet clear what defense the accused shooters will argue in court. Still, advocates and experts said it's time to re-examine the laws and the larger culture around self-defense.

People aren't very good at accurately evaluating real threats – as more experts weigh in:

3. Jonathan Metzl, a sociology professor at Vanderbilt University who studies gun control, told Insider: “This is the natural outcome of 'stand your ground' laws. When we tell people that anytime they perceive a threat, they can fire their guns and that they have social and legal protection to do so, you see that people misinterpret everyday situations as threats. And then they kill people.”

4. Jack McDevitt, a professor of criminology and criminal justice at Northeastern University, says that from the point of view of a criminologist, “these laws are not effective,” and he told insider: “They empower people to say, this is your property. You can protect it in any way you want. And that should never be the case. Obviously people should have the right to defend themselves, but they have to be able to assess the level of threat. And it's not just having somebody pull into the driveway to turn around or having somebody come up on their porch because they're at the wrong house. They feel like they're empowered to act violently in a situation that may not call for that.”

The Giffords Law Center cites research from the JAMA Internal Medicine journal that found that the rate of firearm homicide increased 32% and the overall homicide rate increased 24% after “Stand Your ground” laws were first enacted in Florida.

5. Dave Workman, gun rights advocate and spokesperson for the Second Amendment Foundation, added: “The oldest human right is the right of self-preservation. And that hasn't changed. You have the absolute right to defend your own life or the life of a loved one against threat of serious bodily injury or death.” 

Workman also disagreed that U.S gun culture is encouraging fear of outside threats; he believes it's more of a “culture of preparedness.”

Workman pointed to incidents of gun owners stopping violence, including a man who shot and killed a gunman after he opened fire in an Indiana mall last year, saying: “Any place that you might happen to be where an incident unfolds that places you in jeopardy, or the people with you in jeopardy, that I think raises the alarm that maybe I should be prepared for the worst possible scenario.”

Summary: “Our gun culture and laws need change because violence is uniquely dangerous, which predictably shows up in new situations like those examples seen above and in other epidemic forms.”

My 2 Cents: This fine review basically speaks for itself – and there’s not much else I can say except I agree with summary.

Sad to say, things have gotten worse and they are not apt to change anytime soon. Gun violence will get worse before any positive changes lessen it and that is primarily due to gun lovers, massive amount of guns, and the strong support between the NRA and those in elected office.

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