The Trayvon Martin case has engulfed the nation and brought to attention not only gun ownership laws, but "use of force" laws too. The
Stand Your Ground law, a law only a state like Florida would have, allows George Zimmerman to get away with murder because he was protecting himself from what he believed to be a threatening situation. He saw a black kid holding skittles with his hood up walking through his neighborhood and shot the kid, because he fit the stereotype of previous burglars in the area. According to
this Think Progress article, the U.S. law,
Rules of Engagement, allows soldiers to protect themselves from threats, without abusing their weapons or force. Soldiers have to approach a threat in the following order:
3.G.(1)(A) (U) Shout verbal warnings to halt;
3.G.(1)(B) (U) Show your weapon and demonstrate intent to use it;
3.G.(1)(C) (U) Physically restrain, block access, or detain;
3.G.(1)(D) (U) Fire a warning shot (if authorized);
3.G.(1)(E) (U) Shoot to eliminate the threat.
(thinkprogress.org)
These steps in removing a threat seem more logical because they make killing somebody an absolute last resort by providing four previous steps to deter the threat. Trayvon Martin was shot, his life taken from in a matter of seconds, when he was unarmed, on public property, and without the oppurtunity to beg for his life. The law that allows this needs to be abolished. The
Stand Your Ground law is a law that is up for interpretation depending on the case. In a society where racism still exists, a law that allows one to interpret what murder is in unjust and unconstitutional because it allows people to tear away at the fourteenth ammendment that states, "nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."
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