[lbo-talk] Obama Speaks Out on Trayvon Martin Killing

[// ravi]

On Mar 23, 2012, at 5:30 PM, Jordan Hayes wrote:
> Wojtek:
> 
>> Taking your position that the castle doctrine does not
>> grant new powers under the existing self defense rights
>> - this begs the question why such laws were necessary?
> 
> Because in a lot of places there was significant doubt cast upon the self-defense, er, defense if it could be shown that you *could* have retreated.  This morphed into an *obligation* to retreat, sometimes even if you were in your own house: if the intruder came in the front door, you were obligated to go out the back door.
> 
> The prosecutor could just ask you: why didn't you run away?

And why not run away? What is the defence of staying around to precipitate an altercation when you already fully well know that you are armed with a deadly weapon, which will result in the likely death of one of you?

	—ravi

Note that in a parallel case that was decided a few days ago, a judge found a guy not guilty for having chased a perpetrator and stabbed him to death, supposedly calling upon this “Stand your Ground” law:


> Back in January, Garcia, 25, saw Pedro Roteta, 26, trying to steal the radio from his truck, which was parked outside Garcia's Miami apartment. Garcia grabbed a large knife, ran downstairs and chased Roteta for at least a block. The incident was caught on tape and showed that Garcia stabbed Roteta to death. At the time Roteta was carrying a bag with stolen radios "but no weapon other than a pocketknife, which was unopened in his pocket and which police said he never brandished."
> 
> The Herald reports that a judge threw out the charges against Garcia, citing the state's "stand your ground" law.