THE AUTHOR
Lenard Wells
"Stand your Ground"
A Florida Statute 776.032 deters law enforcement officers from arresting a person who claims “self-defense” under the Stand Your Ground Law in those cases where there are no direct eye-witnesses. BY LENARD WELLS
On April 26, 2005, Governor Jeb Bush signed the Stand Your Ground
legislation for the state of Florida. According to Florida State
Statute 776.013(3), a person who is not engaged in an unlawful
activity is allowed to protect themselves with deadly force. The law
states the person has no duty to retreat. Anyone who acts under
color of this statute cannot be arrested, prosecuted criminally or
held liable in a civil action.
Florida Statute 776.032 deters law enforcement officers from
arresting a person who claims “self-defense” under the Stand Your
Ground Law in those cases where there are no direct eye-witnesses. A
person claiming self-defense under the Stand Your Ground Law is
given immunity from prosecution and civil liability. The inevitable
results are what you see in the Trayvon Martin case. The law deters
a reasonable and thorough investigation of a crime involving deadly
force by police.
From the Sanford Police Department video tapes, Zimmerman is
observed in handcuffs inside of the police station. By law he is
under arrest. Since he had not been criminally charged, someone had
to order his release. Who makes that decision? What is the protocol
established by the law enforcement agency and the prosecutors for
processing these cases?
The tragic death of Trayvon Martin also points out many of the
social shortcomings of our society in its interaction with African
Americans. It also highlights how laws are used to legitimize
stereotypes. For example, when we can’t address neighborhood
prostitution – we legislate against it. When we can’t address
sagging pants – we legislate against it. When we can’t reconcile an
unnatural fear of an African American male – we create Stand Your
Ground laws. Many will attest that a fear of crime is a fear of
African Americans.
Research (Click
for reference) will show that many women who
are victims of repeat domestic violence with genuine fear of their
assailant who eventually stand their ground have been sent to
prison. No law protects them as they respond to a real fear of
domestic violence.
One individual responding to her fear of crime was Marion Hammer (Click
for reference). Ms. Hammer is described as an over 70 year old white female
grandmother (Click
for reference).
Ms. Hammer led the charge along with the National Rifle
Association to “bully” through the Stand Your Ground law. The
legislation received overwhelming support from Florida law makers
but condemnation from Florida law enforcement community.
On February 26, 2012 Trayvon Martin became a teenage victim of the
Stand Your Ground Law and one person unwarranted fear of an African
American male. The zeal to be tough on crime along with the efforts
of the National Rifle Association to arm all Americans has resulted
in the death of an innocent African American seventeen year old.
The emotion of this needless death is being compared to the response
that followed the murder of Emmett Till (JimCrow.org). Emmitt Till
was a 14 year old African American male brutally murdered in
Mississippi during our nation’s Jim Crow era. He was accused of
flirting with a white woman. The flirting resulted in him being
savagely beaten to death. Emmett Till mother allowed her son body to
be displayed in Jet Magazine and it shocked the conscience of a
nation (Click
for reference).
The emotion of the death of Trayvon Martin reached the White
House. President Barack Obama responded to the question of a
reporter regarding the death of Trayvon Martin. “If I had a son, he
would look like Trayvon.” This brought the death to another personal
level for African Americans and others. President Obama expressed a
belief that is shared by so many African American parents and
grandparents, “only by the grace of God was this Trayvon Martin and
not my son or grandson.”
Another response to the fear of African American males is to
demonize the victim. There are some who take the African American
victim and give it a criminal profile to minimize the action taken
against them. Can an African American be a victim? The criminal
courts historically have proceeded cautiously regarding the
relevancy of ones past in trial proceedings. In fact, there are Rape
Shield Laws that protects women from being cross-examined regarding
their sexual history. In the aftermath of his death, is it important
to paint a picture of Trayvon Martin as a “bad person?” Is it time
to openly address the misguided fear of African Americans by whites?
The Stand Your Ground law allows use of force to be determined by
fear. In essence, the fear of African Americans and African American
youth specifically is cause to “Stand Your Ground” and take a life.
Historically, the use of deadly force in response to fear of another
human being was reserved for members of law enforcement. The use of
deadly force could be justified by an officer fearing for their
safety and/or the safety of others. The numerous questionable use of
deadly force allegations against police officers have resulted in an
erosion of the fear of safety excuse for the use of deadly force.
One of the historic precedents for this erosion is found in
Tennessee versus Garner (Click
for reference). Tennessee like other states
had a law that allowed police officers to use deadly force to stop
felons. Law enforcement agencies had corresponding rules and
policies regarding the use of deadly force to stop a felon.
In 1974, officers of the Memphis police department responded to a
burglary complaint (Click
here for reference). An officer observed the
suspect fleeing from the scene. The officer testified that he feared
the suspect would be able to escape capture by going over a six feet
fence. The officer shot and killed the suspect.
The case made its way to the United States Supreme Court (Click
for reference). The crime investigated by the
officers was a felony burglary. The Court recognized burglary as a
serious offense. The Court also recognized that the officer had no
other grounds to use deadly force beyond the state law and
department policy allowing him to do so. The suspect was unarmed and
had no intimidating features in size or build. The Court did not
believe there was any reason for the officer to believe the suspect
was a threat.
The Court added that an unarmed suspect who has broken into a
dwelling is not grounds to automatically mean the suspect is
dangerous. The Supreme Court ruled that deadly force cannot be used
against a fleeing felon absent some known threat. Being a felon and
fear was not enough. Yet, the Florida law gives private citizens
legal authority to use their fear as grounds to take a life.
This authority! This power! Authority and power over who lives
and dies was taking away from law enforcement by the Supreme Court
is now being put in the hands of private citizens to act under
lesser circumstances than required by a police officer. If you
cannot legislate and create rules to address police related
shootings, why would you give more discretion to private citizens?
The tough question remain, “if shoot-or-don’t shoot” was a difficult
decision for trained law enforcement personnel, how would it be more
efficient by spreading it to private citizens? The Courts, law
enforcement agencies, and members of the community have restricted
the power and authority of police officers use of the “fear of
personal safety” and fleeing felon rules as reasons to use deadly
force.
The state of Florida added to the problem by muddying the water for
law enforcement and prosecutors in the investigation of Stand Your
Ground claims. Further, family members of the victims have no
grounds to bring civil actions against the perpetrator for wrongful
death.
The law allows private citizens to use deadly force because they
feel threatened as opposed to being threatened. Their feelings and
perceptions guide their action not actions of others. Law
Enforcement officers are trained to evaluate and not just act on
fear. They must act on the threat of force and fear for their safety
and the safety of others. It is not enough to be afraid. There must
be a legitimate threat.
The questions raised by citizens and others regarding the use of
deadly force by police have resulted in a demand for change. Many
municipalities and law enforcement agencies have review boards and
panels to examine officers’ conduct regarding the use of deadly
force. All use of deadly force by law enforcement is subject to some
form of prosecutorial review. I admit the process is not perfect but
does the imperfection necessitate a shift of the use of deadly force
to private citizens?
If you have contacted the police and they inform you not to follow,
if your block watch rules tells you not to follow and carry a gun,
are you Standing Your Ground?
Another area of concern is the number of justifiable homicides in Florida and other states with similar Stand Your Grounds laws. It is troubling that we have not adequately monitored or examined the circumstances of these deaths. The Stand Your Ground and similar legislation at the insistence of the NRA and others who fear African Americans has marched across the nation like Sherman through Georgia.
About the Author
Lenard Wells, wrote this article from the perspective of a retired Lieutenant of Police with over 30 years in the criminal justice system.
Recognized as a persuasive and professional communicator, Lenard Wells holds a PhD from Cardinal Stritch University, Milwaukee.
He was appointed as Director of Adult Education for Concordia University South/Hales Center (Miller Park Way). He grew the Center from 50 students to approximately 400 students in less than four years. The Center grew from the smallest of the 13 Concordia’s Center to the largest.
Lenard Wells's numerous awards include: The United States Postal Authorities, "Hero of the Year", Positive Achiever Award, Jefferson Award Nominee, Black Research Organization Selection as "One of 100 Most Influential Black Milwaukeeans", and the Scott Fellowship & Recreation Center Harvest Award.
For a detailed Curriculum Vitae, please click here
