Get off my lawn or I’ll shoot you dead
by digby
Just remember folks, if you accidentally find yourself in someone else’s yard, ssome gun toting yahoo will feel he has the right to chase you down and shoot you. Because freedom:
On Thursday, an Orlando man shot and killed a 21-year-old who was fleeing his yard. He didn’t appear to be stealing anything, according to witness accounts. He didn’t appear to be threatening anybody. But Claudius Smith said he feared he was a burglar, followed him over the fence to a neighboring apartment complex, where he shot him after he said he felt threatened, according to a confession documented in an Orlando Police Department report. Smith even said he feared victim Ricardo Sanes was armed “because his pants were falling down” and his hands were in his hoodie pockets, according to a report obtained by the Orlando Sentinel.
He was very afraid, you see, So he had to “defend himself.”
This is where this “stand your ground” “castle doctrine” bullshit inevitably leads and it’s why we decided long ago that people have a duty to retreat. There are too many stupid, paranoid, highly armed people in this world who cannot be trusted to accurately assess the situation and will just start killing people for no good reason.
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