Teenager shot/killed while Tweek's hero gets off free

[Aksannyi]

Ok let's stop referring to him as a "watch captain" though. I could refer to myself as a "rocket scientist" and that wouldn't make it true. The guy was not a watch captain anymore than I am a rocket scientist. There WAS NO official chapter of Neighborhood watch. It was just something he invented in his head & decided to do for himself. He wasn't given any sort of blessing to do this sort of thing, nor was he affiliated with the actual neighborhood watch any more than I am with NASA.

As for your second point: all black look same to racist brain.

Which is why I put it in quotes. I know he wasn't a watch captain. Please don't refer to me like I'm some kind of idiot. But if he spends as much time as he says he does watching the neighborhood why the hell didn't he recognize the person? That's a question that needs to be asked when he (hopefully) goes up to trial.

His entire defense is bogus.

[Brill Weave]

This area apparently has a lot of racial drama.

A lot of racial drama involving the police to boot.

[Sera]

Which is why I put it in quotes. I know he wasn't a watch captain. Please don't refer to me like I'm some kind of idiot.

I wasn't, nor was that statement exclusively referring to you: several people have mentioned his being a watch captain and part of the neighborhood watch, etc. My point was since that part isn't true at all, it shouldn't even be something that is discussed anymore with regard to this situation -- to minimize confusion. People seem to be coming into this thread and not reading it, so I was trying to keep it "just the facts" so that we didn't have people like that earlier nutbag coming in and failing at reading comprehension. No need to get so defensive.

[Aksannyi]

Sorry, you quoted me and it seemed like you were explicitly addressing me, so I did take offense. All forgiven. Sorry I haven't had my morning caffeine kick yet (okay, afternoon, I work nights) so I'm a bit snarky.

[ronin sparthos]

Which is why I put it in quotes. I know he wasn't a watch captain. Please don't refer to me like I'm some kind of idiot. But if he spends as much time as he says he does watching the neighborhood why the hell didn't he recognize the person? That's a question that needs to be asked when he (hopefully) goes up to trial.

His entire defense is bogus.

He only memorized the white people in the neighborhood. All the black folk were filed under "drug-addicts", "troublemakers" and "moving targets".

[Sera]

hoodie-wearing up-to-no-gooders

[zoobernut]

hoodie-wearing up-to-no-gooders

Getting all Hot Fuzz up in here. "Darned hoodie infestation." something something greater good.

On a serious note this story is sickening and I do hope they at least take this guy into custody and do a proper investigation.

[Byrthnoth]

Now that there has been such a media storm over it, Zimmerman is going to get railroaded in a federal investigation. Lots of tax dollars will be spent, this kid will still be dead, and someone with good intentions but poor execution will be in prison.

I'm not sure if it has been brought up in this thread yet, but there's almost no chance the kid would have died if guns were illegal. The neighborhood's knight wouldn't have owned a gun or felt confident enough to approach a random stranger (due to the lack of a gun), the teenager would have made it home with his skittles, and we wouldn't have a 10 page thread about it. Even if he did still go try to talk with / attack the teenager, there is very very little chance the kid would have died. Guns aren't as forgiving as the fists of flabby hispanic men.

[Greatguardian]

But if we aren't allowed to carry firearms, how will we protect ourselves from the 17 year old black kids walking near our houses?

[Yugl]

Whips obviously.

[Yuri-G]

But if we aren't allowed to carry firearms, how will we protect ourselves from the 17 year old black kids walking near our houses?

it is so hard - SO HARD - not to make a racist joke in response to this.

[quannum]

I bet the people defending zimmerman don't even know that they're racist.

[Chun Liroy]

I'm glad this case is starting to get some national media attention.

[Brill Weave]

I'm glad this case is starting to get some national media attention.

Only matters when Jesse gets involved. Al Sharpton? Fuck that. Jesse or nothing!

[Sera]

good intentions but poor execution

lol at this descriptor, and i hope the motherfucker rots in there

[quannum]

In a police report, Officer Timothy Smith says that, when he arrived at the scene of the shooting, a black male was laying face down on the ground, his hands underneath his body. "I attempted to get a response from the black male, but was met with negative results," the report says.

:smh:

[Churchill]

no guns argument because of this? lol

[Brill Weave]

I kind of shook my head at that one too Church.

[Ghost_Wheel22]

Under the Stand Your Ground Law, a person who is attacked has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand their ground and meet force with force, including deadly force if it is reasonably believed necessary to to prevent death or great bodily harm or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony.

Spoiler: show

776.013 Home protection; use of deadly force; presumption of fear of death or great bodily harm.—
(1) A person is presumed to have held a reasonable fear of imminent peril of death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another when using defensive force that is intended or likely to cause death or great bodily harm to another if:
(a) The person against whom the defensive force was used was in the process of unlawfully and forcefully entering, or had unlawfully and forcibly entered, a dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle, or if that person had removed or was attempting to remove another against that person’s will from the dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle; and
(b) The person who uses defensive force knew or had reason to believe that an unlawful and forcible entry or unlawful and forcible act was occurring or had occurred.
(2) The presumption set forth in subsection (1) does not apply if:
(a) The person against whom the defensive force is used has the right to be in or is a lawful resident of the dwelling, residence, or vehicle, such as an owner, lessee, or titleholder, and there is not an injunction for protection from domestic violence or a written pretrial supervision order of no contact against that person; or
(b) The person or persons sought to be removed is a child or grandchild, or is otherwise in the lawful custody or under the lawful guardianship of, the person against whom the defensive force is used; or
(c) The person who uses defensive force is engaged in an unlawful activity or is using the dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle to further an unlawful activity; or
(d) The person against whom the defensive force is used is a law enforcement officer, as defined in s. 943.10(14), who enters or attempts to enter a dwelling, residence, or vehicle in the performance of his or her official duties and the officer identified himself or herself in accordance with any applicable law or the person using force knew or reasonably should have known that the person entering or attempting to enter was a law enforcement officer.
(3) A person who is not engaged in an unlawful activity and who is attacked in any other place where he or she has a right to be has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony.
(4) A person who unlawfully and by force enters or attempts to enter a person’s dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle is presumed to be doing so with the intent to commit an unlawful act involving force or violence.
(5) As used in this section, the term:
(a) “Dwelling” means a building or conveyance of any kind, including any attached porch, whether the building or conveyance is temporary or permanent, mobile or immobile, which has a roof over it, including a tent, and is designed to be occupied by people lodging therein at night.
(b) “Residence” means a dwelling in which a person resides either temporarily or permanently or is visiting as an invited guest.
(c) “Vehicle” means a conveyance of any kind, whether or not motorized, which is designed to transport people or property.

782.02 Justifiable use of deadly force.—The use of deadly force is justifiable when a person is resisting any attempt to murder such person or to commit any felony upon him or her or upon or in any dwelling house in which such person shall be.

782.04 Murder; The unlawful killing of a human being, when perpetrated by any act imminently dangerous to another and evincing a depraved mind regardless of human life, although without any premeditated design to effect the death of any particular individual, is murder in the second degree and constitutes a felony of the first degree, punishable by imprisonment for a term of years not exceeding life

782.07 Manslaughter; The killing of a human being by the act, procurement, or culpable negligence of another, without lawful justification according to the provisions of chapter 776 and in cases in which such killing shall not be excusable homicide or murder, according to the provisions of this chapter, is manslaughter, a felony of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

tl;dr While Stand Your Ground laws might be technically applicable to Zimmerman because of somewhat loose wording a grand jury is going to rule it otherwise. Pursuit of someone after disregarding dispatch with the intent purpose of direct confrontation while in possession of a firearm is way way way outside of civilian duties. Dude was not Neighborhood Watch, let alone LE. Zero reasonable justification for what happened.

Personally I approve of Castle Doctrine and Stand Your Ground laws but I do feel the latter is not well defined at all in most states so shit like this happens.

[Niiro]

But if we aren't allowed to carry firearms, how will we protect ourselves from the 17 year old black kids walking near our houses?

Based on information I've come across in another thread, a modestly sized moat should do the trick.