Is The Universal Declaration Of Human Rights?

Trayvon Benjamin Martin was a 17 year old African American from Miami Gardens, Florida. He was badly shot by George Zimmerman; a neighborhood watch volunteer in Sanford, Florida. Zimmerman called 911 to report that there was “suspicious person” walking through the neighborhood. He was told to not do anything, but he did anyway. As he approached Martin, he attacked him and shot him straight to the heart. According to CNN, “Zimmerman acknowledges that he shot Martin, claiming it was in self-defense.” (“Trayvon Martin Shooting Fast Facts”). When the case was taken to court George Zimmerman was found not guilty even after he

The Stand Your Ground Laws are becoming a hot topic in today’s news. Headlines are flooded with stories about cases around the country. These laws surround everyone from your everyday citizens to prominent sports figures and entertainers. The Stand Your Ground laws provide individuals with certain rights to protect themselves in events where they may feel threatened. It is also known as the Castle Rule, most of the United States have adopted some form of this law to protect its’ residents who may feel the need to use self-defense in situations where they may feel threatened. These laws spread quickly around the country since Florida passed the first laws in 2005. The law in most states would suggest that a person attempt to retreat

Firstly, what exactly is The Stand You Ground Law? The Stand Your Ground law is a law that expands the Castle Doctrine. For you who are not quite sure what the Castle Doctrine is I will explain. The Castle Doctrine which can also be identified as the make my day or castle law is a doctrine which allows individuals permission to use force, even deadly force to protect themselves against an invader within their home. Previously, as I stated, the Stand Your Ground Law is a law which expands off of the Castle Doctrine. For example, the Stand Your Ground Law provides a person the opportunity to protect themselves if they feel their life is in danger, however unlike the Castle Doctrine, a person can even protect themselves outside of their homes. The Stand Your

Though each state that has enacted this law has its own interpretations and specifications, the Stand Your Ground Law generally permits the use of deadly force when a person feels a threat of death, serious bodily harm, rape, kidnapping, and robbery in most states, even if there is an option of retreat. The current Stand Your Ground Law, passed by legislation in 2005, applies to public settings; the Castle Doctrine is basically a Stand Your Ground Law that applies to the defense of oneself in a private abode or home. States currently enacting this law include Florida, Alabama, Michigan, Indiana, Nevada, Utah, and 17 others. Stand your ground law provides legal protection for protecting oneself and property at all costs and prevents civil lawsuits.

Just for wearing a hoodie, carrying an Arizona Tea and for being black he was shot and killed. In the book “Deadly Injustice: Travyon Martin, Race, and the Criminal Justice System“ the authors go on to discuss what happened that night and in the trial that preceded. It also helped me deliberate with how certain deaths are portrayed online. This being one of the biggest cases to hit the news and was brought to almost everyone in the United States attention, even the President at the time made a statement about what had happened to this young man. Social media spreaded this article like a wildfire and soon everyone knew what had happened that night in Florida. One of the main reasons why it was difficult to convict Zimmerman of this crime was because of the “Stand your ground” law After this the tension between black males and police officers rose to an even higher extent. African Americans often feel as if they are treated by police unfairly and with situations like this happening it help supported how they felt. Additionally with cases like in Ferguson and what happened in Lousivelle when four innocent teens were accused of robbing a woman with a weapon where they were later found not guilty of the

The "Stand Your Ground" statute states that “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” (Sherman). Many people will say that the “Stand your Ground” law is a great law that has diminished the crime rate, made people feel safer in their neighborhood and has given the people back the power to protect themselves and their loved ones from fatal danger. I would have to

To begin, what is the “Stand Your Ground Law”? Well many states such as: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia have stand your ground laws which state that individuals do not have to retreat before using force in a self- defense situation or many states have laws that are remarkably similar to stand your ground laws. Stand Your Ground laws started in 2005 when Florida was the first state that passed the stand your ground law which basically allowed individuals to stand their ground instead of fleeing or retreating if they believed

Stand your Ground law states that a person may use deadly force in self-defense without the duty to retreat when faced with a reasonable perceived threat. When Stand your Ground laws were advocated in Florida and other states, their proponents marketed them as a reestablishment of a natural right, arguing “the duty to retreat has not always been a part of the common law”. The historical context may be misleading, allowing self-defense only when reasonably necessary, and a duty to retreat when attacked outside one’s home. The National Rifle Association seek to influence the Stand your Ground Law as a away for people to protect themselves. Though opponents who were against this law worried it would encourage the use of deadly force. For example, a 2004 case James Workman, a seventy-seven year old retiree who was sleeping in his RV, where an intruder busted into the trailer. James shot the intruder and had to wait months for the verdict. Prosecutors then decided the shots he

The George Zimmerman trial and Trayvon Martin case was probably one of the controversial and confusing cases in Florida history. One of the key elements used in the case was that of the Florida’s Stand Your Ground Law. The Stand Your Ground Law states that “if reasonable you believe that you face imminent death, serious bodily injury, rape, kidnapping or (in most states) robbery, you can use deadly force against the assailant even if you have a perfectly safe avenue or retreat,”

Zimmerman then called 9-1-1 and reported him to the police he then told the police he was following him the officer on the call responded by telling Zimmerman “we don’t need you to do that” but, Zimmerman continued his pursuit. Nevertheless, victim Martin was on the phone with a friend during this time knowing the man had been following him as Zimmerman continued to follow him Martin took off running like any other human being would who was being followed by a strange unknown person. Zimmerman chased after Martin where Martin was caught by Zimmerman and an argument broke out as to why he was following him, which lead to a scuffle according to Zimmerman where he then took his gun out and fired a shot into the 17-year-old killing him. In chapter IV and V hill points on the phrase “stand your ground” on several pages and points out William Blackstone, who provides us with legal thinker parses the crime three categories: justifiable, excusable, and felonious. Justifiable is a murder committed by the order of the state, excusable is an act of murder committed without intent. There is a “stand your grown” law that allows you to enact in ways needed to protect yourself if needed

Trayvon Martin was a 17-year-old boy that lived in Florida. He lived with his mother and often visited his father. While he had undergone some troubles, he overall was not a terrible kid. Although he was notably young and minded his own business, others did not. On February 26, 2012, the young boy’s life was taken away from him. The man who killed him was George Michael Zimmerman. He served as a neighborhood watch captain around the area where his old man lived. CNN stated that all he had was skittles and tea in his hand. Now tell me does that seem threatening to you? According to Zimmerman, he was claiming “self-defense” and that Trayvon was “a suspicious person.” Florida law states that one is granted the “stand your ground” law and that is what Zimmerman claimed to do in an act of defense. Zimmerman was arrested, but he was not charged or convicted of Martin’s murder even though people know that Zimmerman killed him for absolutely no actual cause.

The United States’ Stand Your Ground law, states that any and all individuals have no duty to retreat from any place they have lawful right to be, and may use any level of force, including lethal, if they reasonably believe they face an imminent and immediate threat of serious bodily harm, or death. Forty-six states have adopted a type of “Castle Doctrine,” meaning that a person has no duty to retreat when their home is under attack. Twenty-two states have removed that duty to retreat from other places in public as well. In those states the Stand Your Ground law thus states that a person has no duty to abandon a place that they have the right to be, or to give up ground to an assailant. These descriptions leave quite a large gray area, and many questions to be asked. So then, do Stand Your Ground laws need to be redefined, providing a clear answer to any and all questions that are asked about these laws?

Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law continues to receive a significant amount of coverage and commentary in the news media. Concerns were raised as a result. Expressed concerns ranged from public safety to racial bias and vigilantism. Given the universal reaction to the Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis verdict, it's of no surprise. The House attempted to addressed the issue at hand with a proposed bill, (HB169) last November, but it was soon shut down after a deadlock vote. What interested me is that after months of stalling, Sen. Rob Bradley and R-Fleming Island finally took up the bill (SB 344) to make much needed revisions to this controversial law. According to the news article I reviewed, on Thursday, January 28, this proposed bill passed with 24-12 votes. I, personally, felt a wave of relief. The passage of this bill has open doors to expansion and significant changes to the already existing law. By amending the Stand Your Ground law, current loopholes, like the aforementioned cases, can be deterred.

On February 26 2012 Trayvon Martin was shot dead by George Zimmerman, who pleaded not guilty for using self-defense. One important issue to the self-defense plea is that Mr. Zimmerman was familiar with the “stand your ground law” that allows a person to use deadly force in order to prevent heavy injuries, In which Zimmerman states that Trayvon was bashing his head on the concrete. With regards to this the jurors agreed that it was a self-defense situation because they were told that Trayvon was on top and Zimmerman was on the bottom. I personally don’t agree with the verdict because I’m sure that Mr. Zimmerman could’ve handled Trayvon in another form of manner instead of taking his life.

There have been at least 26 teens and children who have died due to the stand your ground law. The Tampa Bay Times analyzed that out of one hundred and thirty-four fatal Florida cases that claimed the defense of stand your ground, a total of nineteen percent saw the deaths of teens and children (Thinkprogress.com). This law played a major factor in the cases of Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis, two teenagers that were killed and unarmed at the time of their death. The main problem with this law is just because someone feels they are being threatened the law can justify the individual response in self-defense. In the case of Jordan Davis, a 17-year-old boy who was fatally shot by a 40-year-old man named Michael Dunn. After, Dunn complained about Davis music being too loud inside of Davis’s car. The encounter between the two gentlemen escalated after Dunn approached Davis vehicle.”The prosecution said Dunn shot Davis because he got angry when the teenagers wouldn't turn down their music when he asked them to and then "mouthed off" to him”(Huffingtonpost.com). As it continued to escalate, Dunn believed he saw a gun, so he shot inside the teenager car several times, and Dunn was justified in shooting into the unarmed teenager car. Why, because Dunn believe his life was in danger after believing he saw a gun.The facts of the case do not matter anymore, just the beliefs and feelings of the defendant. The stand your ground laws are