Florida's ridiculously flexible "stand your ground" gun statute created national furor after the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin, and now another Florida person of color is dead while a white killer is walking free. Missouri is one of at least 25 states with similar stand-your-ground statutes, and it's only a matter of time before the law provokes more unnecessary bloodshed or loss of life.
In Clearwater, Fla., a white man shot a black man in front of his young children during an argument last Thursday over a handicapped parking space. There's every indication that the dispute, prompted by Markeis McGlockton's use of a handicapped spot when he wasn't handicapped, could have been resolved peacefully. But gunman Michael Drejka decided to take the law into his own hands.
Drejka had previously engaged in harassment and threats over use of the same convenience store handicapped spot. Customer Rick Kelly told NBC affiliate WFLA that Drejka confronted him earlier this year, inspecting decals on Kelly's car to see if he was authorized to park there. They argued, and Kelly said Drejka "was basically threatening to shoot me that day."
Last Thursday, McGlockton had parked in the spot while he and a young son went inside to buy the boy a candy bar. His girlfriend, Britany Jacobs, and other children remained in the car. Drejka was arguing with Jacobs when McGlockton returned. In a security video, McGlockton can be seen shoving Drejka to the ground, then backing away. Drejka drew a handgun and opened fire, mortally wounding McGlockton.
In the Trayvon Martin case, the question of killer George Zimmerman's guilt or innocence hinged on a fight that ensued after Zimmerman had stalked Martin. Zimmerman claimed that he feared for his life — invoking Florida's stand-your-ground protections.
In last Thursday's case, Drejka was the initial aggressor, and even though McGlockton did the shoving — Jacobs says it was to protect her — the video shows nothing suggesting that Drejka's life was endangered. The sheriff's office opted not to file charges, but Florida's attorney general has the final say on prosecution.
A 2015 study published in Social Science & Medicine found that defendants are twice as likely to be convicted in stand-your-ground cases if the victim is white and the shooter is non-white. A 2016 study linked "shoot first" laws with an increase in homicides, particularly by white males.
These laws are dangerous because they dramatically relax the self-restraint rules that previously made people think twice before using deadly force in non-lethal confrontations. Drejka was the one itching for a confrontation, and he's the one who accosted Jacobs. Yet he walks free, while McGlockton's kids are now fatherless.
Another green light shines for would-be vigilantes to provoke fights, then serve as judge and jury while administering a streetside death penalty by firing squad.
REPRINTED FROM THE ST LOUIS POST DISPATCH
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