Shooting of Trayvon Martin

What exactly is the Stand-Your-Ground-Law?

The stand-your-ground-law (“line in the sand” or “no duty to retreat” law) is a law of self-defense which applies in some states; this law gives one the right to defend themselves or others against threats or perceived threats. This law states that one is allowed to use lethal force if deemed necessary or any level of force one sees fit and that one doesn't have any “duty to retreat” if they are legally allowed to be in the area they are being threatened in.

What Happened:

On February 26, 2012, seventeen-year-old Trayvon Martin bought a bottle of ice tea and some skittles and proceeded to walk through a community of townhomes where he was staying with his father. George Zimmerman was the neighborhood watchman on duty that night and when he first spotted Trayvon was reported saying, “these a**holes, they always get away. This guy looks like he’s up to no good, or he’s on drugs on something…”. He then gets out of his car and tells the dispatcher that he is following Trayvon, the dispatcher then states “we don’t need to do that” and warns against it.

The police were then called by some neighbors, as the tape of the call is played, one can hear in the background someone in distress calling for help and then a few seconds later a gunshot.

This shot hit Trayvon through the heart, killing him. Zimmerman was found with blood on his face and bruised as if he had been attacked. Zimmerman later told police that it was self-defense.

When investigating he told police, “it felt like my body was on the grass and my head was on the cement and he just kept slamming me and slamming me” he was not arrested and no charges were filed against him at that moment, as Florida has the stand-your-ground law and allows self-defense in immediate danger.

Thousands marched through the streets in protest and all over the country, as the facts were that Trayvon was not armed and many were persuaded that other measures should have been taken as the attack for many was triggered because Trayvon was black. Four days after the shooting Zimmerman was charged with second-degree murder and was released on bail. This bail was short lived as he didn’t tell the court that he was donated 130,000 for a defense found and was put back in jail and released once again on a million dollar bond.

During Trial, both sides used profiling throughout the case. The defense attempts to profile Zimmerman as a heartless killer and profiler and the prosecution uses Trayvon’s past use of drugs and fighting against him. In the end, after 16 hours of deliberations over two days, in 2013 the jury ruled not guilty on all counts.

Trayvon Martin on the left
George Zimmerman on the right 

Conclusion:

After researching this case, I think that the self-defense in the moment would not have been an issue if it weren’t for the instigation and how it all went down. I think that Zimmerman should still be charged with murder as he followed the unarmed teenager when told not to. He got out of his car with his gun when Trayvon was simply walking home posing no threat with his skittles. Some of the questions that are left unanswered are why did he think that Trayvon was a threat in the first place? Is this where the idea of race comes into play? Did he find his threatening because he was black? How was it self-defense when Zimmerman was the one who initiated the confrontation by deliberately getting out of his car and targeting Trayvon in the first place? Why were the lethal force used for a teenager (vs. man) holding ice tea and skittle (vs. gun) when he was just trying to get home from the store?

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stand-your-ground_law

https://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/17/opinion/blow-the-curious-case-of-trayvon-martin.html