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FL man killed under ‘stand your ground’ provisions over handicapped parking space.

solus

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http://www.tampabay.com/news/public...rgument-over-handicap-parking-space_170174041

Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri announced Friday that his agency will not arrest a man deputies say shot and killed another man during an argument over a handicap parking space.

The incident falls under Florida’s self-defense law known as "stand your ground," the sheriff said during a news conference. The law gives immunity to those in fear of their lives who use force to defend themselves.

The shooting "is within the bookends of ‘stand your ground’ and within the bookends of force being justified," the sheriff said, later adding, "I’m not saying I agree with it, but I don’t make that call."

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/opin...lockton-trayvon-david-whitley-0723-story.html

But here’s the complicated part.

The store owner said Drejka regularly hassled people for parking in handicapped spaces. So it could also be reasonable to assume Drejka was looking for trouble.

Does Florida’s Stand Your Ground law facilitate such thinking?
Is it too easy to bait somebody into making them fear for their life?

The law was changed in 2017, shifting the burden from defendants to prosecutors to prove whether self-defense claims are justified. Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri took pains to point that out when he announced his office “cannot make an arrest.”

sigh...seems if you are the instigator you can still call the shooting event where you injure or take a life an ‘i feared for my life’ yada yada yada, and walk scott free!
 
Last edited:

WalkingWolf

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There is no such thing as baiting someone into committing a crime. He did not bait them into parking in a handicap space, he did not bait the deceased into violently shoving him. Being a PITA is not justification for using physical force that has the potential to kill.

What baffles me is why the female parked there in the first place. There were spaces closer to the store for patrons who did not need a wheel chair ramp. Some of this is on the store owner, this is the most urine poor handicap space I have seen. The space is poorly marked, she may not have known it was handicap spot, though once informed if she had just moved the car it would have possibly prevented the escalation by the BF/deceased.
 

1911LVR

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Not being there myself so I don't know all that happened, but in the video clip shown on TV it appeared that the shooting victim was backing away when he was shot. To me this makes it no longer a self-defense matter.
 

WalkingWolf

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Not being there myself so I don't know all that happened, but in the video clip shown on TV it appeared that the shooting victim was backing away when he was shot. To me this makes it no longer a self-defense matter.

I doubt in the short two seconds between drawing, and firing the shooter would have registered a step. Especially since his focus/aim was center mass, not on his feet, as long as the attacker still has the ability to continue the attack. Also the deceased was within a few feet, a critical distance in stopping an attack. The best solution to this is DON'T physically attack people violently in a manner that has caused death, and serious injury in the past.
 

solus

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I suppose I am more concerned by the Sentinel’s commentary, regarding who I believe was the shooter, has instigated, sorry, ‘hassled’ other driver(s) in the past for parking in the establishment’s ‘handicapped’ parking slots.
 

CitizenJohn

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Having had to use them (handicapped spaces) in the past, I empathize with Dreijka for being concerned that someone without a handicapped placard parked in a handicapped space but one must pick their fights and I don’t think a parking violation is any place to start. I for one try to stay out of conflicts, when I’m carrying or not. One never knows what the other person is going through during a particular moment in their life or who might step into the situation from the sidelines and escalate it. There is probably no police remedy for such a thing (parking violation) as the police probably wouldn’t respond but try anyway. Also report it to the store manager and move on.
 

WalkingWolf

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Take pictures, or videos and mail them to the SA. After awhile the SA will get tired of it and force the LEA to start enforcing handicapped laws.

IOW be the squeaky wheel.
 

solus

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LARGO — A jury found Michael Drejka guilty of manslaughter late Friday in the 2018 shooting death of Markeis McGlockton in a convenience store parking lot.
The conviction came after 6½ hours of deliberations by the jury of five men and one woman.
It was read aloud at 10:41 p.m. Drejka stared straight ahead, standing beside his lawyers. He could face up to 30 years in prison.
In the front row of the gallery, McGlockton’s girlfriend, Britany Jacobs threw up her hands and clapped. A woman broke into sobs. McGlockton’s father pressed his elbows into his knees as supporters squeezed his shoulder. His mother embraced family.

Pinellas Sheriff Bob Gualtieri’s decision not to immediately arrest Drejkaput the case on a national stage and sparked renewed debate about Florida’s stand your ground law. Gualtieri said his agency was precluded from arresting Drejka because of it.

 

Ghost1958

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Bad jury decision . They even told the judge they could not understand the statute .

The shoot was clearly justified. Political pandering, fear of a riot, and liberal intent to undermine SYG in Fla resulted in charges that clearly should not have been brought.
Hopefully overturned on appeal.
 

Ghost1958

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If he was convicted, what does stand your ground have to do with it?
Nothing.

It's a simple self defence case where SYG never applied but is being twisted to get a prosecution in order to get SYG I'm FLA repealed, same as the Zimmerman case.
 

hammer6

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Nothing.

It's a simple self defence case where SYG never applied but is being twisted to get a prosecution in order to get SYG I'm FLA repealed, same as the Zimmerman case.

So the quotes from the sheriff, biased as they were, are lies?
 

Ghost1958

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So the quotes from the sheriff, biased as they were, are lies?

The sheriff didn't arrest because it was a clear cut case of SD. He hid behind SYG because I'm FLA its a political hot potato that sheltered him from being the cause of riots , law suits etc.

SYG, despite it's wordy version in Fla simply reinforces no duty to retreat.
It never applied in Zimmerman or this case . Neither had any opportuity to retreat in the first place.

Both were simple SD cases evidenced by their lawyers not invoking SYG in either case.
 
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