How Did Taukitoku Use The Affirmative Defense Of Self-Defense

In response to the injured party, a defendant can file affirmative defenses to mitigate, or to some extent, rationalize their actions. In the Taukitoku case specifically, Taukitoku used the affirmative defense of self-defense as a rationale for the shooting. Likewise, Taukitoku may have had impaired judgment after Jacob Snyder hit him with a shovel. Self-Defense In the chain of events, Taukitoku had pulled out his gun and pointed it at multiple individuals, including the owner of the home, Jacob Snyder. Snyder first asked him to leave. Instead, Taukitoku fired the gun through the back porch. These events are notable because they led up to Snyder hitting Taukitoku on the side of the head with a shovel. The court’s depiction labeled the it as a “glancing blow,” or in other words, Taukitoku was hit from an angle and not necessarily at full force.

Taukitoku also claimed that he did not recall being asked to leave and instead that he was scared. Taukitoku rationalized bringing the gun because he had grown up in a rough neighborhood. In their closing statements, Lui reminded the jury that “you can condemn the act… but can you also have compassion?” referring to Taukitoku’s actions being a mistake out of fear. Moreover, the court mentioned that none of the murder victims had threatened Taukitoku. Perhaps his intent to defend against Snyder’s hit was transferred to the three victims, but nonetheless he was ultimately responsible for their deaths. By the reasonable person standard, it seems more viable for Snyder, the owner of the home who was pointed at a gun beforehand, to attempt to defend himself than for Taukitoku to pull the trigger of his Taurus semi-automatic on the other