Stand Your Ground Law In The United States

In 2005 Florida became the first state in the United States to pass a ‘stand your ground’ style law. This law was created with the intent of extending law abiding citizen’s already existing right to self-defense. A right which is central to common law, and is outlined as a basic right in the Constitution. Under this law, people may immediately use deadly force in self-defense if they believe that doing so will "prevent death or great bodily harm" (findlaw). Normally, there is a ‘duty to retreat’ from a dangerous situation and avoid confrontation. However under this law there is no duty to retreat, and a victim retains the right to ‘stand their ground’. This law is believed to deter violent crime and empower victims of assault and robbery.

The state government wanted to assure its citizens that they would be protected should they be forced to use deadly force against a looter or attacker (Fair). It was without a doubt, a simple and reasonable expansion of the already existing self-defense laws in place. It is universally regarded as common law that a person may kill their attacker if they do so in the defense of their own life. To many natural law philosophers, the right to self-defense is regarded as a moral imperative (Fair). The intent and purpose of these laws is to allow law abiding citizens to defend themselves with lethal force without having to fear prosecution for their actions. Although the specifics vary by state, a common implementation as seen in the state of Alabama is that "as long as someone is somewhere lawfully and is not engaged in illegal activity, the person has no duty to retreat from an attack and has the right to stand his or her ground” (Fair). In states that do not have stand your ground laws, a victim is expected to make every possible attempt to flee from their attacker before resorting to fighting back (Roberts). This creates a potentially dangerous situation, where a victim of violent crime sacrifices their upper hand in a confrontation out of an attempt to adhere with the law. This also empowers the attackers, as they know that their victims cannot legally fight back with lethal force. Stand your ground laws create a situation where criminals are immediately stopped in the act. To put it normatively, the common man should not be punished for taking a life in self-defense, and should not be forced to retreat when his life is threatened by another person. The only people whom this law directly hurts are those who chose to perpetuate violent crime. Repealing stand your ground laws would simply protect those who threaten the lives of