Trayvon Martin V. Stand Your Ground Law

Wow! Another young unarmed black teenager killed. Trayvon Martin was a 17-year-old African American boy from Miami Gardens, Florida. Trayvon would usually have a hoodie up with his earphones on and it could be 100 degrees and Trayvon would still have a hoodie on. The hoodie became a symbol of being a thug. His friends described him as a kid who wanted to make everybody laugh, and a kid who would “walk away” rather than fight in a conflict. At the time of the incident he was attending Dr. Michael Krop High School. Trayvon’s mother put him in that school believing that it would provide a better atmosphere. At Dr. Krop, he fell into a little trouble. He had been suspended twice for “tardiness” and “truancy”. He was in Sanford at his father’s

Although it was not actually used by the defense, the jury was given instructions that they should consider the law when deliberating. The instructions to the jury were “If George Zimmerman was not engaged in an unlawful activity and was attacked in any place where he had the right to be, he had no duty to retreat and had the right to stand his ground and meet force with force, including deadly force if reasonably believed that is was necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or another or the to prevent the commission of a forcible crime (Follman and Williams). The controversial self-defense law played a major part in the decision of not guilty for murdering Trayvon. One can use this law as a defense anytime one feels threatened. It can be applied anywhere at any time. If you feel that your life is in danger you have the right to kill the person even if you could have gotten away. It does not matter if the person has a weapon or not. It is simply a perceived threat. George Zimmerman was found not guilty and used “Stand your Ground Law” to get off. The killing of Trayvon Martin caused many people to take another look at the law. They challenged the law. They challenged a law that a person can start a fight, and then feel threatened, and can then kill a person if they feel threatened even if the person is unarmed. The law was

Many Americans were having the debate if we should have the right to carry a concealed weapon at any time. The Second Amendment states that we as citizens of the United States have the right to bear arms. When Trayvon Martin died, it stirred the debate if it should be changed. This kid Trayvon Martin would not of died if Mr. Zimmerman was not allowed to carry his gun. Why was Zimmerman even carrying a weapon, why does he feel like he needs a weapon on him anyways? He was allowed to have a gun even with a history of violence. His past included resisting an officer with violence and domestic violence charges. There are an average of 80 deaths per day from gun wounds. How many deaths could be prevented? In England, they have the lowest amount of gun crime in the world. The number one reason for this low rate of gun crime is due to that guns are illegal in England ( ). With the killing of Trayvon Martin, many Americans felt scared that anyone could carry a weapon and use that weapon at anytime. Americans felt what happened to Trayvon Martin could happen to their sons. The Second Amendment is believed to be outdated. When the Second Amendment was written, the guns were not as advanced to what they are now. When the original people wrote the amendments they had no clue the advancement of guns that would come in the future ( ). In the end, no guns should be carried around like