Florida parking lot shooting: Should stand your ground laws apply to cases like this.

[TangoBravo605]

Here is the charging document:

https://www.scribd.com/document/3861...813#from_embed

TB605

[Stickler]

Here is the charging document:

https://www.scribd.com/document/3861...813#from_embed

TB605

So I looked up the stand your ground statute.. "776.012 Use or threatened use of force in defense of person.—"

I think the DA's contention is that since Mr. McGlockton was stepping away from Mr. Drejka, there was no imminent threat anymore. Just like you can keep shooting at someone running off your property because they were threatening you previously.

The DA's citation is for "782.07 Manslaughter; aggravated manslaughter of an elderly person or disabled adult; aggravated manslaughter of a child; aggravated manslaughter of an officer, a firefighter, an emergency medical technician, or a paramedic.—" which just means he is charging manslaughter and he does not feel that 776.012 would apply.

This will be a hard one, because it comes down to that 1-2 second moment that Mr. McGlockton starts walking away. Could Mr. Drejka determine that in the moment, from his angle, with his fight-flight system working. Was he negligent in his use of his firearm once he pulled it by shooting a man that was no longer a threat.

I don't think that if there was no video that anyone could have heard the narrative of the story and arrested him "I was yelling at a woman for parking in the handicap when her boyfriend just comes up to me and shoves me to the ground with the force I go back many feet. He was much larger than me and threatening me. I defended myself." That is a different narrative than "He pushed me to the ground. I pulled my gun. He backed away. I shot him because didn't believe that this was over and he would attack me again when he had the chance."

[nfafan]

"And all the while, rallies and news conferences cropped up nearly every day to call for an arrest, organized by groups such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and Black Lives Matter."

This may just have something to do with him getting charged.

Yeah, be my bet.

[internet troll]

"Stand your ground" means that you have no duty to retreat before using force to defend yourself, IF you have grounds to defend yourself. That aspect is irrelevant here, because the shooter was on the ground with the attacker just inches away. It's extremely unlikely that the shooter could get up and retreat before the attacker would resume his attack, and the video clearly shows that the physical attack was unprovoked and had not ended, with the aggressor still there and still making hostile gestures.

There are other aspects in the laws like this which may apply, such as placing the burden of proof on the state to prove that self-defense does NOT apply.

As for the previous allegations that the shooter had confronted others with his gun, I haven't seen evidence that any of those resulted in police reports, which would explain the absence of prior arrests, and there's no discussion of the circumstances of those alleged incidents; if a dozen people come at me with knives over the course of a year, and I defensively display a gun each time, should I be arrested, or should the aggressors count themselves lucky that they weren't shot or arrested?

Here is an article that has some reports of other incidents although no charges.

http://www.erienewsnow.com/story/388...ur-ground-case

Florida man threatened people 3 different times before shooting man in latest 'stand your ground' case
The man charged with manslaughter after shooting another man in a Clearwater, Florida, convenience store parking lot, has a history of threatening drivers, according to documents from the Pinellas County Circuit Court.

News

Tuesday, August 14th 2018, 4:12 am EDT
By Amir Vera CNN

(CNN) -- The man charged with manslaughter after shooting another man in a Clearwater, Florida, convenience store parking lot, has a history of threatening drivers, according to documents from the Pinellas County Circuit Court.

Michael Drejka, 47, fatally shot Markeis McGlockton in July after McGlockton shoved him to the ground during a dispute over a handicapped-accessible spot. Drejka claimed he feared for his life and said he fired in self-defense. Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri previously said Florida's "stand your ground" laws prevented him from arresting Drejka.

Drejka was ultimately charged and will make his first appearance in court Tuesday afternoon. CNN has tried contacting Drejka multiple times, but has not heard back and it was not clear whether he has an attorney.

Court documents show that the July incident wasn't the first time Drejka aggressively confronted drivers over parking spots or what he perceived to be traffic infractions.

A truck driver parked in a handicapped-accessible spot

About three months ago, Richard Kelly told a Pinellas County Sheriff's Office detective he was confronted by Drejka at Circle A Food Store, the same store where he shot McGlockton. Drejka, documents said, was upset because Kelly parked in a handicapped-accessible spot. The exchange between the two became very loud and Kelly said at some point during the argument Drejka told him he was going to shoot him, documents said.

Drejka then went to his car and was rummaging around the center console, but documents said Kelly drove away. Drejka, Kelly said, also threw racial slurs at him. Kelly is black and Drejka is white.

Court documents said Drejka wanted to voice his complaint to Kelly's employer, AA Cut-Rate Septic Tank Service, so he spoke to the owner, John Tyler. Drejka told the business owner he was lucky he didn't blow his employee's head off, documents said.

A woman drove too slow through a school zone

On December 12, 2012, a woman told a Largo Police Department officer that a man driving a black Toyota truck, later identified as Drejka, pointed a gun at her and the passengers in the vehicle.

The woman pointed out the truck to the officer. The officer spoke with Drejka, documents said, and he told the officer the woman was driving too slow through a school zone.

Drejka denied pointing a gun at the occupants of the car, documents said, but he did have a gun in his vehicle. Drejka told the officer, according to a review of the police reports by the Tampa Bay Times, that he honked at the people in the other car, and that the people in the car made rude hand gestures at him.

A teen didn't drive through a yellow light

On January 10, 2012, Tyler Smith, 18, was driving with a friend when a traffic light turned yellow. Smith decided not to drive through the light and stopped his vehicle.

A truck, driven by Drejka, was behind Smith. Drejka honked his horn, documents said, and yelled at Smith. Drejka held a black handgun out the driver's side window of his vehicle and motioned for Smith to walk back to his truck, documents said. Drejka then followed the teen's vehicle, passed it and slammed on his breaks, the Tampa Bay Times reported.

The teens did not press charges, documents said.

When officers confronted Drejka about the incident, he said the teen's car cut him off, the Tampa Bay Times reported. He said he neither followed the teen's car nor did he show his gun, but did admit to having one in his vehicle.

[Krichardson]

Documented complaints of the guy's gun waving shenannigans....sounds like his carry privileges should have been revoked.I wonder how much his bail was?

[TangoBravo605]

$100,000...and the $outgo has only just begun. Unless Drejka negotiates pleading guilty to a lesser charge, or is successful at the Self-Defense Immunity Hearing, he's looking at seven figures, large. Hope he has the resources 'cause he's sure gonna need em.

TB605

[farmplinker]

This dipshit is the last guy we want as the public image for concealed firearm carry. He is screwing things up for the rest of us.

[Aggies Coach]

He is about to pay for the “Sins” of Zimmerman. Guilty !!!

[ideaman]

Right or wrong. For THIS PARTICULAR situation and judging only this situation, he was NOT SHOVED, it was a double open hand heel punch which could knock the breath out of him and caused a hard impact to the ground. Both could easily disorient him preventing him from making a "REASONALBLE MAN" decision. He drew and fired.

[unclejumbo]

If the stories of his past incidents are true, he was hoping to shoot someone. I've been waffling on this one for a bit because I believe strongly in stand-your-ground laws but this guy was/is a menace. He doesn't have the temperament to be armed. I think he was just as likely to blow someone away in a road rage incident as someone that was a true threat. No doubt the guy that assaulted him was a bad dude. With that said, once the gun was out, without further aggression by McGlockton I don't think he had cause to shoot.

He doesn't do any of us any favors, he's exactly the type of lunatic the antis say we all are. To my mind, his reasoning skills are unsound which makes me question the reasonableness of him being in fear of imminent death or serious bodily injury.