dietz199

Ah yes, Godwin's law. Given enough time any online conversation will play the H or N@#I card. This is done by a contributor who is backed into a corner and has no reasonable response. To everyone's credit, it takes a very long time (if ever) for most CC'ers to resort to this tactic.

myturnnow

http://www.tampabay.com/news/politic...n-laws/1223017

From bring-your-guns-to-work laws to all-out bans on local gun restrictions, Florida has become a haven for Second Amendment enthusiasts. Statistics show the pro-gun agenda has triggered more gun sales, more permits and a sharp rise in justifiable homicides.

Florida has about 900,000 licensed concealed weapons carriers, far more than any other state and nearly twice as many as Texas.

The number of annual applications for concealed gun licenses has grown from 26,800 to 123,000 since 1998. (February was a record month for application requests, with 53,835.)

The number of "justifiable homicides" — typically shooting deaths deemed legal under stand your ground — has tripled in the last seven years.

However, murders by firearm have increased 45 percent since 1999, despite an overall dropoff in violent crime, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Zimmerman was licensed to have the gun despite a prior arrest on a charge of assault on a law enforcement officer, which was dropped and domestic battery complaints. Unlike states that allow police to deny license applications based on personal character and arrest history, in Florida almost anyone who hasn't been convicted of a violent crime can qualify for a weapons license.

07DAD

Not that I understand why you asked, but consider that within the last 3 or 4 years:

Austin: police shot and killed a 20year old 4 times with a shot gun, once in the back of the head

San Antonio:-police shot and killed unarmed 14 year old Derek Lopez

Dallas: (Oak Cliff) police shot and killed 2 people (one 25 years old) within 9 days. Both unarmed. One was shot 23 times for "refusing to show his hands." In the other shooting a police bullet also hit a 11 year old

Bellaire: (sub of Houston) unarmed 23 year old shot and killed by police in his family's front yard

Addison (sub of Dallas): unarmed male shot and killed by police

Orange: Black cop shot and killed unarmed white male

Each event involved an assertion that police fired only after deceased failed to follow some warning/instruction.

myturnnow

^ curious 07Dad, you only list the race of the case where a Black cop shot and killed an unarmed white male. Was that accidental? What were the races of the other cases you cite?

NewHope33

07DAD - Sorry I asked. The most we do here in CT is shooting a suspect in the back of the head while holding him down with a foot between the shoulder blades. (Officer was convicted of manslaughter ... FWIW.)

cptofthehouse

17 years old is still legally a child. It's a tough go when ones child hits age 18 as at that point, the legal system will consider him/her an adult. But as tall as Trayvon was, he was a child. Whatever ends up happening with this case, Zimmerman will have it on his head that he shot a child.

cptofthehouse

Also Zimmerman has not been convicted of a crime. Arrested yes, but again, our system is based on an "innocent until proven guilty in a court of law". To judge a case publically like this is wrong. So much wrong information given, as well. And people are reading it, and often not catching the corrections.

We may never know what happened here. Z has his account, and if the facts line up with it, then I don't see what can be done.

Personally, and this is totally just my opinion, I think that Trayvon did confront him, as a young man of that age would do if he should suspect somone is following him. Some scuffle ensued--no way to ever tell who started it, no sense even trying to guess, and Z shot the child when it happened.

Z was totally out of line to be following anyone. Calling the 911, and staying out of the picture is what he should have done. Yes, when one sees ANYONE strange in a neighborhood where there have been issues, one should call 911. But whether any law was broken by Z is a whole other matter, and it has to be determined fairly, not by public opinion.

07DAD

Some events I found online had photos of the person shot. The Bellaire deceased was black from the photo. I guess Derek Lopez was hispanic from the name (no photo). The 11 year old that was wounded was black from the photo. The race of the policeman or police officers weren't mentioned in any but the black on white shooting in Orange.

You do realize that "white" is a minority in Texas when compared with black and hispanic, right? The Dallas Chief of Police and District Attorney are black. The Chief justice of the Texas Supreme court is black.

The Orange Texas shooting had the same outrage as the Trayvon case (at least locally). There was some evidence that the deceased used the N-word with the cop. However, it was not claimed to be accidental. Cop was no-billed in Orange--and in every other one of these instances as far as I can tell.

parent1986

INTERESTING GUN LEGISLATION

?National Right to Carry Reciprocity Act of 2012? introduced in U.S. Senate - USA Carry

“National Right to Carry Reciprocity Act of 2012” introduced in U.S. Senate
by Nra-Ila on MARCH 14, 2012 in NATIONAL FIREARM NEWS, NEWS

“National Right to Carry Reciprocity Act of 2012” introduced in U.S. Senate
Today, March 13, U.S. Senators*Mark Begich (D-Alaska) and Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia) introduced S. 2188, the “National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2012.”**The bill is the Senate companion to*H. R. 822,which was*approved by the U. S. House last November*by a vote of 272-154.

S. 2188, like H.R. 822, would allow any person with a valid state-issued concealed firearm permit to carry a concealed handgun in any other state that issues concealed firearm permits, or that does not prohibit the carrying of concealed firearms for lawful purposes. A state’s laws governing where concealed handguns may be carried would apply within its borders.

AND.....Gun control policy of the Clinton Administration - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The "Federal Assault Weapons Ban" passed under Clinton's administration was not renewed by Congress when it expired. Parts of the "Brady Bill" passed under Clinton was also ruled against by SCOTUS (related to 5 day waiting period before buying a gun that existed elsewhere, supposedly).

Bay

People need to set aside their anger and bias about guns when evaluating this case. A man cannot be condemned for engaging in lawful activity. It was not unlawful for Z to carry his gun that night, nor was it unlawful for him to follow a stranger in his gated community for 3 minutes, nor was it unlawful for him to proceed despite a comment made by a non-sworn employee of the PD.

poetgrl

I'm more interested in evaluating the law, frankly.

it's a horrible law.

There's no reason to continue to evaluate the case. The media did it's job and now they are investigating. It's not our job to investigate, just to make sure they do their job.

But the law is dangerous for anyone who even visits florida, imho.

07DAD

I agree with poetgrl that the law is dangerous and I suggest that a parent might want to investigate the SYG/Castle laws of any location their child is considering for college or for visiting on breaks.

I'd also factor in the carry laws and number of permits of the different states. As the posts indicate, there are hundred of thousands of people in Florida, Texas and Pa. who are holders of current carry permits. In Fla., the acts that can cause a permit not to issue or to be revoked are very limited.

I also think that a discussion with a student of what to do if you think you are being stalked/followed is well advised. Have a plan.

Have 911 pre-dialed in your phone. My S while in college was followed by 2 guys when he was walking home in the early a.m.. He did not run and they slapped the cell phone out of his hand before demanding his wallet, so make it quick--in my opinion call as soon as you have the slightest concern.

Get in the middle of a lighted street, if not suicidal. Its a long story, but a buddy and I got attacked by a teen pack in downtown Lima, Peru one night. To escape we ran into the middle of the hugh prominade street waving our arms, etc. It worked.

Make noise calling out for help. I know it did not work in the Trayvon/Z case but it probably could increase the chance that the other will flee or "calm down."

NewHope33

Does any recall who coined the term 'Zigilante?'

NewHope33

re: Carry Reciprocity Act of 2012

It would be nice if we Americans could agree on a few basics. I inherited an antique target pistol which had been in a state that did not require it to be registered. The deceased had inherited it from his father, who died in the 1970s. All of my inquiries about how to transport the antique to CT started out "Well first you have to get the gun registered in the state it is now. And you can't register it there because you're not a resident there." Nice. A relative volunteered to have it registered in his name if I could establish the chain of ownership ... which involved re-opening the estates. All for an item I could buy online for $400.

As for reciprocal carry, be aware that CT police have a very different view of "Legal Carry" than police in other states. If there's a complaint about public carry, they have a habit of "holding" the pistol. Not confiscation exactly, but typical time to retrieve is fifteen months. The practice is so prevalent that it's covered in NRA Basic Pistol courses here.

Hanna

"A man cannot be condemned for engaging in lawful activity."

He can't be convicted in a court of law; he can be condemned in the eyes of the public. There are plenty of foolish, reckless legal acts. I think that, if his own version of the facts is true, Zimmerman was foolish and reckless, and a child died as a result. I do condemn him for that.