MIAMI BEACH, Fla:A leading group of black lawyers yesterday urged Florida’s governor to call a special legislative session to repeal the state’s “Stand Your Ground” law after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the fatal shooting of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin.
“Stand Your Ground must fall,” said John Page, the president of the National Bar Association, one of the oldest organisations of African-American lawyers, during the group’s annual meeting in Miami Beach, Florida.
Civil rights groups have stepped up calls for Governor Rick Scott to ask state lawmakers to overhaul the law. Dozens of students this month staged a sit-in in Tallahassee, the state’s capital, also urging him to repeal it.
But Scott has repeatedly said he supports Stand Your Ground and has no plans to call a special session. Recent polls show a majority of Floridians also back the law, which was first passed in 2005 with overwhelming support from Republicans and Democrats alike.
“I’m asking Governor Scott — convene a session,” Page said. “We’re asking you to act.”
Dennis Baxley, a Florida state representative who sponsored the law, has also said he sees no need to overhaul it. He has argued the law has helped to lower crime rates in Florida.
Under Stand Your Ground, people fearing for their lives can use deadly force without having to retreat from a confrontation, even when it is possible.
Earlier this month, a jury acquitted Zimmerman, a former neighbourhood watch volunteer, of second-degree murder and manslaughter in the killing of Martin, a black 17 year old. Critics contend that Zimmerman racially profiled Martin when he followed him in a gated community in Sanford, Florida. REUTERS
