Another reminder that the Stand Your Ground law in Florida is used to rationalize killing people without a good reason.
Alisyn Camerota introduced a segment about a man who fatally shot another man after an argument over a parking spot in Clearwater, Florida.
"Sheriff's detectives say that one man, Michael Drejka, approached a woman, 24-year-old Brittany Jacobs. He was angry that she had parked in a handicapped spot. Police say her boyfriend then came out of the store and confronted Drejka. And you can see here this surveillance video. it shows (Markeis) McGlockton pushed Drejka to the ground and then he pulled a handgun and shot McGlockton in the chest and killed him. They say he has a concealed weapons license and the sheriff declined to file charges," Camerota said.
"He had to shoot to defend himself. You know, and those are the facts, and that's the law," Pinellas County Bob Gualtieri said.
"Markeis should not have gone up and slammed this guy to the ground. Markeis wouldn't be dead if Markeis didn’t slam this guy to the ground," Gualtieri added. "So Markeis has got skin in this game, too. And the reason why it makes it justified, and within the framework of 'stand your ground,' is because of what Markeis did."
He said that it will fall on the state to determine whether Drejka was "not entitled to use force in this circumstance."
The sheriff, however, said the circumstances surrounding the shooting were not clear-cut.
"There is a pause — even if it's only for a couple seconds — there is a pause between the time Drejka hits the ground and he shoots. That pause gives me pause," Gualtieri said. "That pause gives me some concern. And it goes back to what I said when I opened: just because you can, doesn't mean you should."
I hate it when people park in handicapped spots, too. But it never occurred to me to police that behavior and seek confrontation. Carrying a gun seems to do that to some people.
Markeis should never have shoved the guy. But he shouldn't have been shot dead in front of his children because he did, and I hope the shooter is held accountable.
