[font=tahoma,geneva,sans-serif]This has been getting a lot of attention recently in the media and I just wanted to ask you kind folk what you think of the [url="http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/03/08/2684419/shooting-mystery-miami-dade-teen.html"]Trayvon Martin[/url] shooting? For those too lazy to click the link, a 17 year old African American child was shot down by a neighborhood watch captain. Martin was unarmed and had no record of gang violence or even a speeding ticket. He was on his way home from a grocery store when he was confronted by the Neighborhood watch captain, who told police he shot in self-defense. His family has made a very large protest across many channels including social media and Television. There was a rather large petition on charge.org and several celebs tweeted about it as well.
As of right now, the prosecutors haven't arrested the shooter and have cited a law enacted during Jeb Bush's tenure: "Stand your Ground" , which states that people are allowed to defend themselves against intruders or dangerous people. However, this law more applies to people breaking into your home than a child walking down a street. The Sanford police department has been under fire by the neighborhood and the police chief received a vote of no confidence. The main focal point of the investigation right now is whether or not the shooter used a racial slur in his 911 call to the police before confronting Martin.
Despite what's been going on in this story, I believe the true point is that the shooter had no buisness in confronting Martin at all. Even if he's the neighborhood watch captain, he's not the police and vigilante police work is for intents and purposes still a crime. Acting on behalf of the police without sanction boils down to murder. Police are put in place for a reason and even if Martin was acting suspiciously, there was no reason for this man to get involved. Had another person been hurt or killed, then it'd be a whole other can of worms opened. I'm also not a fan of the police not arresting him or charging him on the allegation that he acted in self-defense when the person was unarmed. Without any sort of basis or evidence to back this claim up, I believe the shooter instigated the scuffle in the first place. Had he just reported Martin and been on his way, we wouldn't have a young man dead who was on his way home with a bag of skittles and an iced tea. [/font]