In April 2005, then-Florida governor Jeb Bush signed the state's "Stand Your Ground" bill into law, allowing Florida residents to defend themselves with deadly force in any "place where he or she has a right to be," with "no duty to retreat" and a reasonable belief that "it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm ... or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony." The new law drew sharp criticism from gun control groups who argued that it allowed carriers of concealed weapons to shoot to kill without threat of prosecution, or even arrest. It is currently at the center of the controversy surrounding the February 26 shooting death of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin.
At the time of its enactment, Fox News' Andrew Napolitano and Sean Hannity defended the Florida law and dismissed the concerns of critics. Napolitano even blasted the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence for "misrepresenting" the law, even though he didn't actually know what the law said.
Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law went into effect on October 1, 2005. Since then, as Mother Jones has pointed out, Florida courts have argued that if a defendant claims self-defense in a shooting, the "defendant's only burden is to offer facts from which his resort to force could have been reasonable," thus making it "surprisingly easy to evade prosecution by claiming self-defense." The law is at issue in the Martin shooting, as the shooter, George Zimmerman, claimed self-defense and has thus far not been charged with a crime.
Shortly before the law took effect, the Brady Campaign went to Florida airports and handed out fliers that cautioned "visitors to take 'sensible precautions' and to be aware that altercations on highways, in nightclubs or on the beach could provoke a shooting."
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