Tag: Self Defense

Florida Statute 776.012 (1) A person is justified in using or threatening to use force, except deadly force, against another when and to the extent that the person reasonably believes that such conduct is necessary to defend himself or herself or another against the other’s imminent use of unlawful force. A person who uses or threatens […]

In the case of Narcisse Antoine versus the State of Florida, Mr. Antoine was convicted of attempted second degree murder with a firearm. He was at a nightclub when he was punched in the jaw. According to Antoine, two men appeared to be reaching for weapons, so he pulled out a gun and began shooting, […]

In the case of Brad Heilman versus the State of Florida, Heilman was a correctional officer employed by the Florida Department of Corrections who worked at the Lake Correctional Institution in Lake County, Florida. While on duty, Heilman and an inmate became involved in a physical altercation that resulted in physical injury to the inmate. […]

  In the case of Aaron Little versus the State of Florida, Mr. Little was charged with committing the crime of second-degree murder with a firearm.  Little filed a motion to dismiss his case in which he argued that he shot the victim in self-defense and was therefore entitled to claim immunity from prosecution because […]

           Since it was reported that George Zimmerman killed Trayvon Martin, the media has talked a lot about Florida's Stand Your Ground law.  But what does that law actually say and how might it affect Mr. Zimmerman's case?             Florida's Stand Your Ground Law states in […]

           In the case of William Stieh versus the State of Florida, Mr. Stieh was charged with the crime of aggravated battery after stabbing another individual.  The relevant facts of Stieh's case are as follows:             "Conneally, the victim; the victim's girlfriend; Stieh, . . . […]

          According to Florida law, a person cannot be arrested for using force--even deadly force--unless the police first determine that there is probable cause to believe that the force used was unlawful.  But what happens in those situations in which the police believe that the force used was unlawful?  Are the police allowed to actually state their […]

          Several Florida cases in which defendants claimed self-defense have been overturned on appeal because the trial judge incorrectly read to the jury what is sometimes referred to as a forcible-felony jury instruction.  According to this particular jury instruction, a defendant may not claim that he acted in self-defense if he did so while "attempting to commit, committing, […]

          It is the law in Florida that when a person accused of committing a crime claims that he acted in self-defense, the case should be dismissed by the trial judge when the prosecution's evidence is legally insufficient to rebut the claim of self-defense.           For example, in the case of G.T.J. v. State of […]

          The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution states that "[a] well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."  Earlier this year, the United States Supreme Court decided the case of District of Columbia v. Heller […]