A fresh look at Florida’s Stand Your Ground law

In 2005, Florida passed legislation that put into effect a law that allowed individuals to use different levels of force, including deadly force, in certain conditions. This law has many gray areas and cases often require serious legal debate to determine force justification.

Also, limitations to the law could result in criminal charges against a person using force against another person. The law has many provisions that treat the use of force in a variety of circumstances.

In defense of person

According to the Florida Legislature website, a person can use non-deadly force in certain conditions when defending his or her person. This applies to situations where another person implies the use of unlawful force against one or more persons. The person does not have a duty to retreat before using force or threatening to use force in self-defense.

If the person under threat reasonably believes that they could face death or great bodily harm, that person has the legal right to use deadly force. This holds true as long as the person is not engaged in illegal activity and is at home or another legal place.

In defense of property

Similar principles apply to this situation. The key point here is whether or not the person at home or a business feels reasonably threatened. If so, the person can use force to neutralize the threat and does not have a duty to retreat.

In some cases, extenuating circumstances do not allow the use of deadly or non-deadly force. Many aspects of the Stand Your Ground law remain situational and could require legal representation to argue for a just outcome.