If that had been me on the ground I would have been in fear for my life.
One would hope that you would not have escalated a parking argument to a life and death situation as this guy did.
It will be important to impress upon the jury the concept that human beings are not machines. We don’t make mechanical decisions like, “Danger thread is now increasing distance. Do not take action.” showing up on our imaginary heads up display. Emotions are high and adrenelyn is high.
That’s why, in those old WWII pacific theater movies, you see bullets continuing to hit the water after a flaming enemy plane nosedives into the ocean.
He was out looking for a fight. Lot’s of evidence supporting that. He started THAT particular fight. He got shoved down as he deserved.
Ok, he draws, no issue. But unless the guy attacks, you cannot shoot.
Anyway, I suspect more than a few people here would respond with a shove if you came out of a store and found some guy bullying your wife.
The damned coward made himself the self appointed parking space police. In my experience, that crowd is only slightly less obnoxious than bicycle riders.
This clown was certainly no George Zimmerman, but he was still wrongfully attacked. I believe it is 50/50 that he beats the rap.
Big dude assaulted little guy. They don’t show little guy flying backward, bouncing off concrete.
No assault, no problem.
There wouldn’t be a prosecution if the big dude wasn’t black.
The other guy was in fear for his WIFE. He comes out of the store and this idiot - who probably wouldn’t have been so full of himself if he had been unarmed- was harassing his wife over what is not his business, but a matter concerning the management of the store.
The guy with the gun wasn’t in his own car getting assaulted. He wasn’t on his own property getting assaulted. His own wife was not getting assaulted. The business was not getting robbed. He was in the other guy’s parking spot with the other guy’s wife and kid in their own vehicle minding their own business and he escalated an argument far beyond the value of the dispute by not leaving after he had his say, probably because he had Facebook disease- a bad case of virtue signaling making him ridiculously self righteous. There are other people, no doubt, behind the guy who came out of the store who could be hurt; it was a public place and well lit. The guy who came out of the store wasn’t threatening any innocent bystanders and he would not have been a threat to the virtue signaler if the virtue signaler had not tangled with his wife.
He is in allot of trouble. The distance between he and the guy standing up, the guy standing there was not approaching the fella on the ground.
Somebody goes to tuning on you, then after a couple of punches backs off...then you pop him, not good.
What are you, a worm?
“If that had been me on the ground I would have been in fear for my life.”
But would you also be someone with a history of playing parking lot monitor, who enjoyed spending your time confronting people who illegally parked?
It’s not like the guy who was killed went out looking for trouble. He was a jerk who parks in handicapped slots and gets physical when he sees someone arguing with his wife/girlfriend.
Presuming you're a reasonable person, that won't be the issue. The issue will revolve around the provocation. You can't provoke a fight without the risk of liability should it escalate to a point where you were in fear of your life. Worse yet, it appears there are incidents in the past of this individual provoking arguments over the parking space, and threatening parkers. And possibility an incident in which he waved a firearm.
I would not provoke an incident like that when armed. I acknowledge that the distance was such that I would consider an angry young man larger than younger than me a threat. And look at the video. After being thrown down but prior to drawing his weapon another young man in a blue tshirt approaches him. Then flees when he sees the weapon. That man in the blue t shirt is a threat as well.