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Judge denies 'stand your ground' defense in movie theater shooting
CNN ^ | 5:24 AM ET, Sat March 11, 2017 | Eric Levenson, Tina Burnside

Posted on 03/11/2017 9:33:51 AM PST by BenLurkin

The case dates to January 2014 when Reeves, then 71, confronted a man in a suburban Tampa movie theater about texting during the previews before a showing of "Lone Survivor." The two argued, and then Reeves walked out of the theater to complain to an employee. When Reeves returned, he and the man, Chad Oulson, began arguing again.

Oulson threw a bag of popcorn at Reeves, according to a criminal complaint, and Reeves then took out his handgun and fired at Oulson, killing him.

Defense attorneys asked the judge to dismiss the murder charge under the "stand your ground" law that allows residents to use deadly force when they fear death or great bodily harm.

(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...


TOPICS: US: Florida
KEYWORDS: banglist; florida; shooting; standyourground
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To: meatloaf
To this day, I doubt he knows why he responded the way he did.

Militarized retired captain of SWAT team, maybe? /laughter

181 posted on 03/11/2017 4:35:20 PM PST by kiryandil
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To: kiryandil

Read the book I referenced earlier. It’s a window into aspects of human behavior that defy explanation at times until you understand where habits are stored.


182 posted on 03/11/2017 4:42:13 PM PST by meatloaf
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To: meatloaf
I agree that he overreacted. The question is why he reacted as he did. For that the answer can be found in the book, The Power of Habit, which was published around the time of the incident. Once you understand how the brain stores habits, it’s likely that the retired policeman’s training resulted in a response without conscious thought. Some articles said his first words after the shooting were, “What have I done?” I suspect he was surprised as the guy shot dead.

This actually brings up a very good question, and one I've not seen in discussions of this incident.

Perhaps people with this sort of training should be assessed to see if they should be carrying around weapons of the trade when they retire.

This one is a very good example of one that should not have been.

183 posted on 03/11/2017 4:44:55 PM PST by kiryandil
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To: meatloaf
Thanks for the recommendation.

I've had a lifelong interest in workings of the mind.

184 posted on 03/11/2017 4:46:09 PM PST by kiryandil
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To: BenLurkin
They did not even get that right. The "use of deadly force when one was in fear of their life law was already in effect. The "Stand your ground law" law merely provided that if one was where they had a legal right to be when/ if attacked, they had no duty to retreat. They could use the degree of force, up to and including deadly, necessary.

Under Common Law, which the State of Florida was under until they replaced it with code or Statuary Law in the 1970s, one had a right to self defense. Statuary or Code law omitted the self defense provision. In its place was the ,In fear of one's life provision.If someone was"in fear of their life, they could use deadly force to defend themselves.

185 posted on 03/11/2017 5:11:38 PM PST by sport
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To: Robert DeLong

But from a legal standpoint, if you can leave and disengage, but stay and keep engaging, there goes your self defense argument.


186 posted on 03/11/2017 5:39:01 PM PST by Secret Agent Man ( Gone Galt; Not averse to Going Bronson.)
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To: Bob434
Now Bob you said:

Another dead bully.

Too bad.

He finally met someone who’d stand up to him m

And my response to you was based upon that, which was a pretty definitive response concluding guilt, and I was questioning your logic in making that determination.

Now you are expanding to include a lot of ifs that were not present in your first post. According to another poster he was texting with the babysitter. I do not know if that is true or not. Now as you say we do not know the entire story, but knowing what is available my initial conclusion is that this ex police officer played a large role in this becoming more than it ever should have. A person lies dead for perhaps rudely texting, but that does not justify him being shot to death. Especially when I can find no evidence that presents a scenario of imminent danger to the ex police officer.

I'll bet he wishes he had just got up and relocated himself to another part of the theater. That was the appropriate response to take in the first place. Not create a confrontation because the person has made you mad.

187 posted on 03/11/2017 5:43:50 PM PST by Robert DeLong
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To: Secret Agent Man

Yes, and in fact he did leave and then came back, which is even more damning to his case. As it proved he did have that option, but was really desirous of continuing the confrontation.


188 posted on 03/11/2017 5:47:54 PM PST by Robert DeLong
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To: meatloaf

“The Power of Habit”

I need more Practice!


189 posted on 03/11/2017 5:52:01 PM PST by Big Red Badger (UNSCANABLE in an IDIOCRACY!4)
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To: Strac6
"Legal point: In Florida, SYG is not a self-defense justification pled at trial. It is a pre-trial motion decided solely by the judge."

"Stand Your Ground" is neither. SYG refers to the lack of a duty to retreat, one of the five elements of legal self-defense. It is not "self defense" itself, as the press routinely uses it. And it is not the pre-trial hearing that was conducted here. This was a "self-defense immunity" hearing.

190 posted on 03/11/2017 5:55:29 PM PST by mlo
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To: sport
"Statuary or Code law omitted the self defense provision. In its place was the ,In fear of one's life provision.If someone was"in fear of their life, they could use deadly force to defend themselves."

That is self-defense law, or part of it. There's more to it than that. But the idea that one can use deadly force to prevent a deadly force attack on themselves is basic, and is the law everywhere in the US. There's nothing special about Florida, now or at any other time.

191 posted on 03/11/2017 5:59:00 PM PST by mlo
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To: AnotherUnixGeek
"Ouslon clearly was not covered by any “stand your ground” law. Getting popcorn thrown at you is not a reason to believe your life or well-being are in danger and does not justify shooting the popcorn thrower..."

It's not a "stand your ground" law. It's self-defense law.

Technically however, he might have been. Florida law also allows the use of deadly force to prevent a "forcible felony". There is also a law that reclassifies battery against a senior citizen as a felony. So, technically, throwing popcorn at a senior, which is battery, becomes a forcible felony, and deadly force is allowed to prevent.

I'm not saying that's how it should be, or that a jury would buy it, but he does have a shot at a legal defense.

192 posted on 03/11/2017 6:04:56 PM PST by mlo
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If you carry a gun to defend yourself, it’s not to defend your ego or sense of propriety. You don’t become etiquette tutor for the gobs of ill-mannered jerks out there. If some random stranger’s poor manners is enough to precipitate a conflict with you, watch your movies and practice dry-firing at home.


193 posted on 03/11/2017 6:17:47 PM PST by Trailerpark Badass (There should be a whole lot more going on than throwing bleach, said one woman.)
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To: NFHale; All

One punch can kill.

It happens pretty often.

http://gunwatch.blogspot.com/2015/01/fl-judge-rules-fists-are-deadly-threat.html


194 posted on 03/11/2017 6:27:12 PM PST by marktwain (President Trump and his supporters are the Resistance. His opponents are the Reactionaries.)
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To: mlo

If you say so.


195 posted on 03/11/2017 6:31:23 PM PST by sport
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To: kiryandil

She is silent now... at the time witnesses said she said to her husband that he didn’t need to shoot him and was told to shut the eff up.

She appears well trained.


196 posted on 03/11/2017 6:57:18 PM PST by Valpal1 (I am enjoying the lamentations of their girly-men on social media.)
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To: mlo; All

I watched the surveillance video.

A couple of things I noticed.

1. The theater was mostly empty. There were numerous empty seats that the parties coud have moved to, either of them.

2. When the shooting occurred, or just before, the person who was shot had his hand about a foot from the shooters face. This seemed to happen just after the popcorn throwing.

Popcorn throwing, hand near to face and shooting all seemed to happen in 1 or 2 seconds. Very, very fast.

3. The video does not show the person shot. They are out of the frame for most of the time. Only the arm and hand show up, very briefly.

4. The stand your ground hearing depends on a significantly different standard of proof than a self defense trial.

In a self defense trial, the prosecution has to prove that it was *not* self defense beyond a reasonable doubt. It is a much higher standard of proof, and on the opposite side, from a stand your ground hearing. (which is the immunity hearing)

I think the judge made the right call, and it will properly go to trial.


197 posted on 03/11/2017 7:02:34 PM PST by marktwain (President Trump and his supporters are the Resistance. His opponents are the Reactionaries.)
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To: Robert DeLong

[[Now Bob you said:

Another dead bully.

Too bad.

He finally met someone who’d stand up to him m]]

No sir i never said that- another poster did- I wouldn’t say anything like that

[[Now you are expanding to include a lot of ifs that were not present in your first post.]]

Like any objective person should if you want to get to the bottom of what actually happened- several people; have brought out very good points that bring into question what really went down- and that is how the process of discovery works

[[ A person lies dead for perhaps rudely texting, but that does not justify him being shot to death.]]

Noone is sayign beign shot for texting is justifiable- what we are saying is that it’s pretty clear that this was not just about texting- and it’s questionable at this point who the aggressor was-

I think you’ve mixed me up with another poster- I have been presenting questions concerning Both parties, not just one side- but the evidence coming out is raising doubt that the man with the gun was ‘definitely the aggressor’


198 posted on 03/11/2017 7:04:37 PM PST by Bob434
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To: Valpal1

A civil lawsuit would probably strip them of most of his SWEET pension.


199 posted on 03/11/2017 7:08:36 PM PST by kiryandil
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To: Bob434

This shooting was extensively covered in the local papers at the time. Interesting fact; the shooter exchanged texts with his son before the the movie also. But then becomes enraged with the victim for the same thing.

Applying rules to others that you exempt yourself from makes him guilty of impersonating a congressman.


200 posted on 03/11/2017 7:09:29 PM PST by Valpal1 (I am enjoying the lamentations of their girly-men on social media.)
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