Even if GZ initiated the confrontation, then
Since its passage in 2005, the “stand your ground’’ law has protected people who have pursued another, initiated a confrontation and then used deadly force to defend themselves. Citing the law, judges have granted immunity to killers who put themselves in danger, so long as their pursuit was not criminal, so long as the person using force had a right to be there, and so long as he could convince the judge he was in fear of great danger or death.
http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/article1222930.ece
I've made some good friends that way. But I've never had my head beat on concrete because of it.
Oh... and sometimes, in this neighborhood, I have to ask in Spanish.
/johnny
The whole issue of “duty to retreat” and stand your ground has NO application to this case, based on the defense offered by Zimmerman.
Zimmerman claims Trayvon initiated the physical altercation by striking him in the face and attacked him and was beating him on the ground.
With Trayvon on top of him, there was no opportunity to retreat before he was put in reasonable fear of death or great bodily harm, justifying his use of the firearm. Therefore, the situation addressed by “stand your ground” has no application to this case.
The whole issue of “stand your ground” has been injected into the case by liberals who don’t like the concept and are trying to raise public consciousness of it to get it overturned or not adopted in other states.