Debunk the Florida Task Force’s outrageous claims on Shoot First

[From The Site click here]
Despite the growing body of evidence showing Shoot First laws result in more killing — not safer communities – the Task Force examining Florida’s Shoot First law is listening to NRA lobbyists and claiming they found no evidence the law is actually dangerous. Before they submit any misguided recommendations on Shoot First laws to Florida’s legislators, it’s critical to get the facts out.

Go to the Task Force website and and Set the Record on Shoot First laws: http://www.flgov.com

[SAMPLE MESSAGE:]
“I am writing with deep concern over the claim made by the Task Force on Citizen Safety and Protection that there is no evidence showing Shoot First laws are dangerous.
Numerous studies — including those from Georgia State University, Texas A&M, The Wall Street Journal and the Associated Press — clearly indicate that letting people shoot first and ask questions later results in more killing – not safer communities. Texas A&M, for example, found that Shoot First laws result in up to 700 additional homicides nationwide each year. That’s not keeping my family safe.
I call on this Task Force to reexamine the mounting body of evidence condemning Shoot First laws and use the facts to inform your recommendations for Florida’s legislators. Below, I have included summaries of just a few recent studies.
With respect,
____________

More facts you can include:

1. The June 2012 Texas A&M study reviewed more than 20 states with Stand Your Ground laws between the years of 2000 to 2010. The study found no evidence that the law was a crime deterrent but instead found that burglary, robbery, aggravated assault are unaffected by the law. On the other hand, the report finds that the laws were associated with an increase in homicides of about 8%, representing 500 to 700 homicides nationwide each year.
2. Georgia State University researchers used monthly data from the US Vital Statistics to examine how Stand Your Ground laws affect homicides in America. Their results indicate that Stand Your Ground laws are associated with a significant increase in the number of homicides among whites — especially white males. According to their estimates 4.4 to 7.4 additional white males are killed each month as a result of these laws. They conclude that their findings raise significant questions against the argument that Stand Your Ground laws make Americans safer.
3. A Wall Street Journal analysis found that states which passed SYG laws experienced an increase in justifiable homicides of more than 50% in the years following passage, whereas states that did not change their self-defense laws experienced little change during the same period.
4. The Associated Press in Florida found:

• 60% of people shielded by Stand Your Ground had at least one previous arrest prior to the time they killed someone. 59% percent of those with previous arrest records went free.
• 40% of defendants had 3 or more arrests on their record.
• More than a third had previously been in trouble for threatening someone with a gun or illegally carrying a weapon.

5. An analysis of homicides by John Roman and Mitch Downey of the Urban Institute found that in states with SYG laws, twice as many homicides were likely to be deemed justified than in non-SYG states. Shootings of Blacks by Whites were more likely to go unpunished.

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