The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights will launch an inquiry into ‘Stand Your Ground’ legislation for racial bias, thinkprogress.org reported.
The Commission’s announcement comes against the backdrop of the Trayvon Martin shooting and laws in twenty-three states which remove the duty to retreat from a confrontation that existed as part of common law for hundreds of years.
In announcing the study, the Commission said there are some indicators of bias regarding how the ‘Stand Your Ground’ law is being applied. According to the Commission:
Data complied by the Wall Street Journal shows a near doubling of justifiable homicides from 2005-2011 in states where ‘Stand Your Ground’ passed. Moreover, their data shows that while white killers of black victims comprises only 3.1% of all homicides, such cross-racial killings constitute 15.6% of justifiable homicides.
The Commission plans to hold hearings and submit their findings within one year.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott recently established a task force to review the state’s own ‘Stand Your Ground’ law. However, the task force is stacked with supporters of the law.
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