The Cost of "Stand Your Ground" Laws

Mural honoring Ahmaud Arbery painted by Marvin Meeks in Brunswick, Georgia. Photo taken by Judson McCranie.

On May 5, 2020, a video was leaked to the press depicting the graphic murder of Ahmaud Arbery in Satilla Shores, a small community in Glynn County, Georgia. In the video, two armed White men follow an unarmed Black man jogging down the street and try to block him with their car. The Black man manages to avoid the car two times, but on the third time, the men catch up to him and exit the car. The Black man rounds the front of the car and lunges for one of their guns. Three shots are then fired and the man collapses on the ground. That man has been identified as Ahmaud Arbery, who died shortly after the video ends. The two men with guns have been identified as Gregory McMichael and Travis McMichael. Although the shooting took place on February 23, 2020, the video was not widely seen until May 5, when the video was leaked by a lawyer consulting for the McMichaels. The video drew immediate outrage from activists and lawmakers alike; Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden stated that Arbery was “shot down in cold blood,” and “essentially lynched before our very eyes.” The shooting has sparked questions about how an egregious killing could occur in broad daylight with no repercussions until months after the video was filmed.

The handling of the Ahmaud Arbery case has been highly scrutinized by the public since the video went viral. The first prosecutor assigned to the case, Jackie Johnson, recused herself because she had worked in the same Brunswick judicial circuit office as one of the defendants, Gregory McMichael. The case was then handed over to George Barnhill, the District Attorney of Waycross, Georgia. Barnhill also recused himself after he was pressured to do so by Arbery’s family members when information emerged that Barnhill’s son worked in the same office as Jackie Johnson and Gregory McMichael. The third prosecutor on the case, Tom Durden, recognized that it would be best if he was replaced by a prosecutor with a larger staff. Joyette Holmes, the first Black female district attorney of Cobb County, Georgia, was appointed as the lead prosecutor on May 11, 2020. Carr has requested a full investigation into the handling of the Ahmaud Arbery case by the U.S. Department of Justice, stating that “We are committed to a complete and transparent review of how the Ahmaud Arbery case was handled from the outset."

Before recusing himself, Barnhill sent a letter to the Captain of the Glynn County Police Department, in which he stated that he did “not see grounds for an arrest of any of the three parties,” referring to the McMichaels and Bryan William, the man who took the video of the shooting. In his letter, he argued that the McMichaels had full authority to perform a citizen’s arrest until the police came because they had believed Arbery to be a burglary suspect. Barnhill claims that under Georgia’s No Duty to Retreat Prior to Self-Defense law, Gregory McMichael was allowed to use deadly force after Ahmaud Arbery lunged for his shotgun. Despite Barnhill’s beliefs, George McMichael and Travis McMichael were arrested on May 7, 2020, and charged with murder and aggravated assault. 

Every time a shooting similar to the Ahmaud Arbery case takes place, debates on “stand your ground” laws are reignited. “Stand your ground” laws allow people to use self-defense when they perceive a threat, even if it is possible for them to avoid the confrontation by retreating. This discourse emerged in popular culture after the shooting of Trayvon Martin, despite the suspect, George Zimmerman, ultimately not using a “stand your ground” law as a defense in the courtroom. However, similar to the McMichaels, Zimmerman cited Florida’s “stand your ground” law to delay his arrest on the day of the murder. Critics of “stand your ground” laws argue that they go too far, giving people a “license to kill Black people and people of color” without accountability. Advocates of these laws, such as former Governor of Florida Jeb Bush, see “stand your ground” as a form of protection for people who need to use self-defense, stating that “You shouldn't have to choose between being attacked and going to jail.”  Gun control activists worry that these laws allow for racial discrimination and vigilantism.

Under most self-defense laws, people must attempt to retreat first and only use deadly force if they perceive the possibility of extreme bodily harm or a threat to their life. These laws allow people to practice self-defense without encouraging an escalation of force. Although supporters of “stand your ground” laws claim that this defense serves as a protection for everyone, statistics show high racial disparities in the application of this law. In states with “stand your ground” laws, 16.85% of homicides in which a Black person was killed by a White person were ruled as justifiable, whereas only 1.40% of homicides in which a White person was killed by a Black person were deemed justifiable. This disproportionate application can be attributed to an inability to ensure the absence of racial bias of judges, prosecutors, and jury members. Studies have also shown that “stand your ground” laws do not reduce crime rates, but instead increase the rate of homicides. Considering that these laws legitimize and escalate racial violence, “stand your ground” laws should not exist. 

The death of Ahmed Arbery was a preventable tragedy. Georgia’s No Duty to Retreat Prior to Self-Defense law will likely play a large role in the upcoming trials of George McMichael and Travis McMichael as their lawyers try to construct a defense. The truth is that the outrage for Ahmaud Arbery is not a new phenomenon—the Black Lives Matter movement that began with the 2012 death of Trayvon Martin evoked similar sentiment. As a Black American, it is heartbreaking to watch the growing list of activities that Black people cannot do without a threat to their life. As California Senator Kamala Harris said, “Exercising while Black shouldn’t be a death sentence.” In Ahmaud Arbery’s case, laws that were supposed to protect him were instead used to rob him of his life. We must reevaluate who “stand your ground” laws actually benefit and why Ahmaud Arbery’s family—and many others—are forced to contend with the harmful consequences.

Rachel Krul is a staff writer at CPR and a first-year at Barnard College studying Political Science and Human Rights.