A working paper released this week by the National Bureau of Economics Research found that states that have passed controversial “Stand Your Ground” laws, such as the one George Zimmerman is using as his defense to charges that he killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida this February, actually ended up seeing more homicides after the laws were passed.
Study: ‘Stand your ground’ laws result in an additional 4 to 7 killings per month | The Raw Story.
Mr H.O. Hell asks whether the homicides that increased were associated with ‘stand your ground.’ The answer is that one cannot tell from the data that was available to the researchers.
Interestingly, the study’s summary says, “According to our estimates, between 4.4 and 7.4 additional white males are killed each month as a result of these laws. We find no evidence to suggest that these laws increase homicides among blacks. Our results are robust to a number of specifications and unlikely to be driven entirely by the killings of assailants. Taken together, our findings raise serious doubts against the argument that Stand Your Ground laws make America safer. ”
http://www.nber.org/papers/w18187.pdf?new_window=1
But don’t try to stand your ground against the police: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/01/this-is-what-happens-when-a-civilian-kills-a-cop-during-a-no-knock-drug-raid/
(This is what happens when a civilian kills a cop during a no-knock drug raid)