Let an enraged stranger drag me out of my car by my hair when i have a gun in my hand? Are you crazy? He's gone.
I get that. My issue is, they were arguing, he knew McKnight was not coming to car jack him, nor did he have a weapon. It's not like McKnight was a random person springing out from the bushes coming to car jack him.
I think you are both saying the same thing. Difference being, in his middle paragraph, he is carrying down the part about," if you fear for your life or great bodily harm, you can use deadly force." He also stated the "stand your ground," just didn't word it so. He said, "No obligation to retreat."
I understand what you're saying. and i can certainly see circumstances like that not warranting using a gun. But, what if Gasser cut him off in traffic unknowlingly. Next thing you know he's sitting at a red light and a guy pulls along side him, asked him to roll down his window. Then curses him, for instance "I'm gonna kill you you piece of shit motherfucker" as Gasser sits speechless, and then jumps out of his car reaches in and attempts to pull Gasser out by his hair. What about then?
This law has been around for a long time, and is pretty broad. If you were sitting at a red light and saw someone trying to rob/carjack a driver 10 cars ahead of you, you can legally shoot them down.
Overall this is a very difficult situation to judge. I'm all for gun rights. I'm all for people defending themselves against thieves and any sort of attacker. I sometimes feel that when someone has a gun they're too quick to want to use it. Gasser has already had an incident in the past of road rage. You bring up a great point, but all signs point to Gasser and McKnight arguing at an intersection before the shooting.
I've held a ccw and carried for years, accidentally let it lapse a few years ago and just put in for my reinstatement back in June. The email I received Friday stated my ccw would arrive within the next 10-15 business days. In all the years I've carried, I have only pulled my weapon once. I was living in an apartment complex and was walking out to my truck to go to the store. A neighbor across the parking lot was beating on his girlfriend, and she was screaming for help. No one apparently wanted to intervene, but I'm not built that way. So I walked over to them and pulled him off of her. We exchanged words and it was going to escalate, so I decided to head back to my vehicle. Once I got to my drivers side door, I heard her screaming "NO". I turned around and he was coming at me with a huge car jack raised over his head. Apparently he was intent on cracking me from behind with it. This was one of those old verticle stick car jacks. I pulled my weapon and stuck it in his face. He was obviously smarter than the average dumbass because he decided dropping this huge piece of steel was in his best interest. Neighbors called the police, and he ended up being arrested, and I was cleared of any wrong doings. I do not carry because it makes me feel "tough", or because I think one day i'll get to be a hero. Even when I carry, I do not go to places that are shady or where I may "need" a gun to protect myself. I carry simply because sometimes things happen and you may need to protect yourself and loved ones. I will not gladly hand over my life or the lives of those I love, but I do not go looking for issues either.
Joe didn't have a gun. They didn't say he didn't have a weapon. And how many 55 year old men can hold their own against a 28 year old former pro athlete? For all Gasser knew Joe was the kind of guy who would keep pounding your head on the pavement after easily winning a fair fight. He well could have feared death or great bodily harm.
