• We are now running on a new, and hopefully much-improved, server. In addition we are also on new forum software. Any move entails a lot of technical details and I suspect we will encounter a few issues as the new server goes live. Please be patient with us. It will be worth it! :) Please help by posting all issues here.
  • The forum will be down for about an hour this weekend for maintenance. I apologize for the inconvenience.
  • If you are having trouble seeing the forum then you may need to clear your browser's DNS cache. Click here for instructions on how to do that
  • Please review the Forum Rules frequently as we are constantly trying to improve the forum for our members and visitors.

Houston trial focusing on Stand Your Ground law

Jack House

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 12, 2010
Messages
2,611
Location
I80, USA
I thought the argument was that he wasn't justified because he instigated the confrontation with the intent to shoot someone.
 

ALOC1911

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 7, 2011
Messages
70
Location
Troy, AL
Based on what this vid shows, the shooter was being nice and polite during the whole vid and what happened is one of the rednecks (probably drunk) slipped up behind him and jumped him which, in my opinion, gives him the right to use deadly force to defend himself given the situation being there were many of them and it was at night. Would calling the cops have been the better choice, of course but was he justified in shooting the guy that jumped him, I say he was but I'm sure there is more to this than the vid shows. This looks like a case of the jury saying "you're guilty because you could've handled this a different way that wouldn't have ended up with a shooting"......a verdict that I don't agree with because it's the same thing as saying he could've run until he had nowhere else to run and then shot if it was still necessary. A verdict that's the same thing as having a "duty to retreat" law......something else I'm in total disagreement with.
 
Last edited:

KBCraig

Regular Member
Joined
Aug 7, 2007
Messages
4,886
Location
Granite State of Mind
Based on what this vid shows, the shooter was being nice and polite during the whole vid and what happened is one of the rednecks (probably drunk) slipped up behind him and jumped him which, in my opinion, gives him the right to use deadly force to defend himself given the situation being there were many of them and it was at night.
You're certainly entitled to your opinion, but your opinion is at odds with Texas law. I posted the law above (post #14 in this thread), then followed up in #15.

Under Texas law, he was not legally carrying, and he lost both the right to claim self defense, and the right to "stand his ground". His only legal justification for using force would have been if he had disengaged, or was attempting to disengage the confrontation, and the other re-engaged him. That didn't happen.
 

scott58dh

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 16, 2011
Messages
425
Location
why?
Texas man gets 40 year sentence in S-Y-G case

HOUSTON – A man who claimed Texas' version of a stand-your-ground law allowed him to fatally shoot a neighbor after an argument about a noisy party was sentenced Wednesday to 40 years for murder.

Raul Rodriguez, 46, had faced up to life in prison for the 2010 killing of Kelly Danaher.

:arrow:-Read more:; http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/06/2...ence-in-stand-your-ground-case/#ixzz1z29eVcmU

Leave the Police work for the Police, that's whay they're paid to do.

If you don't like the noisy party next door, make a phone call = 911.

Don't be a *** JOHN WAYNE*** and try to reason with drunks, especially when You are ready for a gun fight.

Common sense can save a life, and it might be yours !

peace&rkba4ever!:cool:
 

Jeff777

New member
Joined
Jun 27, 2012
Messages
2
Location
ct
I thought the argument was that he wasn't justified because he instigated the confrontation with the intent to shoot someone.

I had read that somewhere as well. Apparently there is video of him at the house telling party goers to come to the street and talk about it. Jury felt that was baiting them.

Would be nice to see court records as well as the whole video, since the video I watched only showed him in the street apparently standing his ground when they tried to jump him or something.
 

Jeff777

New member
Joined
Jun 27, 2012
Messages
2
Location
ct
If he had abandoned the encounter and the other party re-engaged, then yes he could claim self defense. That was not the case here, though.

He was "standing his ground" (the video seemed to show him in the street, not the other party's driveway), which he could have done, except he wasn't carrying legally. Even though he had a CHL, the moment he showed the others he was carrying a gun without being legally justified to use force, he was not legally carrying (PC 46.035(a), "Unlawful carrying of handgun by a license holder" by intentionally failing to conceal). By illegally carrying, he lost the claim of self defense.

Did he show it at the house or the street when he felt threatened. Without court records and complete video I can only speculate. Texas is not an open carry state correct? Showing the gun violated his permit by this action made it unlawful carry at that point? Just curious.
 

scott58dh

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 16, 2011
Messages
425
Location
why?
I had read that somewhere as well. Apparently there is video of him at the house telling party goers to come to the street and talk about it. Jury felt that was baiting them.

Would be nice to see court records as well as the whole video, since the video I watched only showed him in the street apparently standing his ground when they tried to jump him or something.

This is the only Video that I know of, it's located in this thread on POST #15.
 

cz_fan

New member
Joined
Jul 9, 2012
Messages
1
Location
Katy, TX
Already been tried

911 would have definately been the better choice in this situation, midnight, loud music & alcohol do not add up to a good ending no matter what. LEO's are the "professionals" that should be dealing with anything like this issue b4 it gets out of control...

One point that is often missed about this case is that he had called the police several times without satisfaction. He was on the phone with a dispatcher during the video and several times is heard asking the dispatcher if he was hearing the statements being made. There is no noise ordinance in Harris County and there is not much the Sheriff's deputies or constables will do if they even come out. You are on your own. I'm not saying what happened in this case was justified or right, I'm just saying a lot of these cases including the one in FL have come after a documented amount of asking authorities for help to no avail.

There is plenty in this case to point to that should have been done differently but, I don't think the lack of calling LEO's was one of them.

Regards
 
Top