Ohio, is set to be the newest state with a “stand your ground” law. This will take effect Tuesday.
NBC 4 reported: “Previous Ohio law included a “duty to retreat,” meaning that to claim self-defense, someone had to show that they either tried to leave the situation or voiced an intention to leave. Ohio’s “Castle Doctrine,” passed in 2008, removed that duty to retreat for people in a lawfully occupied residence or in their vehicle.
Under the new law, there is no longer a duty to retreat as long as someone is in a place where they are legally allowed to be. In cases where there is evidence to suggest that a person used force in self-defense, the burden is on prosecutors to prove otherwise.”
In order to be legally justified in shooting someone in Ohio, one must prove that they did not start the altercation that led to the shooting.
Adam Miller, D-Columbus, spoke on the complications of proving that someone feared for their lives claiming that the law will “encourage people to stay in the confrontation” when they might otherwise have walked away.
It also may discourage attackers from starting a potentially fatal altercation in the first place. The hard reality, is that most citizens who carry a firearm do not want to kill, and fear the day they have to use their weapon.
Others claim that they are afraid of civilians using guns to “play the role of police”. If someone was “playing the role of police” they would not be legally justified in their actions unless their life was at risk.
Other states such as Arkansas, Utah, Tennessee and South Carolina have also made new strides in second amendment rights within the last 30 days.