State Senator Geraldine Thompson says public opposition to Florida's "stand your ground" law is growing, but only legislators can change the law. The Central Florida democrat joined other state lawmakers and attorneys this Wednesday for a discussion of "stand your ground" at Florida A&M University's College of Law in Orlando.
The discussion centered on whether the law should be altered after former neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman's aquittal on second-degree murder and manslaughter charges for shooting Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman says he shot the unarmed teenager in self defense.Senator Thompson opposes "stand your ground." She says any change to the law must come from within Florida's Republican-dominated Legislature.
"There are 160 of us so those are the people who are going to have to have the will to re-examine the law and to amend it if we find that that is necessary or to repeal it", Thompson said.
Thompson says despite a task force Governor Rick Scott appointed last year to review the law, little real discussion of "stand your ground" has taken place. Like other critics she says the task force was stacked with the law's supporters.
A Florida Republican who helped write "stand your ground" was at Wednesday's forum, State Senator David Simmons. Also at the forum, state Senator Chris Smith, a South Florida democrat who's called for changes to the law.