Open Season

Trey Smith

Michael David Dunn, 45, was in Jacksonville, Fla., this Friday for his son’s wedding, when afterward he decided to stop at a convenience store with his girlfriend. Four unarmed teenagers were in an SUV near where Dunn parked. After Dunn’s girlfriend went into the store to buy a bottle of wine, Dunn made a comment to the teenagers about their music being too loud. An argument ensued, and then Dunn, a gun collector, pulled out his gun and fired at the SUV between eight to nine times. Two shots hit and killed 17-year-old Jordan Davis.

Jacksonville homicide Lt. Rob Schoonover said:

Our victim was shot a couple of times. …They were listening to the music. It was loud; they [other teens] admitted that. But I mean that is not a reason for someone to open fire on them.

When his girlfriend returned to the car, Dunn drove off, admitting to her that he “fired at these kids.” After hearing a news report that someone died in the shooting at their Jacksonville hotel, the couple returned to their home to Brevard County, Fla. Witnesses of the shooting took down Dunn’s license plate number, which, on Saturday, helped police find Dunn’s house, where he was then arrested.

According to Schoonover, after his arrest, Dunn told Jacksonville detectives, “he felt threatened and that is the reason he took action.”
~ from Gun Enthusiast Kills 17-Year-Old for Playing Loud Music; Lawyer Says He Acted "Very Responsibly" by Alyssa Figueroa ~

A lot of people are coming to Dunn's defense and the fact that they are should tell you two salient facts missing from the lead-in to this story: Dunn is white and the teenagers are black.

Imagine, in this instance, if these racial traits were reversed. If a black Dunn had opened fire on an SUV filled with 4 white teenagers -- particularly 4 white RICH teenagers -- you know as well as I do that most of the conservative support for Dunn would not exist.

While race plays a key role in situations like this and how we view them, there is another important issue as well. These various "stand your ground" laws are emboldening individuals to shoot others. All anyone has to do anymore is to say they "felt threatened" and this should relieve them of any legal culpability!

What's even worse is that cases like this one and the Trayvon Martin shooting have underscored that the gun-toting person can be the aggressor or the CAUSE of a confrontation and yet expect to be completely exonerated. It would be like me walking up to you and slapping you because I thought you were leering at my wife. When you get angry at being slapped, I then pull out my gun and shoot you because your anger made me feel threatened.

That's ludicrous!