Yousef Rabhi, Chairman of the Washtenaw County Board, is interested in pushing a resolution supporting the repeal of Michigan's "Stand your ground" law (as well as PA 319 of 1990 - the statute that preempts local municipalities from making further regulations against firearms).
Continued below ~
Needless to say, this has drawn the attention of those who think that this is a bad idea.
The resolution was pulled from the 18 September meeting, most likely from them realizing that quite a few of us were planning on crashing that party.
Below is a draft of my speech that I plan on making (feel free to critique). 3 Minute time limit is in play:
While I do stand before you openly carrying a loaded firearm as a member of Michigan Open Carry, I argue that "Stand your ground" is a topic that must be examined from the context of self defense in general, rather than that of firearms. While the discussion of firearms is quite relevant to self defense (as firearms are one of the best tools for this purpose), their discussion is tangential to the issue at present.
Although state statute spells out specifics, the essence of "Stand your ground" in Michigan is that an individual can defend themselves using deadly force if they honestly and reasonably believe such force is required to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm without a duty to retreat. Furthermore, the burden of persuasion rests on the prosecutor to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the use of deadly force wasn't justified should they believe that to be the case.
Without the protections provided by "Stand your ground", individuals WILL be put at much greater risk of not just death or severe physical harm, but financial and emotional harm as well. They face the potential overzealous prosecutor looking to score political points as the burden of persuasion is on the individual to prove that the use of force was justified.
Anyone in law enforcement or the military will tell you that fractions of a second matter in these situations. Second guessing a course of action for fear of the legal implications without "Stand your ground" protections will consume time and very likely get people killed.
This isn't even taking into account any time spent if flight is attempted, only to have an attacker catch up and attack from behind. Of course, I can also tell you as an officer in the Michigan Army National Guard that turning your back to a known threat is an INCREDIBLY bad idea.
Ladies and Gentlemen of the Commission and audience:
Given my statements, the reason should be clear why out of county residents are "crashing" your county board meeting and speaking against any potential resolution which would support the repeal of Public Acts 309 and 310 of 2006 -- the acts which comprise Michigan's "Stand your ground" law.
The reason is simple: There are serious, statewide implications if the aforementioned public acts are made void; Subsequently, any support of such a repeal requires refutation.
Repealing statute comprising Michigan's "Stand your ground" law WILL get people injured, if not killed.
