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After reviewing the case, the Cleveland County District Attorney's Office has declined to file charges in a deadly shooting that happened near OU's campus this month.

The DA cited the Stand Your Ground law (21 OK Stat 21-1289.25) as the reason for not filing the charges.

Just before 11:30 a.m. on April 9, near the intersection of Lindsey St. and Elm Ave. police responded to a shooting.

The investigation showed that a man approached a car traveling westbound on Lindsey St. while it was stopped in traffic at a red light.

The driver had his windows down when an the man "aggressively approached his vehicle" and attempted to punch the driver.

Fearing for his safety, the driver shot the man.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver stayed on the scene and cooperated with the investigation.

The investigation showed no prior relationship between the two involved.

Original post:
Cleveland Co. District Attorney Will Not File Charges In Fatal Shooting Near OU Campus - news9.com KWTV

REVOLT BLACK NEWS Weekly aired on Friday (Apr. 15) to discuss Marcus Wilson and racial disparities regarding Georgias Stand Your Ground law, Jussie Smollett, a new bill that would legalize marijuana on a federal level, and Black couples leaning toward the idea of open marriage.

Neima Abdulahi hosted the episode, titled Cannabis and Congress, Stand Your Ground On Trial, and Monogamy or Not. She was joined byrecording artist Supa Peach,coalition member of Just Georgia Carey CJ Jenkins, criminal defense attorney Bernarda Villalona, filmmaker Fab 5 Freddy and influencer Alex Porter. REVOLT Entertainment Correspondent Kennedy Rue McCullough also gave viewers a look into Jussie Smolletts life while he appeals the verdict in his 2019 hate crime hoax case.

Abdulahi opened the show by discussing the racial disparities within Georgias criminal justice system and the states Stand Your Ground law after 23-year-old Marcus Wilson was charged with murder for killing a white teen.

On June 14, 2020, Wilson was driving with his girlfriend when a pickup truck allegedly attempted to ram his car off the highway. The trucks occupants also allegedly shouted racial slurs. At some point, Wilson pulled out a weapon and struck one of the trucks passengers, 17-year-old Haley Hutcheson who died a few days after the incident.

Wilsons aunt SaJuana Williams believes her nephew had to take matters into his own hands to protect himself.

To have Caucasian men hanging out of a truck hollering racial slurs at him and his girlfriend and then in the midst of this, to hear something hit his vehicle he was terrified. His life was in jeopardy. I can only imagine all of the things that went through his mind that evening, but he had to protect himself and his girlfriend, she explained to REVOLT.

During the show, Wilsons cousin Chance Pridgen expressed that he was very sympathetic [toward] Haleys family but also believed Marc didnt deserve to be put in a position for that to happen.

Wilsons legal team requested that he receive immunity from being prosecuted for felony murder and other charges, however Judge Ronnie Thompson denied the request. Criminal defense attorney Bernarda Villalona reassured Abdulahi that even though the judge denied immunity, that does not mean that he wont be able to argue self-defense at trial itll be a different case when it is presented to the jury.

During the show, Carey CJ Jenkins, a coalition member of Just Georgia, insisted Wilson acted in self-defense.

What we do know is this young man feared for his life. I would rather us be in trial fighting for Marc Wilson than us being at his funeral mourning like we did Ahmaud [Arbery], he stated.

Before moving on to the next topic, Abdulahi pondered on what the outcome will be for Wilson and compared his predicament to the high-profile homicide cases of Kyle Rittenhouse and George Zimmerman. In both cases, the men claimed self-defense and were acquitted of any wrongdoing.

Next, Abdulahi talked about the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act that passed in the House earlier this month. If passed in the Senate, the legislation will decriminalize marijuana and eliminate criminal penalties for any person who possesses the drug.

Filmmaker Fab 5 Freddy reminded REVOLT BLACK NEWS Weekly viewers that many people in the Black community have been wrongfully punished for possessing cannabis.

A lot of people got nonviolent cannabis charges on their record. That affects where you can live, what kind of jobs you can get. Thats nonsense because cannabis has killed no one, he asserted.

During the show, recording artist Supa Peach discussed racial inequities within the federal legal system and the fact that marijuana laws are not enforced equally.

My brother gets sentenced in two weeks to go to prison when no one should be going to prison over a plant. It doesnt make any sense when the rich are doing the same thing hes doing and [they get to] live free, she noted.

Switching gears a bit, Abdulahi hosted a roundtable discussion about why some people are straying away from traditional relationships.

Influencer Alex Porter said he and his wife decided to have a non-monogamous marriage after being wed for 17 years. He stated he wanted to explore other options, but also mentioned he has faced some challenges being in a relationship with two women.

I realized trying to be with two women and communicating and finding that balance amongst those relationships took a lot more communication, a lot more vulnerability, a lot more honesty, a lot of acceptance and it puts you in a different place, he expressed.

Spirit, a psychologist, cautioned viewers to refrain from entering into non-monogamous connections if they are currentlyexperiencing issues in their relationship.

So many people look at this as an alternative when their relationships are bad. I will tell you to not get involved in a consensual non-monogamous relationship as an alternative to fixing the problems in your relationship because whatever was present before you stepped out and added extra partners, it is only going to magnify that when you bring new players in, she warned.

Later in the show, REVOLTEntertainment Correspondent Kennedy Rue McCullough gave viewers insight into actor Jussie Smolletts life while he appeals his five-year jail sentence for reportedly staging a hate crime in 2019.

The former Empire star has released a new song. Titled Thank You God, it directly addresses his criminal case and pays homage to those who have supported him.

In an interview with REVOLT, Jussie Smolletts younger brother Jocqui stated, Jussies career will be absolutely fine. My brother is one of the most talented, creative, intelligent individuals this world has ever known.

Watch a quick clip from this weeks episode up top. Plus, be sure to catch the next installment ofREVOLT BLACK NEWS Weeklyon Friday, April 22, 2022 at 6 p.m. ET on REVOLTs app.

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Jussie Smolletts brother Jocqui insists the actors career will be absolutely fine - REVOLT

As lawmakers debate loosening gun restrictions and expanding civilian use of deadly force against looters, a new 41-state study asks how stand your ground laws might affect homicide rates.

Stand your ground laws, also known as shoot first" laws, permit people to use deadly force in self-defense as a first resort, replacing the common law principle of a duty to retreat" and of using deadly force as a last resort.

The JAMA Network Open paper links stand your ground laws with an 8% to 11% increase in homicides nationally.

Patterns varied by state.

Rates topped 10% in the South, where additional monthly homicides equaled the annual murder rates of many European countries.

Arizona saw fluctuations in its homicide rate, but the pattern did not indicate a link to its 2006 stand your ground law. The authors did not find such associations in any western state.

Nowhere in the U.S. did such laws reduce homicides.

In an email, lead author and University of Oxford postdoc Michelle Degli Esposti said a states cultural norms can play a role in how such laws play out.

"The South has been shown to have a stronger cultural ideology that endorses the use of self-protective violence for maintaining 'honor' compared to other regions in the U.S., she said.

Degli Esposti added that understanding the context in which the laws were introduced a focused media and lobbying blitz, for example may be key to understanding why states respond differently to such laws.

Existing firearm laws and gun availability likely also play a role.

Original post:
Study links 'stand your ground' laws to uptick in homicides, but not everywhere - KJZZ

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- The stand your ground self-defense law had been in effect in Florida for more than six years when it became part of the national vocabulary with the death of Trayvon Martin in 2012. When the 17-year-old was fatally shot, Florida was still one of the few states with the law that removes the duty to retreat before using deadly force in the face of danger.

Now, upward of 30 states have some form of the law and recent research indicates they are associated with more deaths as many as 700 additional firearm killings each year, according to a study published this week in the journal JAMA Network Open.

The study found that stand your ground laws in those states could be associated with a national increase of up to 11% in homicide rates per month between 1999 and 2017. The largest increases, between 16% and 33%, were in Southern states including Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Louisiana, the study found.

These findings suggest that adoption of ('stand your ground') laws across the U.S. was associated with increases in violent deaths, deaths that could potentially have been avoided, the study's authors concluded.

Advocates for the laws, especially the National Rifle Association, have argued they act as a crime deterrent by ensuring a person can protect themselves and others against a would-be assailant.

Florida was first in the nation in 2005 to adopt such a law. It was in force when Martin was fatally shot by self-appointed neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman on Feb. 26, 2012. Martin was Black; Zimmerman had a white father and Hispanic mother.

The initial police report said Zimmerman called authorities to report a suspicious person, a guy who, he said, looks like hes up to no good. He followed Martin despite instructions not to do so. In the confrontation that followed, Zimmerman would tell authorities, Martin attacked him, forcing him to use his gun to save himself. Zimmerman was allowed to go free.

Martin's parents questioned Zimmerman's version of events and eventually the news media and others picked up on the case. Zimmerman was arrested six weeks later after then-Florida Gov. Rick Scott appointed a special prosecutor to the case.

Zimmerman's lawyers opted not to pursue a stand your ground claim before trial, which could have resulted in dismissal of murder charges against him and immunity from prosecution. But the law was essentially used as his self-defense argument during the trial, which resulted in his acquittal.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who was involved in the Martin case, called the Florida law a virtual get-out-of-jail-free card that is essentially a license to kill.

Today the battle rages. Gun-rights supporters argue people should not have to try to retreat before defending themselves, said Alan Gottlieb, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation. He pointed to a Florida homeowner who recently shot and killed a man suspected of shooting a police officer as the man tried to break into his house. While that case could have been covered by other self-defense laws, Gottlieb said stand your ground laws offer reassurance.

Its made a very big difference in self-defense situations, he said.

Three new states passed laws last year removing the duty to retreat: Ohio, Arkansas and North Dakota, where its sponsor said the legislation ensures someone will not have to run away prior to protecting themselves or their family.

Six more loosened requirements to carry guns in public by removing the requirement to get a permit, the largest number of any single year. More than 20 states now allow permitless carry.

The U.S. Supreme Court also is expected to issue a ruling this session on whether New York's restrictive gun permitting law violates the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. The laws defenders have said striking it down would lead to more guns on the streets of cities including New York and Los Angeles.

Gun control activists say the increasing presence of guns and laws like stand your ground are a deadly combination.

Laws like stand your ground, or shoot first laws, give people like Jordans killer, my sons killer, the idea that you can shoot first and ask questions later, said Rep. Lucy McBath, who entered politics after her son Jordan Davis was slain at a Florida gas station in 2012 by a white man who was angry over the loud music the Black teenager and his friends had been playing in their car. Michael Dunn used the stand your ground law in his defense, but was convicted and is serving a life sentence.

Likewise, Rovina Billingsleas family has never been the same. Her cousin Jasmine McAfee, a mother of two, was killed at the hands of an intimate partner near Orlando about four years ago. The shooter was later acquitted under stand your ground law, leaving her family reeling.

There was no justice, no closure, just pain, Billingslea said.

There are new efforts to push back against the measures against a backdrop of rising gun violence: Lawmakers from 19 states have signed on to a new task force aimed at amending or repealing the laws, especially in Georgia, Kansas and Pennsylvania, as well as Florida. The push is backed by Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action, whose founder Shannon Watts said they should be called shoot first laws since they differ significantly from other self-defense laws already on the books.

Since the Martin slaying, Florida has amended its stand your ground law to shift the burden of proof from the person claiming self-defense to the prosecutor handling the case.

Prosecutors and many police organizations have opposed the laws, contending they can protect criminals and hinder the ability to bring justice to fatal shootings.

'Stand your ground' laws provide safe harbors for criminals and prevent prosecutors from bringing cases against those who claim self-defense after unnecessarily killing or injuring others, said David LaBahn, president and CEO of the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, in testimony to Congress.

In Florida, an ongoing trial in which a retired police captain is accused of murder in the 2014 shooting of a man inside a movie theater hinged initially on a stand your ground claim. A judge denied that claim for the former captain, Curtis Reeves, and that was upheld on appeal.

Reeves, however, is still claiming self-defense in the killing of Chad Oulson following a dispute over Oulson's use of a cellphone during movie previews. The shooting happened after Oulson tossed a bag of popcorn at Reeves.

So far, that has not qualified as a stand your ground defense.

The evidence will show that's no reason to kill another person, said Assistant State Attorney Scott Rosenwasser in an opening statement this week. This was an intentional and purposeful shooting.

Whitehurst reported from Salt Lake City.

This story corrects the name of the journal. It is JAMA Network Open, not the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Read more here:
'Stand your ground' laws proliferate after Trayvon spotlight - ABC News

Even during the most challenging times in history, it's important to highlight those who are continuing to follow their dreams and take strides to make the world a better place. Because of that, each month, Seventeen is honoring one young person as a Voice of Change, someone who is making a difference in their community and the world at large.

LaTayla Billingslea was only in middle school when she learned, firsthand, how debilitating the emotional effects of gun violence can be. Her cousin Jasmine, a mother of two, was fatally shot when trying to escape from an intimate partner. The shooter was later acquitted on charges with a Stand Your Ground defense, which allows an individual to use deadly force in response to threat, even if they are able to retreat from the situation. Gun control activists argue that the law encourages violence, and only heightens the likelihood of unlawful injury or murder.

LaTaylas cousin and her family never received the justice they deserved. LaTayla was left to not only grieve the senseless killing of her cousin, but worry if and when a similar situation could affect her family again. I was overrun with emotions pertaining to her death, and wondering if it could happen to her, it could happen to anyone. It could happen to me, or my mother, or somebody else that I'm very close to, she shared.

By the time she entered high school, LaTayla was determined to turn her pain into action. The Atlanta-based teen joined her local Students Demand Action chapter, which is a constituent of the Everytown for Gun Safety network. The organization provided her with the resources to meet and collaborate with other survivors, and work towards lessening instances of gun violence, especially among people of color. Now as a 17-year-old senior in high school, LaTayla is an active member of the chapter and serves as an advisory board member. She helped register more than 100,000 young voters in the 2020 election, and through Students Demand Actions Survivor Engagement Working Group, assists in the coordination of events for National Gun Violence Survivors Week, which is the first week in February.

On top of being a full-time high school student and committed activist, LaTayla is involved in Jareds Heart of Success a community-based mentorship program HOSA-Future Health Professionals, and the Future Business Leaders of America. It is because of all this and her express dedication to her community that LaTayla is being recognized as a Seventeen Voice of Change.

17: How did you initially get involved in activism?LaTayla Billingslea: I initially got involved after the death of my cousin, Jasmine. Over the course of a year or so, I [was] overcome with negative emotions. After learning about Students Demand Action and their mission to end gun violence, I decided to get involved as a proactive way to channel my emotions, to do something that can help people. Being in the gun violence prevention movement, I like to think that I'm creating a better future for the people who come after me. I don't want anybody else to go through what my family and I have gone through.

17: What involves being an advisory board member for Students Demand Action? LB: First off, you have to have general leadership skills. You are helping other student leaders within the organization grow and strengthen their own skills, through the training and mentorship that you offer. You also have to be invested in your local chapter, in order to achieve success on a national level as well.

LaTayla Billingslea

17: What are some projects that you're most proud of achieving with Students Demand Action?LB: One of the bigger initiatives that I [and] multiple Students Demand Action members are very proud of was taking part in the 2020 election cycle and registering 100,000 voters.

One of the things I'm most passionate about is my involvement with the Survivor Engagement Working Group and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Working Group. I identify as a survivor of gun violence but I'm also a part of a minority group, being a Black woman. So working in those two groups, I get to ensure that those students and the people within their communities have the voice that they need, so that they can make the change within their communities and schools.

17: How have you grown as an activist?LB: In the beginning, I was more hesitant to share my experiences with gun violence. I was also more hesitant to share my thoughts when it comes to certain legislations, and to speak out in general. But through my journey in activism thus far, I've learned that my voice and my commentary has value. What I say can influence someone.

17: How do you balance your activism work with being a full-time high school student?LB: First things first, I have a planner. Its an online planner that I use as an app on my phone and laptop. So whenever I have an assignment or a meeting, I'll have it on there as a reminder. For bigger projects, I usually schedule those to be done the day before or two days before [their due date], so I have time to look over everything and make sure that its the way I want it to be.

17: What else do you have planned when it comes to your activism?LB: One thing locally would be to repeal the Stand Your Ground law and permit-less carry in Georgia. [Permit-less carry, or constitutional carry, is a legislation recently introduced in the Georgia General Assembly, which would eliminate the need for a weapons license.]

17: What is your ultimate career goal?LB: My ultimate career goal is to be a forensic analyst. Last year, I took a forensics class at my school and got a more in-depth knowledge of what it is. Additionally, I'm in the biotechnology program at my school, and biotechnology and forensics are very intertwined. [I like] to work in a lab setting and see how things are analyzed.

17: What advice do you have for young people looking to get involved in activism?LB: I would say, see if this is what you want to do. I enjoy working in gun violence prevention, but it can be challenging at times. You have to be really good at balancing your schedule. You also have to know when to say no. Within this movement, you have to be conscious of self-care and know what your hard limits are. You need to know that when you approach your limit, not to go past it, because that can be really damaging to your mental and emotional health. Know how much you can take, and how much you can go through or endure. Although there are a lot of good things about this movement, it can be challenging at times especially if you're a survivor, because there are hard days.

In order to be successful, you have to have a passion for advocacy. It may not be for everyone. I enjoy doing it, even though there are challenging days. I know that I'm someday going to get to the point where I will see some changes.

LaTayla Billingslea

17: How do you protect your mental and emotional health when it comes to doing this type of work?LB: One thing I do is journal. I try to journal at least twice a week, considering my schedule. I generally try to do more than that, but just getting my thoughts, feelings and emotions out on paper is very relieving and freeing. But there are multiple self-soothing and self-care techniques that work for different people. There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to self care that's just what works for me.

17: What does being a Voice of Change honoree mean to you?LB: It means that the work I am doing is making a difference, and that people are seeing what student activists across America are passionate about we want to keep ourselves alive another day. It means that people understand that student leaders just want to feel safe and secure in our country, and the fight that we're going through to get to that place.

Parts of this interview have been edited and condensed for clarity.

See the original post:
LaTayla Billingslea Is Fighting for Gun Violence Prevention and Lifting the Voices of Young Survivors - Seventeen.com