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DES MOINES, Iowa

A Des Moines murder case could be an early test of Iowas new stand your ground law.

Sera Alexander, 29, is charged with shooting and killing her stepfather, Anthony Hartmann, in her home May 8, but she claims it was a case of self-defense.

Now, a judge will decide if the new law that went into effect July 1 applies retroactively for the crime committed three months prior.

District Court Judge Robert Blink will decide of the stand your ground defense can be used for the first time in the state of Iowa.

It essentially says if youre in a lawful place, you have a right to use deadly force even from a perceived threat, said Robert Rigg, of the Drake Legal Clinic.

Court documents show a no-contact order filed against Hartmann last fall after he grabbed his wife by the hair and pushed her head into the driver side glass window. Prosecutors said Alexander shot Hartmann in the basement of the family home.

There was violence in the home for a considerable time inflicted against all members, defense attorney F. Montgomery Brown argued. Youre presumed to feel threatened if you have an intruder in your home unlawfully. I read the statute to say youre presumptively justified to use deadly force.

Brown said the defense should apply because this case will go to trial after the law took effect July 1. Legal experts expect to see it used often in any self-defense case.

Youre going to have two people shooting at each other and both saying I was standing my ground, and police will have to sort that out at the time, Brown said.

The judge will make a decision in the next few weeks. He set a trial date for Dec. 4.

Alexander remains free on bond.

Originally posted here:
Stand your ground defense could be applicable to murder case - KCCI Des Moines