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About this project

The Tampa Bay Times used published newspaper reports, court records and documents obtained from prosecutors and defense attorneys to compile a partial list of self-defense cases in Florida since 2005. Although this list likely contains most fatalities in which "stand your ground" was invoked, it does not include scores of less serious cases from around the state.

Not all self-defense cases were considered. The Times included 118 cases in which a stand your ground immunity hearing before a judge was requested. In the majority of the remaining cases, a law enforcement official, prosecutor or defense attorney invoked the law.

The Times also included 29 cases where circumstances appeared to reflect the Legislatures intent when it passed the law. For example, if a defendant claiming self-defense could have retreated from a confrontation but chose not to, the case was classified as stand your ground.

Home invasion robberies and other cases that clearly would have been self-defense under previous law were not included unless a stand your ground immunity motion was filed. If a case occurred on the defendants property but outside the home, it was included if the defendant could have retreated inside the home.

The race and ethnicity of victims and defendants were compiled from various sources, including police reports and drivers license records. Police and sheriffs offices often consider Hispanics as an ethnic group and record their race as white or black. As a result, some Hispanics may not be counted in their race category in the Times calculations.

Some cases may have changed significantly since the original media reports as a result of further investigation or court events. As a result, some summaries may be incomplete or contain outdated information.

Some cases are still pending and no determination of guilt has been made. If you have information about any factual errors in a summary, or about further developments in a case, please fill out our case submission form.

Times investigations editor Chris Davis did an interview explaining the investigation on WFLA. Listen here.

Page last updated: Aug. 13, 2013

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