Michael Dunn went on trial for one count of first degree murder, three counts of attempted second degree murder and one count of shooting into a vehicle. Dunn was so angry about the loud “thug music” coming from the vehicle next to his that he fired 10 shots into the vehicle. His volley of bullets killed 17-year-old Jordan Davis and terrorized three of his friends.
The trial ended in convictions on the attempted murder charges but a hung jury on the first degree murder. This is truly problematic and definitely unacceptable.
There are probably some who feel like the four convictions should satisfy the justice seekers; each count carries a potential 20 years. The judge has the discretion to order Dunn to serve the sentences consecutively, which means he would die in prison. But wait, there’s the inevitable appeal process.
The hung jury on the first degree murder charge only perpetuated the right of white people to kill people of color – even kids – with full protection of the law. This goes to the heart of the Stand Your Ground laws that rise out of racist traditions in the South that are difficult to let go.
It appears that regardless of the situation, as long as white people feel reasonably scared of black males, the killings will always be justified. Thanks to the racist media that criminalizes black males, white people can always use that defense. Those backward-thinking white people end up on juries. The jury selected to decide Dunn’s fate was composed of eight whites and four jurors of color.
Speaking of scared, Dunn testified that he saw Jordan with a gun – or maybe it was a stick or a pipe. Yet his fiancée testified that Dunn never told her the teens had a gun or any other weapon. No witness saw a gun, and the police found no weapons in the teens’ SUV.
Dunn was so fearful for his life that he and his fiancée went back to their hotel after the murder, walked the puppy and ordered pizza. At no time did Dunn or his special friend call the police – not while words were being exchanged between him and the youth or after the shooting. The shooter later chilled with a rum and coke before going to bed. He was arrested the following day at his home after the police tracked down his license plate.
Prosecutor Angela Corey has announced that she plans to re-try Dunn on the first degree murder charge. Corey has a somewhat inconsistent record on who gets prosecuted. She is despised by black and brown communities whose incessant convictions keep them on an assembly line to Florida prisons. They are demanding her resignation.
When a black woman claimed a Stand Your Ground defense for firing a warning shot to scare her abusive husband, Marissa Alexander was given 20 years. It was only because of mass outrage that she is out on bond and looking at a new trial. That also was a Corey prosecution, as was the case of U.S. Airman Michael Giles, who shot his attacker in the leg and got 25 years. There are more examples where these came from that make it clear: Stand Your Ground is a law for whites only.
So, it was a genuine surprise when Dunn heard the verdicts. In one of his letters written in prison while awaiting trial, Dunn wrote, “The good news is that the surrounding counties are predominantly white and Republican and supporters of gun rights!”
As a white male, he believed that he would soon be walking the streets like fellow Floridian George Zimmerman. Zimmerman fatally shot Trayvon Martin because he feared the kid in a hoodie.
The conviction of Michael Dunn cannot be a fluke. Equal protection under the law must be upheld for all citizens, regardless of their color, gender, sexual orientation and place of birth. Stand Your Ground laws are in obvious contradiction to this constitutional right. Responsible adults must end this racist law before another beloved son is gunned down.
