Eric Holder Slams 'Stand Your Ground' Laws

They need a 'hard look' in wake of Trayvon Martin case, he says
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 16, 2013 5:09 PM CDT
Eric Holder Slams 'Stand Your Ground' Laws
Attorney General Eric Holder delivers the keynote address at the annual NAACP convention Tuesday in Orlando, Fla.   (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Eric Holder may or may not end up filing a civil rights case against George Zimmerman, but he made one thing clear today in regard to the Trayvon Martin shooting: He hates stand-your-ground laws. Addressing the NAACP, the attorney general drew lengthy applause when he said it was "time to question laws that senselessly expand the concept of self-defense and sow dangerous conflict in our neighborhoods," reports the Washington Post.

The laws, now on the books in 30 states, practically encourage confrontation and thus make the public less safe, he said. "It is our collective obligation—we must stand our ground— to ensure that our laws reduce violence, and take a hard look at laws that contribute to more violence than they prevent." (The Wall Street Journal has the full text.) His speech today follows one yesterday in which he referred to the "tragic, unnecessary shooting death" of Martin, notes AP. (More Eric Holder stories.)

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