Friday, July 19, 2013 | 2:01 a.m.
View more of the Sun's opinion section
View more of the Sun's opinion section
In a jury trial, the burden of proof lies with the prosecution. The prosecutor must prove beyond a shadow of doubt that a crime has been committed and the person responsible.
Unfortunately, with the “I felt threatened” line, the burden of proof lies with the victim. If there are no witnesses to testify, the deceased still must prove his actions were not threatening. Since the deceased cannot testify, it is extremely difficult for the prosecution to prove their case. I wonder how many of these justifiable homicide cases using the “I felt threatened” line were indeed murders.
What is to stop anyone with a gun from stalking a person and waiting for the perfect opportunity to kill? Using, “I felt threatened,” the killer can call 911, sit on the curb and wait for the police. He gives his version of what happened and goes home.
The number of people accidently killed by guns (including children) far outweighs the number of bad guys killed by someone defending himself.
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