Blog posts from April 2014

By now you have probably heard the name Byron Smith, who is currently on trial in Little Falls, Minnesota, for shooting two teenage intruders on Thanksgiving Day 2012. In Minnesota, a homeowner has the right to use deadly force against an intruder if the homeowner is reasonably in fear of being harmed. That is the central question the jurors have to answer in the case – was Mr. Smith in reasonable fear of being harmed by the two unarmed teenagers? This case sparks memories of the controversial Treyvon Martin trial last summer in Florida where the defendant, George Zimmerman, was...