The Ohio House could vote on HB 228, a Stand Your Ground Bill as early as tomorrow. Call your state representative now and tell them to vote NO on this dangerous bill.
Background
Currently, if someone is claiming that they shot someone in self-defense, they need to prove that they made a reasonable effort to avoid the deadly confrontation and retreat from the situation first. Legally, deadly force must be a last resort right now.
This bill not only eliminates the legal requirement that someone retreat, but also makes it incredibly challenging to successfully prosecute anyone claiming self-defense by shifting the burden of proof onto the prosecutor. Defendants will no longer be required to provide any evidence that they were acting in self-defense in order to successfully make that claim.
The homicide rate has increased 8% on average in states that have already passed Stand Your Ground laws, according to multiple studies: http://time.com/4569145/florida-stand-your-ground-law-homicide-increase-study/.
The following legislators are co-sponsors of this bill. Remember this when you go to vote in November.
Co-Sponsers
| Rep. Conditt, Rep. Schuring, Rep. Pelanda, Rep. Patton, Rep. McColley, Rep. Antani, Rep. Becker, Rep. Brenner, Rep. Brinkman, Rep. Carfagna, Rep. Dean, Rep. Duffey, Rep. Ginter, Rep. Goodman, Rep. Green, Rep. Henne, Rep. Hill, Rep. Hood, Rep. Householder, Rep. Huffman, Rep. Keller, Rep. Koehler, Rep. Lipps, Rep. Merrin, Rep. Riedel, Rep. Roegner, Rep. Romanchuk, Rep. Schaffer, Rep. Slaby, Rep. Smith, Rep. Sprague, Rep. Stein, Rep. Thompson, Rep. Vitale, Rep. Wiggam, Rep. Retherford |
Contact
Call Fred Strahorn (District 39) at (614) 466-1607
Call Michael Henne (District 40) at (614) 644-8051
Call Jim Butler (District 41) at (614) 644-6008
Call Niraj Antani (District 42) at (614) 466-6504
Call Jeff Rezabek at (District 43) (614) 466-2960
Don’t see your legislator here? Don’t know who they are? Visit this website to find out who they are and how to contact them: http://www.ohiohouse.gov/