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By The Associated Press - Associated Press - Wednesday, December 17, 2014

The murder trial of a Montana man who shot and killed 17-year-old German exchange student Diren Dede in his garage tested a state law that gives a person the right to use force or threaten to use force to protect his or her own home from unlawful entry or attack, particularly a provision known as stand your ground. Markus Kaarma unsuccessfully invoked the law in his defense, saying he was protecting his family and property. He was convicted of deliberate homicide Wednesday. Heres a brief explanation of the law and controversy surrounding it.

AN OLD LAW CHANGES, SPARKING DEBATE

Montanas self-defense law has been on the books in some form since the 19th century. In 2009, it was amended to eliminate the restriction that a person was justified in using force only when entry is made or attempted in violent, riotous, or tumultuous manner. It also was changed to state that a person who is threatened with physical harm has no duty to retreat or summon law enforcement assistance prior to using force. Shortly after Dedes death, a state legislator proposed legislation striking the 2009 changes, arguing they encourage vigilante justice. Gary Marbut, of the Montana Shooting Sports Association, has said it is premature to say the law needs to be fixed. Marbut, who helped draft the 2009 changes, had argued that if Kaarma was convicted, it would prove the law was working fine.

A LEGAL MOVEMENT THAT BEGAN IN FLORIDA

Montana is just one of about half the 50 U.S. states that have enacted stand your ground laws, starting with Florida in 2005. The laws have strong backing from gun rights groups, including the powerful National Rifle Association. But the Floridas law came under intense scrutiny during the trial of neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman, who was the acquitted in the 2012 shooting death of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin. Other cases have called into question laws in Minnesota, Colorado, North Carolina and other states.

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AP EXPLAINS: Montana's 'stand your ground law'

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Floridas Stand Your Ground law might be expanding, thanks to a case being brought before the State Supreme Court.

According to Reuters, Jared Bretherick was arrested and charged with aggravated assault back in 2011 for pointing a pistol at a man during a road-range incident. If the court rules in his favor, the burden of proof would shift to the prosecutor to show that a defendant invoking the laws protection didnt act in self-defense.

Court documents reveal that Bretherick was riding with his family when his vehicle was almost sideswiped by an SUV driven by Derek Dunning near Orlando. The Bretherick family claimed Dunning cut them off, stopped his SUV in front of them and jumped out of his vehicle.

Ronald Bretherick, Jareds father and the driver of the vehicle, called 911 and showed his concealed carry handgun to warn Dunning off.

Dunning got back into his car, but, according to the Bretherick family, he started backing up his SUV toward them. Thats when Jared took his fathers gun and stood next to their vehicle.

Deputies said Jared was pointing the gun at Dunnings SUV when they arrived. No shots were fired.

As Reuters reports, Jared says he was protecting his father by staying next to the SUV, who is a disabled veteran, until police arrived.

Stand Your Ground immunity was denied at a hearing in 2012, on the grounds that Dunning wasnt committing a violent crime and had gone back to his vehicle. Bretherick appealed, and an appellate court is asking the Florida Supreme Court to decide on burden of proof.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com

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Florida Court Mulls Change to 'Stand Your Ground' Law

A stand your ground defense motion for a former Eutawville police chief has been denied, opening the path for prosecutors to move forward on a criminal charge.

Circuit Court Judge Ed Dickson has determined former Police Chief Richard Combs did not meet the elements of the states stand your ground laws when he killed a person in the town hall parking lot.

Mr. Combs has failed to establish that he is entitled to claim self-defense as he did not show that he was without fault in bringing about the difficulty, the order states.

South Carolinas stand your ground laws are an extension of the states Castle Doctrine, which says a person engaged in a confrontation has no obligation to retreat any further if hes on his own property. An individual can claim self-defense when not on their own property only under specific circumstances under the stand your ground law.

In August 2013, Combs was indicted by an Orangeburg County grand jury on a charge of misconduct in office in connection with the 2011 shooting death of Eutawville resident Bernard Bailey.

The shooting occurred on May 2, 2011 in the town hall parking lot after a confrontation over a warrant for Baileys arrest. Combs and Bailey got into a scuffle inside the drivers door of Baileys truck as the Eutawville man tried to leave. Combs then shot him several times.

The indictment against Combs says the former police chief unlawfully used deadly force ... shooting and killing Bernard Bailey, when deadly force was not necessary, during the confrontation.

Bailey had gone to the town hall to talk with Combs about a traffic ticket given to Baileys daughter, Briana Bailey, six weeks earlier. Bailey walked out to his truck after Combs told him he had a warrant against him for obstruction of justice.

Through his attorneys, Combs made the motion for immunity from prosecution in a Nov. 18 hearing in front of Dickson. Combs testified he had no other options than to shoot Bailey during a struggle inside the Eutawvilles mans open truck door.

Its your testimony you were trapped in that door and could not get out? defense attorney John OLeary said at the hearing.

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Judge: No stand your ground defense in shooting: Ex-Eutawville police chief must face misconduct charge in Bernard ...

House Speaker John Boehner and Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash. McMorris Rodgers, from Eastern Washington, chairs the House Republican Conference.

Top technology companies including Google, Microsoft and Yahoo have recently quit the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a conservative group that drafted Floridas Stand Your Ground law and which is working to counter the federal governments bid to limit greenhouse gas emissions.

But a top House Republican, U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., has embraced ALEC. McMorris Rodgers spoke Thursday to its Jefferson Reception, part of a conference of lobbyists and legislators that has featured seminars on such topics as Big Green Radicals.

The congresswoman has been active with ALEC since her time in the state legislature, McMorris Rodgers office said in her weekly schedule.

Microsoft bailed out of the council in August, saying it was incongruous to be supporting an organization which is fighting policies that promote renewable energy.

Googles CEO Eric Schmidt, in a National Public Radio interview, said that ALEC is just literally lying by promoting skepticism about climate change, adding: And so we wont be aligned with such people.

Amazon.com quit ALEC in 2012, citing public concerns over the groups drafting of gun, immigration and voter ID laws. The Stand Your Ground law was a component in the defense of George Zimmerman after the neighborhood vigilante killed unarmed Florida teenager Travon Martin.

House Speaker John Boehner and Washington Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers blast President Obama at news conference. McMorris Rodgers is a rising figure in GOP leadership.

McMorris Rodgers, who chairs the House Republican Conference, took a different perspective and praised the council in an email to seattlepi.com.

ALEC embraces that collaborative spirit and enables lawmakers from all 50 states to come together to exchange ideas in an effort to make life better for communities of Washington state and all across the country, said the Eastern Washington congresswoman.

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McMorris Rodgers, House GOP leader, embraces controversial, conservative group

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Updated: Sunday, November 17 2013 10:55 AM EST2013-11-17 15:55:57 GMT

Now that Ted Wafer, the Dearborn Heights homeowner who shot Renisha Mcbride, has been charged with murder, will he use Michigan's Stand Your Ground law for his defense?

Now that Ted Wafer, the Dearborn Heights homeowner who shot Renisha Mcbride, has been charged with murder, will he use Michigan's Stand Your Ground law for his defense?

Updated: Sunday, October 6 2013 10:33 AM EDT2013-10-06 14:33:40 GMT

Detroit's City Council President takes on one of the consultants making millions to wipe away the city's debt. Plus, what about that deal to lease Belle Isle? And as Obamacare makes its debut, how'sit playing out in Detroit?

Detroit's City Council President takes on one of the bankruptcy consultants making millions to wipe away the city's debt. Plus, what about that deal to lease Belle Isle to the state? And as Obamacare makes its debut, how's the controversial healthcare law playing out in Detroit?

Updated: Monday, August 5 2013 8:20 AM EDT2013-08-05 12:20:25 GMT

We take on the race for Detroit Mayor and the controversial comments by Detroit's EM calling Detroiters "dumb, lazy,happy and rich."

A new poll shows Mike Duggan leading in the race for Detroit Mayor. Could those dirty tricks against him actually be paying off in his favor? Duggan supporter and community activist Malik Shabazz thinks

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Let It Rip Weekend: What's next in Ferguson & should stores open on Thanksgiving