In a fun-house mirror version of what occurred last month with Trayvone Martin and George Zimmerman, back in 2010 a very similar shooting occurred - with considerably different results.
Trevor Dooley stood his ground, brandished his gun and killed a man after an argument over local skateboarding rules in a Florida town.
He argued in court last month that he had a right to do so under the state’s Stand Your Ground law.
The man he killed, David James, had been playing basketball with his 8-year-old daughter in September 2010 when he and Mr. Dooley began arguing over whether a boy on a skateboard had a right to ride on the court, according to an account in The St. Petersburg Times. There was a “physical confrontation,” the police said, during which Mr. Dooley fired the weapon he was carrying, killing Mr. James in front of his daughter.
Dooley claimed that he was being attacked and choked by James as they struggled over the gun and it apparently went off killing James.
Sounds familiar doesn't it? Except for one thing, Dooley is having his day in court to prove his case before a judge and jury.
As reported by the Tampa Bay Times in September of 2010.
Trevor Dooley walked out of his suburban house Sunday afternoon, past his trimmed lawn and nice landscaping, to confront a boy riding a skateboard on the basketball court across the street. That's against the rules in this neighborhood, and Dooley, 69, was carrying a gun.
David James, 41, with 20 years in the Air Force, was playing basketball with his 8-year-old daughter. They played every Sunday.
James stood up for the skateboarder, neighbors said. The men argued and got into a "physical confrontation," the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said. Then, in front of his daughter, James was shot dead.
What authorities don't know is who pulled the trigger, or whether it was justified.
Dooley was not arrested on the spot as several of the witness statements were conflicting.
Mark Cox, a State Attorney's Office spokesman, said he couldn't yet explain why no charges have been filed.
"It's still very much a pending investigation," he said. "We're working on it diligently."
Neighbors said James was defending skateboarders, who they said have had multiple run-ins with Dooley.
"We've gone off on each other before," said James' stepson, 17-year-old Garrett James.
James' wife, Kanina James, can't understand why Dooley is free.
"It's over and it's done and it can't be undone," she said on the phone to a friend Monday morning. "Yeah, they caught him and they let him go. I don't know why."
"Why" would apparently be the "Stand Your Ground" law.
Eventually though, he was arrested and is now on trail awaiting the judges decision on a manslaughter charge.
Now we see what happens when a Black Man kills a White Man then asserts "Self Defense". He has to prove it. Other people in the opposite situation, not so much. At least not yet, even when the relevant Police Chief "Temporarily Steps Down".
Seems to me the victim isn't "Temporarily" Dead in either case - but in one case Justice just might be done, while in the other....
Vyan