Philadelphia Inquirer Piece: Focus is on the wrong law

John Lott’s newest piece at the Philadelphia Inquirer starts this way:

On Sunday, Mayor Michael Bloomberg knew what was responsible for Trayvon Martin’s death: Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law. Or, as Bloomberg calls it: a “shoot-first” law.

According to Bloomberg: “‘shoot-first’ laws like those in Florida can inspire dangerous vigilantism and protect those who act recklessly with guns. Such laws – drafted by gun-lobby extremists in Washington – encourage deadly confrontations by enabling people to shoot first and argue ‘justifiable homicide’ later.”

Many others have taken the same line since Saturday’s verdict. But they don’t understand the law. Nor do they understand why it was completely irrelevant to the George Zimmerman trial. . . .