stillflyboy:ethiopienne:Marissa Alexander, domestic violence survivor, granted new trialTALLAH
stillflyboy: ethiopienne: Marissa Alexander, domestic violence survivor, granted new trial TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A Florida appeals court is ordering a new trial for a woman sentenced to 20 years to prison after she fired a warning shot in a wall during a dispute with her husband. The 1st District Court of Appeal ruled that a judge did not properly instruct the jury handling the case of Marissa Alexander. But the appeals court did also state that the judge was right to block Alexander from using the state’s “Stand Your Ground” law as a way to defend her actions. Alexander had never been arrested before she fired a bullet at a wall one day in 2010 to scare off her husband when she felt he was threatening her. Her case in Jacksonville has drawn attention and criticism aimed at mandatory-minimum sentencing laws. Associated Press This is great news! But of course the AP report leaves out/distorts key facts - it wasn’t a “dispute with her husband,” she was reacting to an attack by her abusive ex, against whom she’d already taken a restraining order. More here. Marissa Alexander is a 31-year-old mother of three. She is also a survivor of violence at the hands of her ex, Rico Gray. In 2009, Alexander obtained a restraining order against Gray. Learning that she was pregnant, she amended it to remove the ban on contact between her and Gray while maintaining the rest of the restraining order. On August 1, 2010, nine days after Alexander had given birth to their daughter, Gray attacked her in her own home. “He assaulted me, shoving, strangling and holding me against my will, preventing me from fleeing all while I begged for him to leave,” Alexander recounted in an open letter to supporters. Alexander escaped into the garage, but realized that she had forgotten the keys to her truck and that the garage’s door opener was not working. She retrieved her gun, which was legally registered, and re-entered her home to either escape or grab her cell phone to call for help. “He came into the kitchen … and realized I was unable to leave … he yelled, ‘Bitch I will kill you!’ and charged toward me. In fear and a desperate attempt, I lifted my weapon up, turned away and discharged a single shot in the wall up in the ceiling.” Gray called the police and reported that Alexander had shot at him and his sons. Alexander was arrested and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. -- source link
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