Man Cleared Of Charges in “Stand Your Ground” Case Shot Dead
If you haven’t gotten your dose of tragic irony today, allow me to remedy the situation. A man formerly cleared of charges in a “stand your ground” case has been shot dead.
A Miami man who was acquitted three months ago in a controversial “stand your ground” case was killed by a stray bullet this week. After being cleared of all charges, Greyston Garcia secured a job as a cashier at an all-night convenience store in Liberty City. On Tuesday night, he asked to go home early. His boss let him off the clock on the condition that he go to a nearby gas station to get change for some $20 bills. He did, and was struck by a bullet from a nearby firefight on his way back to work. He was rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital where doctors pronounced him dead.
A 16-year-old boy was also killed in the shooting, notes Newser.
“I don’t know what to say,” said veteran Miami homicide Sgt. Ervens Ford, who was an investigator on Garcia’s original case. “You can’t make this stuff up. Only in Miami.”
Garcia was acquitted months ago after chasing down a man who stole his car radio armed with only a knife. Garcia killed Pedro Roteta with a single knife thrust to the chest. Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Beth Bloom found that Garcia had acted in self-defense after a medical examiner ruled that “a 4-6 pound bag of metal being swung at one’s head would lead to serious bodily injury or death,” her order said. Roteta had swung a bag filled with car radios at Garcia, reports the Miami Herald.
“Greyston was a hard working and caring person, who like his father before him, loved and lived for his family above all else,” said his defense attorney, Eduardo Pereira. “Greyston’s wife, Dianelys, and his children, the youngest having enjoyed his first and last birthday with his father, will miss a young man who having survived a brush with death, embraced a second chance at life.”
According to store owner Kenny Abdul, Garcia was a good worker and frequently talked about his kids. “I liked him. He was honest and didn’t bother nobody,” Abdul said.
What do you think of the “stand your ground” law?
