![]() ![]() ![]() Even without those unjust laws, the general law of self-defense makes allowances for harboring negative racial stereotypes about Black people by excusing frightened civilians and police officers who act on them.Īs long as these widespread stereotypes persist, the law of self-defense will continue to let off police officers and ordinary citizens who use lethal force more hastily against Black people than similarly situated white people. This deeply disturbing legal reality highlights the limited capacity of our legal system to adequately address such incidents even if we repealed “stand your ground” laws for civilians and abolished qualified immunity for law enforcement. That reflex, even if rooted in racism, might well be deemed reasonable in the eyes of the law. Under standard self-defense doctrine, hair-trigger assumptions about Black boys and men that may have caused Andrew Lester to shoot 16-year-old Ralph Yarl for merely ringing his doorbell could shield Lester from criminal liability. ![]() A rally in Kansas City, Mo., this month after Ralph Yarl, a Black teenager who went to a wrong address, was shot by an 84-year-old white homeowner. ![]()
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