Florida This article is more than 11 years old

Florida man freed under stand-your- ground defence shot dead in Miami

This article is more than 11 years oldPolice say Greyston Garcia, who stabbed a burglar to death in March but was cleared of murder, was innocent victim of gang shooting

A Florida man who was controversially cleared of murder under the same stand-your-ground law that is central to the Trayvon Martin case has been shot dead.

In March, Greyston Garcia, 25, was granted immunity by a Miami judge who ruled he acted in self-defence even though he chased a burglar for more than a block before stabbing him to death.

The case attracted attention because of its similarities to the Martin case in Sanford in February, in which George Zimmerman shot and killed the unarmed Martin, 17.

Zimmerman was initially freed without charge under the 2005 law, which allows for deadly force if a person fears his life is in danger, but later charged with second-degree murder.

On Tuesday night, Garcia was killed as he drove his pick-up truck through Miami's Liberty City neighbourhood, apparently the innocent victim of a gang shooting that also claimed the life of a 16-year-old boy.

Homicide detectives from the Miami police department believe that Garcia, who was on his way to his job at a convenience store, was caught in the crossfire as feuding gang members fired on each other.

Like Zimmerman, who was arrested six weeks after the Martin shooting, Garcia was charged with murder. Prosecutors said that on January 25, a roommate standing at the window of Garcia's Miami apartment alerted him to two men stealing the radio from his truck.

Garcia took a large knife from the kitchen and ran outside, chasing Pedro Roteta, 26, for more than a block before killing him with a single stab to the chest in an incident captured on CCTV cameras.

After the killing, prosecutors said, Garcia did not call police but returned to his apartment and went to sleep. Later, he sold three stolen car radios that Roteta was carrying and hid the knife.

Judge Beth Bloom, however, ruled that his actions did not eliminate Garcia's right to defend himself under the stand-your-ground law, which is currently under review by a panel of Florida politicians and law enforcement officials.
Garcia, she said, "was well within his rights to pursue the victim and demand the return of his property. The defendant had no duty to retreat and could lawfully pursue a fleeing felon who has stolen his property."

Garcia told detectives that he feared for his life when he caught up with Roteta, who swung a bag containing the stolen radios at him. Roteta had a small knife that police found unopened still in his pocket and Garcia admitted he never saw his victim brandishing a weapon.

Zimmerman's lawyer, Mark O'Mara, is expected to file a motion for his client's immunity under the stand-your-ground law. Zimmerman claims that Martin attacked him and that he fired only in self-defence.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaK%2Bfp7mle5FpaGtnmqq7cH6WaJ2lp6KesaJ50q2Yp5xdrry2voygqaitnpk%3D