Great News! SB-448 PASSED the Committee by a vote of 5 to 0.
SB-448 by Senator Greg Evers is a bill to stop abusive prosecutors from using 10-20-LIFE to prosecute people who, in self-defense, threaten to use deadly force against an attacker as a means to stop an attack.
Some anti-gun, anti-self-defense prosecutors have been abusing the 10-20-LIFE law to prosecute average citizens who displayed a weapon or gun in self-defense to make an attacker back off.
Bill Cervone, the State Attorney for the 8th Judicial Circuit represented the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association, attempted to defend prosecutors who have been violating the intent of 10-20-Life and abusing their discretion.
As reported by the News Service of Florida, the following misleading statement was made to the Committee in testimony by State Attorney Bill Cervone:
“If somebody is in prison for one of these situations, it’s because a judge and a jury rejected his version claiming self-defense.”
We know that statement is not accurate. Unfortunately, there are also people in prison because prosecutors threatened them with 10 or 20 years if they did not plead to a lesser number of years. That is coercion and abuse in these cases.
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Gregory Smith