Why The 'Race Card' Is Played

Stand Your Ground: Racial disparity In 2012, in response to the Trayvon Martincase, the Tampa Bay Times compiled a report on the application of stand your ground, and also created a database of cases where defendants sought to invoke the law. Their report found no racial disparity in Florida cases in the way in which defendants claiming self-defense under the law are treated, with white subjects being charged and convicted at the same rate as black subjects, and results of mixed-race cases were similar for both white victims of black attackers and black victims of white attackers.[35] Shooters of black attackers overall were more successful at using the law than shooters of white attackers, regardless of the race of the victim claiming self-defense, but analysis showed that black attackers were also more likely to be armed and to be involved in committing a crime, such as burglary, when shot. A Texas A&M study found that when whites use the stand-your-ground defense against bl