Stand Your Ground, But On Terra Firma

Letter to Ephesians: A judge ruled Scott Spivey’s killer can’t use the state’s “Stand Your Ground” defense in a wrongful death suit? Weldon Boyd’s denied statutory self-defense argument in the 2023 shooting is a reminder any “I feared for my life” claim best be supported by facts.

The WSJ had famously launched its own investigation into the “claim of self-defense … for one of two men who had avoided arrest by saying they feared for their lives when they fatally shot 33-year-old Scott Spivey during a road-rage encounter.” The paper was not concinced vy Boyd’s claim. And neither was South Carolina Circuit Judge Eugene Griffith who said he couldn’t reconcile Boyd’s account with the physical evidence which included recorded calls that Boyd made, as well as the testimony of a witness who said [the victim] Spivey didn’t aim his pistol at Boyd … before the shooting started. “Credibility is huge here,” the judge said from the bench. “I’m evaluating the credibility of what I heard.”

But does a person have to literally point a gun at you before the “I feared for my life” requirement kicks in? As the WSJ coverage opined, “The ruling amounted to a test case of South Carolina’s stand-your ground law – which, like similar [state] statutes … provides criminal & civil immunity in self-defense killings. The Spivey family had filed a wrongful-death lawsuit that required Boyd … to present evidence & testimony that [he] acted lawfully.” Apparently, Spivey had been “driving drunk & was waving a gun out the window of his Silverado,” forcing Boyd onto a highway shoulder. Spivey sped off, but Boyd & his companion pursued him “at high speed for miles.” Phone recordings suggested a “shoot out was anticipated.” And, when the trio met again, it happened. Spivey is believed to have a gun in hand while yelling at the duo to stop following him. The rest is anyone’s guess. The judge’s ruling doesn't bar a common law self-defense claim. Yet, it does mean the family’s lawsuit can go to trial, the WSJ noted, and “raises the possibility” of criminal charges, like manslaughter, being filed.

Davd Soul