Deliberations Continue In Loud Music Murder Trial

Second Day Of Deliberations End In Florida Parking Lot Shooting Death Of Jordan Davis

Facts:

• Michael Dunn, 47, is charged with first degree murder in the shooting death of Jordan Davis, 17
• Jury deliberations lasted for two hours Wednesday, continued through Thursday, and will resume on Friday
• Loud music was the catalyst for this shooting

Michael Dunn pleaded self defense in the murder trial of Jordan Davis. It's up to a jury to decide if that is true or not.  In November of 2012, 17 year old Jordan Davis was shot and killed in a parking lot of a convenience store in Jacksonville, Florida.

Davis was out with friends the evening of the shooting and was listening to loud music in the parking lot of a Gate convenience store. Michael Dunn approached the car and told the group to turn the music down. What happened afterwards is disputed by the defendant and the witnesses for the prosecution.

Dunn alleges that Davis, after the verbal dispute, said to Dunn, "You're dead." Dunn says that he heard Davis say, "This [expletive] is going down now." He also stated that he saw Davis pointed what he believed to be a shotgun at him.  Feeling that his life was in imminent danger, he reached into the glove-box of his car, grabbed a gun, and fired 9 shots in Davis' direction, 3 of which struck the 17 year old fatally. He then drove away from the scene. On the stand, he told prosecutors that he left the scene because he didn't believe anybody had been struck by the bullets.

The Durango that Davis was sitting in had 3 other people in it, all of whom testified against Dunn in the case. They allege that after Dunn asked the boys to turn the music down, one of the boys turned the music down, at which time Davis said, "[Expletive] that," and turned the music back up. After a verbal argument, Tevin Thompson, who was sitting in the seat in front of Davis, testified that Dunn brandished the 9mm handgun and fired 9 shots at the backseat of the car indiscriminately. The alleged shotgun was never found.

Drawing very similar comparisons to the Trayvon Martin case, Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law has once again come under scrutiny. One report (Click here to read) states that "racial and ethnic minorities could be at greater risk because of negative stereotypes," however; in Florida, use of the law by blacks and Hispanics has equaled or exceeded those killed.

32 states have adopted some form of the "Stand Your Ground" law which is also known as the Castle Doctrine. Iowa, Virginia, and Washington have considered adopting some form of this law.

Deliberations will continue Friday.