The Floridian killed an unarmed man, thinking he was exercising California's "Stand Your Ground" law.
The Killing of Micheal McGlockton
On July 19, 2018, a 47-year-old man named Micheal Drejka stopped at a local convenience store where he noticed a young lady named Britney Jacobs parking her car in the disabled/handicapped parking spot even though she didn't have a placard. After a short confrontation with Jacobs, Micheal McGlockton, her 28-year-old boyfriend, came storming out of the store. Believing that Drejka was harassing his girlfriend, McGlockton shoved him to the floor. About 2.5 seconds after hitting the concrete ground, Drejka drew his .40 caliber Glock, prompting McGlockton to back away. Drejka then opened fire and shot McGlockton once, which caused injuries that would later result in his death. After the shooting, Drejka placed his gun in his car and waited for the local authorities to arrive on the scene. When law enforcement arrived, the gun was seized, and Drejka was taken by officers to the North District Station in nearby Dunedin, Florida.
During questioning, Drejka repeatedly asserted that he was in fear of physical harm; he believed that McGlockton stepped toward him while he had his gun drawn (in reality, he stepped back) and had acted in self-defense by opening fire on McGlockton. After 6 hours of interrogation, Sheriff Bob Gualtieri concluded that no immediate charges would be filed against Drejka. He stated, "I'm a big believer in this adage that just because you can, doesn't mean you should. This case may be an example of that. Nonetheless, we don't build it. We just sail it. What I mean by that is: I don't make the law. I enforce the law." Gualtieri asserted that his office was precluded from making an arrest due to Drejka's claim of self-defense through Florida's stand-your-ground law. Gualtieri also said the investigation would continue before being turned over to the local state attorney's office. On August 10, 2018, Detective George Moffett sent a capias request to State Attorney McCabe that he charges Drejka with one count of manslaughter with a firearm. This was after Moffett discovered that Drejka had had three incidents where he threatened drivers with a gun. Drejka was formally charged with a single count of manslaughter on August 13. Drejka pleaded not guilty to the charge on August 17.
The Trial of Micheal Drejka
The trial of Micheal Drejka began on August 19, 2019. After further analysis of the security camera footage from the incident, Drejka's defense team, led by Theresa Jean-Pierre Coy, intended to show that Drejka was legitimately scared for his life during the 2.5 seconds that it took between him hitting the floor and the gun being fired. The defense needed to convince a jury that, in Drejka's point of view, McGlockton presented himself as a threat of imminent harm or danger. They relied on the point of view argument considerably since the jury could determine that McGlockton didn't pose any lethal threat when viewed objectively. On the other hand, the prosecution, led by Fred Schaub, emphasized how McGlockton took steps back when Drejka drew his firearm. This subtle yet essential moment could decide the trial entirely. This is because those steps backward by McGlockton showed fear by McGlockton, then portraying Drejka as the main threat.
Furthermore, the prosecution wished to utilize the fact that McGlockton was unarmed at the time and show that there was no way he could've posed such a significant threat to Drejka that it would justify using lethal force. After 6 hours of jury deliberation, On August 23, Drejka was found guilty of manslaughter with the use of a firearm. Drejka was sentenced to 20 years in prison with a credit of 92 days for time served.