Florida CWP defender charged with manslaughter

[seamusTX]

Tampa, Florida, area, February 29 -- A 47-year-old resident saw a pickup truck speeding in his neighborhood late at night. He approaced the vehicle on his bicycle and asked the driver to slow down. The passenger in the vehicle, a 24-year-old man, got out and commenced beating the older man "to the ground."

The defender shot the attacker twice, with fatal results.

The defender is charged with manslaughter.

http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/myfox/page ... geId=3.2.1

- Jim

[nitrogen]

chasing someone down by most would be considered escalating the situation.

Call teh police and let them handle it, it's what we pay them for.

[bpet]

I guess I have to wonder if he would have been so bold as to confront two guys in a vehicle while he was on a bicycle had he not been armed. I believe I'd have called the cops instead.

[WildBill]

He probably should have called the police, but I believe Mr. Podany was justified in defending himself. The news story did not say he was chasing the person in the truck. He did nothing to "escalate" the situation.

[nitrogen]

I inferred it. The vehicle was "speeding around" and he "approached teh vehicle on his bicycle." so I put two and two together

[WildBill]

I inferred it. The vehicle was "speeding around" and he "approached the vehicle on his bicycle." so I put two and two together

It still sounds justified to me. There is no indication that the guy was trying to arrest or threaten the person in the truck before it turned physical. From the picture in the link, he looks like he got a pretty good beating. Of course, there is more to the story that is in the news.

[frankie_the_yankee]

Sounds to me that this guy's gonna walk.

[Right2Carry]

I don't see how approaching a vehicle that just sped down your street and asking them not to speed in the neighborhood is escalating the situation. Home owners have a right to ask people or make them aware of the dangers of speeding down a residential street.

We also don't know what kind of attitude the guy on the bicycle had when he asked them not to speed. The passenger should have never gotten out of the truck in the first place and attacking the guy on the bicycle was a definite no-no.

I think the guy will eventually walk.

[seamusTX]

As usual, we don't have enough information.

The bottom line is that the use of force is never justified in response to verbal provocation alone. If the resident had called the guys in the truck every name in the book, they were not justified in attacking him.

Blows to the head are deadly force, and IMHO the defender was justified.

Whether the grand jury returns a no bill depends on a lot of facts we don't know, including possible prejudice.

As to whether the man should have left it to the police, we don't know what response times are in that town. A report of a speeding vehicle is not likely to get a quick response in most areas.

Everyone has the right to confront people who misbehaving. Approaching a vehicle that likely contains drunk yahoos late at night is a risky, and in this case led to a world of hurt.

- Jim
[Edited for clarification.]

[Wildscar]

I inferred it. The vehicle was "speeding around" and he "approached teh vehicle on his bicycle." so I put two and two together

It could havce been speeding around and passed this man several times. He just happen to be a stop sign when they stoped for a second. There are several options that could have happened. Only way to know for sure is if you had been there. Some one once told me that there are 3 truths to every story. His, Yours and the Real truth somewhere in between.