The George Zimmerman trial out of Florida captivated the country over the summer and produced a controversial verdict in the process. Over the course of the trial, one of the main sources of debate was Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” provision, which eliminates the duty to retreat from the situation as a requirement for self-defense. This blog will explore how the Stand Your Ground laws work and whether such laws apply in Maryland.

            Historically, the law required a strict duty to retreat and a person could use deadly force in self-defense only after exhausting every chance to flee with his back against the wall. [1] That duty has slowly eroded over the years but many jurisdictions now have a requirement to retreat in settings outside the home. [2] In courts that still require this duty to retreat, there is “the castle exception”, which states that a person does not have to retreat when a trespasser attacks him or her within his or her house. [3] What “Stand Your Ground” laws intend to do is extend the castle exception to places in public. Jurisdictions like Florida have enacted statutes that permit the actor to meet force with force, including deadly force, even when retreat is possible. [4] Effectively, statutes like Stand Your Ground eliminate the duty to retreat in public but still require a defendant to prove all of the other elements of self-defense. Advocates of these type of Stand Your Ground laws argue that the law should not require citizens to be cowards, especially in the face of unlawful activity. Opposition to these laws center around the principle that deadly force should be a last resort and only used if absolutely necessary. These two competing ideologies have lead to states choosing one stance over the other.

            In Maryland, in cases in which self-defense is claimed, the accused normally has a duty to retreat. [5] In Lambert v. State[6], the Court of Special Appeals of Maryland defined this duty as:

“It is the duty of the defendant, when defending himself outside the home, to retreat or avoid the danger if the          means to do so are within his power and consistent with his safety. Where, however, the peril is so imminent that he cannot retreat safely, he has a right to stand his ground and defend himself.” [7]

 The accused does not have a duty to retreat, even at the deadly force level, in the following situations: if the accused is attacked in his or her own home; if the avenue of retreat is unsafe; if the nonaggressor victim is lawfully arresting the aggressor; or if the nonaggressor victim is the robbery victim of the aggressor. [8] Finally, the accused does not have to retreat if he is unaware of a possible avenue of retreat that is available. [9]

            Maryland at the current moment does not have any “Stand Your Ground” law and therefore a duty to retreat is still present in public. However, Baltimore Country lawmaker, Del. Pat McDonough says that he plans introduce ‘Stand Your Law’ legislation in the General House Assembly. [10] Delegate McDonough has stated that he feels as though the duty to retreat is the weakest form of protection for crime victims and their families. [11] This provision though is unlikely to pass in the Maryland legislature but clearly, the issue is being debated. [12]

            As a resident in Maryland, this all means that the current state of the law is that if a person is being attacked outside of their home, they have a duty to attempt to retreat from the attacker. If an attempt is made and fails, or the situation falls within certain circumstances, then a person may defend himself or herself. While states like Florida continue to uphold their “Stand Your Ground” laws, it does not seem like Maryland will be joining them in enacting a similar statute.