The fight was over, but Ersland didn't necessarily know that. I'll cut him some slack there. Here's my opinion of where he really went wrong:
When you take an "affirmative defense" (I did what would ordinarily be illegal but it was justified or permitted in this instance) you have to take the stand and testify to have any real hope. Ersland couldn't do that because he had lied repeatedly and been found out. He had no credibility left to testify. So the jury never heard his side of the story, and they wouldn't have believed it anyway.
Quote:
|
I know how the game is played. It isn't over till it is over. Like it or not, many youth of today do not accept that others have a right to resist someone forcibly taking something from you. That you have the gall to "disrespect" carries the obligation to retaliate. I have seen it and been the victim of it.
|
Didn't Erlsand use a Taurus Judge to shoot the guy the first time? Maybe there's a lesson there someplace. (use a gun that will make your first shot or two count) I could be misremembering about the Judge.