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CCNTV6
  • 6 months ago
Senior Counsel Keith Scotland says that while there are pros and cons to the Government's proposed Stand Your Ground legislation, he has yet to identify the specific mischief the new law seeks to remedy.

He argues that existing legal provisions already address self-defense, as well as the right to protect one's home and family.

Tv6's Nicole M Romany files this report.

Transcript
00:00The Attorney cautions that arming citizens under the proposed legislation
00:04could encourage vigilantism and increase the risk of excessive use of force.
00:11Furthermore, Scotland's Senior Counsel, who also serves as the Member of Parliament for Port of Spain South,
00:17maintains that existing self-defense laws already provide individuals with a legal right to adequately protect themselves.
00:26In the heat of the moment, the common law as it stands now gives the right of the person who is being attacked,
00:36give them that leeway to say, you are not expected in the heat of an attack to weigh up the niceties.
00:44Am I being over-exuberant? Am I using excessive force? And that is an important nuance.
00:52The Senior Counsel notes that under the current legal framework, a person's response in a threatening situation
01:00is assessed based on what they genuinely believe was necessary at the time.
01:07As such, he urges that the law already provides a sufficient basis for individuals to legitimately defend themselves when under attack.
01:16Additionally, Scotland warns that any new legislation must be carefully tailored
01:23to reflect the unique social and cultural realities of Trinidad and Tobago.
01:29We have racial issues, we have ethnic issues, we have biases, we have gender, we have historical issues.
01:39Will you take that into account?
01:42For one moment, scour social media and some of the putrid comments that are coming,
01:49and these are coming from persons, not bots.
01:51He also warns that such legislation could potentially lead to an escalation in violent crimes,
01:59as citizens may feel emboldened to use deadly force in situations that could otherwise be de-escalated.
02:06It can be linked to an increasing homicides and increasing aggressive behaviour in the society.
02:14Scotland Senior Counsel acknowledges that while the government argues
02:19that the legislation could serve as a deterrent by making criminals think twice.
02:24No concrete policy proposal has yet been presented to determine whether it would truly achieve that objective.
02:32Nicole M. Romany, TV6 News.
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