Michael has been trained to analyze threats and believed at that moment he needed to defend himself. He realized that his attacker and his attacker’s friends had the upper-hand in numbers and he could have been seriously injured or killed. In his desperate attempt to gain the opportunity to get to his feet and flee, he fired his legally registered weapon and accidentally struck, but did not seriously injure, his attacker in the leg. Despite overwhelming evidence from state witnesses that Michael was attacked first without provocation, and the fact that he did not continue firing, and removed himself from the immediate area as soon as he could, Michael was not offered a plea from the state. He was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon causing bodily harm & sentenced to a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison. His Judge stated “Frankly, I think the 25-year mandatory is overly harsh based on the facts of this case, but that’s what the law requires I do and I intend to follow the law.” The officer who prepared Michael’s sentencing recommendation, recommended Michael be given probation due to her investigation. She felt that Michael would be an ideal candidate for probation, thus saving tax payers money. The state rejected her professional recommendation and pushed for the 25 years.
Posted on: Thu, 19 Sep 2013 22:05:20 +0000
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