Pleas of Self Defense Don’t Always Fly

There are headlines almost daily about people claiming self defense for questionable or even downright bad behavior. In the same day there were two stories with claims of self defense at the heart of the tragedies.

A 24 year old gang member, Anthony Aranda, shot a man and killed him stating that he felt threatened by him. The man, Luis Gonzales, had been carrying a large rock which he waved at Luis while rushing at him.
When Luis Gonzales was close enough, Aranda pulled out a gun and shot him.

Prior to the incident with Mr. Gonzales, Mr. Aranda was involved in an altercation with another man, Adam Gonzalez. Anthony Aranda Jr. said during his murder trial that he thought, “They were trying to kill me”. There were scarcely two minutes between the two incidents. Anthony Aranda also pulled a gun on Adam Gonzalez.

In another story this week a man on death row was executed. He stated up to the very end that he was innocent and had been defending himself. Sadly the man had had gang ties throughout his life and this history followed him until the end of his days. The self defense plea did not work out for him.

There are many ways to avoid self defense that costs someone their life. Through self defense classes and learning to avoid severe confrontations lives can be saved. Items for self protection such as pepper spray, stun guns, and Tasers are also excellent alternatives to fire arms. These are much less likely to lead to death row, too.