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<blockquote data-quote="Old Fart" data-source="post: 2461044" data-attributes="member: 4899">After a Tampa Bay Times&#039; review of 200 cases that involved the controversial &quot;Stand Your Ground&quot; law found an &quot;uneven application&quot; and &quot;shocking outcomes,&quot; one Florida lawmaker is seeking to impede the media&#039;s ability to scrutinize the law.Earlier this month, state Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fort Walton Beach) filed an amendment that would &quot;severely limit access to court records in the self-defense cases,&quot; the Times&#039; Michael van Sickler reports.The amendment would allow those found innocent in a Stand Your Ground case to &quot;apply for a certificate of eligibility to expunge the associated criminal history record.&quot;Gaetz said his amendment was unrelated to the Times&#039; Stand Your Ground investigation, the Associated Press reports. &quot;The point is to ensure that someone who appropriately uses a Stand Your Ground defense doesn&#039;t have their life ruined by the use of that defense,&quot; he said.Gaetz&#039;s amendment has sparked concern among journalists, Media Matters reports, who say the loss of access to public records could have damaging effects.For entire article: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/24/stand-your-ground-records_n_5007847.html" target="_blank">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/24/stand-your-ground-records_n_5007847.html</a></blockquote>

[QUOTE="Old Fart, post: 2461044, member: 4899"] After a Tampa Bay Times' review of 200 cases that involved the controversial "Stand Your Ground" law found an "uneven application" and "shocking outcomes," one Florida lawmaker is seeking to impede the media's ability to scrutinize the law. Earlier this month, state Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fort Walton Beach) filed an amendment that would "severely limit access to court records in the self-defense cases," the Times' Michael van Sickler reports. The amendment would allow those found innocent in a Stand Your Ground case to "apply for a certificate of eligibility to expunge the associated criminal history record." Gaetz said his amendment was unrelated to the Times' Stand Your Ground investigation, the Associated Press reports. "The point is to ensure that someone who appropriately uses a Stand Your Ground defense doesn't have their life ruined by the use of that defense," he said. Gaetz's amendment has sparked concern among journalists, Media Matters reports, who say the loss of access to public records could have damaging effects. For entire article: [url]http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/24/stand-your-ground-records_n_5007847.html[/url] [/QUOTE]

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