How would you cope?

A 23-year-old man defends himself against 5 men and spends 15 months in jail without bail waiting for trial. Here’s the whole story for you:

What would you do to try to cope in this type of situation while you wait for a trial?

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Sometimes the prosecutor will make it impossible to get bail because the conditions they set up as part of the bail deal are intolerable or punitive, or because the price is punitive. I don’t know if that was the case here or not, but I’ve seen it in far too personal a way.

In their zeal for conviction, focus on win rates, or hate for guns and gun owners, a lot of prosecutorial misconduct can occur. That sort of legal bullying is one thing that makes me truly, deeply angry.

How would I deal with being on the receiving end of it? By staying alive. By not letting the jail kill me. Or the other inmates, or the prosecution’s vindictive actions, or the incarceration system’s punitive actions. By committing to my principles. By knowing i had done the right thing and not letting the cumulative weight of the system or the injustice of the situation squash me. And by getting the best legal representation possible.

Basically, hunker down and deal with the reality of the situation. Do what you have to do.

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Hopefully with the USCCA and the lawyers I would end up at least bail. I have been in jail, but only on the good side of the bars and I do not want to be on the other side.

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I would hope so as well, @BJP, unfortunately, if the judge says no bail, any attorney will face an incredible uphill battle to get you out on bail. :frowning_face:

That’s part of the reason we train so much, right? To do everything as best we can for our physical and legal self-defense. :slight_smile:

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“Assistant District Attorney Sheida Ghadiri argued during the trial that the gun Kennedy fired belonged to him, that he knew how to use it given that he shot four of the five men he fought with, and the number of bullets he fired — eight to 10 — was too many to be self-defense.”

What a disgrace!

To the question at hand, in this scenario, I’ll cope like a champ! Also, knowing after my released, a multi-million dollar civil suit against the city of Philadelphia.

IMO, the best way to deal with the ridiculousness of local governments like Philly is to hit them where it hurts.

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The first thing I’d do is not run and hide for a week.

Be the first person to call 9-11.

Say just enough to establish from the get go that it was a self defense shooting on the 9-11 call.

Either be unarmed with your weapon cleared before police arrive if possible (safety) at a bare minimum do no have it in your hand when police arrive if you can avoid it.

Follow all commands to the letter when they do arrive and be fully cooperative but tell them you’re not going to make any further statements until you’ve met with your atty.

Follow your atty’s advice to the letter, hope, and pray and be an absolute saint while you await trial.

As for this young man, it took guts to refuse a plea when he’d already hidden for a week following the shooting and he’s lucky to not now be spending the rest of his life in prison.

I’d love to hear a detailed interview with him describing the events of that night and his thought processes from beginning to end.

Sadly a lot of prosecutors will do or say anything to make a case.