Bricker is a purveyor of misinformation; listen to him at your own risk

[Bricker]

@Really_Not_All_That_Bright

But the hypothetical you and Bricker have been discussing presupposes that Martin did punch Zimmerman. It doesn’t take a lawyer to recognize that punching someone in the face is a crime.

@you_with_the_face

It could be a crime, or it could be considered justified use of force. It is hardly black and white that a punch automatically equals a crime. Let alone a felony or even a breach a peace.

Here’s the sentence I used for the hypothetical:

@Bricker

If the conflict began with Martin punching Zimmerman, continued to Zimmerman shooting Martin, and if the bullet had merely grazed Martin, following which Zimmerman had leapt upon him and restrained him… That would have been perfectly legal, both for a police officer and a “regular schmoe.”

That hypothetical doesn’t just presuppose Martin punching Zimmerman. It presupposes that the conflict began with Martin punching Zimmerman. How is that not a breach of peace? If his punch was in response to some provocation, then the provocation is what begins the conflict.