Attorneys weigh in on Ohio's new stand-your-ground law

Ohio & Mahoning Valley - To claim self-defense in Ohio, a defendant must prove that they're not at fault in creating the situation. They must also have a reasonable belief, even if mistaken, that they were in imminent danger.
Furthermore, the defendant must not violate the duty to retreat or avoid danger. However starting tomorrow, the duty to retreat will be removed when justifying self-defense claims.
"It's definitely going to help people defend themselves," Mahoning County Defense Attorney Dave Betras of Betras, Kopp and Hershman LLC said.
Ohio now joins 36 other states that allow people to stand their ground and use self-defense to hurt or kill someone if an individual feels their life is in danger, as long as they check the other boxes to meet the standard of self-defense.
Before April 6, Ohioans could only do this in their home or vehicle. In public, the victim had to leave the situation if they had the ability to do so.
"Now the law says even if you're in public, anywhere, there is no duty to retreat," Mahoning County Prosecuting Attorney Michael Yacavone said, "Hence 'standing your ground' in the use of self-defense."
Yacavone and Betras said this will change the way they try their cases.
"This really tips the scales in the favor of a defendant if he wants to use self-defense as a defense," Betras said.
Yacavone said, "It gives a defendant an extra way out if he's being charged with a case in which he believes he used self-defense. That being said, the ultimate question is whether or not he or she acted reasonably."
Prosecutors said responsible gun owners are not what concerns them.
"CCW holders are not the people that worry us with these cases," Yacavone said, "It's the people that think they now just have an avenue to go out and shoot somebody, think that they can rely on self-defense even if it's not a reasonable reaction to the threat they're facing."