NRA Spent Anniversary Of Trayvon Martin's Death Pushing Law Protecting His Killer

Special Programs Guns & Public Safety

Written by Matt Gertz

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Last week we noted that the National Rifle Association's (NRA) effort to push the Florida-style “Kill at Will” laws that protected Trayvon Martin's killer from prosecution had continued unabated in the wake of Martin's death.

The gun lobby has given no indication of backing down in the face of the revelation of their role in promoting these laws. In fact, BloombergBusinessweek reports that the group spent the one-month anniversary of Martin's death trying to pass “Kill at Will” legislation in Alaska:

On the one-month anniversary of Trayvon Martin's killing this week, the National Rifle Association was in Alaska lobbying for a law like the one at the center of the Florida shooting.

The gun rights group urged supporters to contact senators on the “stand your ground” bill, calling it “vital self- defense legislation.” A lobbyist worked the halls in gun-friendly Juneau, telling at least one senator that the highly publicized slaying of the unarmed black teen in Sanford, Florida, is “irrelevant” to the debate in Alaska, according to Senator Hollis French, an Anchorage Democrat.

Former NRA president and Florida lobbyist Marion Hammer has acknowledged that the NRA helped draft that state's so-called “Stand Your Ground” law, and the group was instrumental in its 2005 passage. Shortly after, Hammer appeared before the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and successfully urged them to adopt Florida's law as model legislation. Together, NRA and ALEC pushed for the adoption of similar laws in dozens of states.

The tragic circumstances of Martin's killing have forced these laws into the spotlight. As BloombergBusinessweek notes, this has led to several setbacks for the gun lobby:

As the 4-million-member NRA continued its push in Alaska, it faced mounting challenges in other states. Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick pledged yesterday to veto a similar bill if it made it to his desk. Legislation in New York and Iowa stalled in committees as lawmakers in Georgia, Texas and other states said they would try to repeal laws already on the books. A Florida-like measure in Minnesota was vetoed by Governor Mark Dayton on March 5, before the Martin case was widely covered in the national media.