Stand Your Ground

Stand Your Ground is a law applicable in the United States of America. The law, if raised in a criminal trial , may exonerate an  accused person from conviction for a felony.

This law states that a person who uses force in their self defence when there is reasonable belief of an unlawful threat and where there is no obligation to retreat may be justified of the act. This is opposed to the traditional duty placed on such a person to retreat, if safely possible, before using force in self defence.

The Supreme Court of United States in the case of Beard v United States, 158 U.S. 550 (1895) held that a man who was attacked on his premises and who did not provoke the attack and reasonably believes that the deceased intended to do to him any grievous bodily harm or to kill him and at the time of such attack, and who was not obliged to retreat or consider whether he could safely retreat,  was entitled to stand his ground.

Furthermore, Section 776.013 subsection 3 Chapter 776 of the Florida Statutes 2012; "Justifiable Use of Force" provides:

"(3) A person who is not engaged in an unlawful activity and who is attacked in any other place where he or she has a right to be has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony. 

For further reading, see the Zimmerman's case. and this.