Florida man charged with manslaughter in ‘stand your ground’ case
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Prosecutors charged a white man with manslaughter Monday in the death of an unarmed black man whose video-recorded shooting in a store parking lot has revived debate over Florida’s “stand your ground” law.
Michael Drejka, 47, has been charged in the July 19 death of Markeis McGlockton outside a Clearwater convenience store, Pinellas County State Attorney Bernie McCabe said. Drejka was being held at the county jail on $100,000 bail. It was unknown if he had an attorney.
At a news conference Monday afternoon, relatives of McGlockton said they were pleased with the charge.
“I know this is going to be a long road,” said Michael McGlockton, the victim’s father. “We are up for the task. I just hope for a good outcome.”
Family attorney Michele Rayner said “the ultimate goal is conviction” and that she believed manslaughter was the correct charge.
McGlockton’s girlfriend, Britany Jacobs, who was seated in the couple’s car with two of their children, ages 3 years and 4 months, said Drejka confronted her for being parked in a handicapped-accessible space. McGlockton, 28, had gone into the store with their 5year-old son.
Video shows McGlockton leaving the store and shoving Drejka to the ground. Seconds later, Drejka pulls a handgun and shoots McGlockton as he backs away.
In court documents, McCabe and Pinellas sheriff’s Detective George Moffett cited three other drivers who said Drejka threatened them during confrontations. Two of them said he displayed a gun.
A black man who drives a septic truck told Moffett he parked in the same handicapped-accessible spot three months before McGlockton’s shooting, the documents show. The man said Drejka began yelling at him and said he would shoot him and shouted racial slurs. The man’s boss told Moffett that Drejka later called, telling him “that he was lucky he didn’t blow his employee’s head off.”
McGlockton family attorney Benjamin Crump — who gained national prominence representing the family of Trayvon Martin after the black teen’s fatal shooting in 2012 — said in a statement Monday “it’s about time” Drejka was arrested.
The law says people can use deadly force if they believe they are in imminent danger of death or great bodily harm and have no obligation to retreat. Under a change made by the Legislature last year, if a suspect raises a stand-your-ground defense, prosecutors must prove the law doesn’t apply.