Michael Drejka — the white man who killed Markeis McGlockton in front of his wife and children — now faces a manslaughter charge.
The new charges filed against Drejka on Monday come after the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office saying his killing of McGlockton was permissable given Florida’s controversial “Stand Your Ground” law.
However, after sheriff Bob Gualtieri referred Drejka’s case to the Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney’s Office, prosecutors brought the charge, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Voluntary manslaughter carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and is treated as a second degree felony according to Florida statutes, with a minimum of at least 9 1/4 years if someone is convicted. Aggravated voluntary manslaughter (typically committed against a child or an elderly person) has a maximum penalty of 30 years.
It wasn’t immediately clear from the Times report whether or not Michael Drejka was charged with voluntary or involuntary manslaughter, or whether or not it was considered aggravated.
Surveillance video of Drejka’s shooting of McGlockton shows Drejka approaching McGlockton’s car (which was idling in a disabled parking spot) while his girlfriend Brittany Jacobs and their two children were waiting for him to come out of a convenience store with food and drinks. Jacobs exited the car and started arguing with Drejka. When McGlockton left the store, he shoved Drejka to the ground, who then pulled out a handgun and killed McGlockton.
Surveillance video provided by the owner of the Circle A Food Store shows Markeis McGlockton walk outside and confront Michael Drejka, who was arguing with McGlockton’s girlfriend after she parked in a handicapped space. McGlockton shoves Drejka, then Drejka pulls out his gun
— Kellie Cowan (@KellieCowan)
The “Stand Your Ground” law was part of the reason George Zimmerman was acquitted in his killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in 2012. Like Drejka, Zimmerman was the instigator in the killing of Martin, stalking the teen in his vehicle while Martin was on the way back home from a grocery store, buying candy and iced tea. Even though Zimmerman , jurors discussed the self-defense aspect of the case under the “Stand Your Ground” statute, as Zimmerman and Martin had a physical altercation prior to Zimmerman killing him.
McGlockton’s family called the news of the manslaughter charge “a small measure of comfort in our time of profound mourning.”
Noah Jimenez is a freelance political writer, and a proud resident of Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn. Email him at [email protected].