To the Point
Trayvon Martin, Stand Your Ground and Gun Politics in America
Despite permissive new laws on gun use in many states, fewer American households have guns. With crime going down, does that mean gun control might have a future?
By Warren Olney • • 51m ListenGeorge Zimmerman used a gun to kill Trayvon Martin and the jury said he acted in self-defense. But, despite permissive new laws on gun use in many states, fewer and fewer American households have guns. With crime going down, does that mean gun control might have a future? Also, Edward Snowden asks Russia for asylum, and in a major victory for Mexico's new President, the vicious enforcer for a drug cartel has been captured. We talk with a reporter who once thought he was a target for the Zetas.
Banner image: George Zimmerman leaves court with his family after Zimmerman's not guilty verdict was read in Seminole Circuit Court in Sanford, Florida, July 13, 2013. Photo: VOA
In this episode
3 storiesSnowden Asks Russia for Asylum
Edward Snowden, the fugitive leaker of secrets about the National Security Agency, says he could face torture or the death penalty if he's extradited to the United States. That's according to an official who says Snowden has officially applied for asylum in Russia.
Read the story8 minGun Ownership, Stand-Your-Ground Laws and Gun Control
George Zimmerman is hardly the only American who owns a gun, and gun sales increase with every high profile shooting. "Stand Your Ground" laws in Florida and 24 other states protect more killers who use guns with increasingly broad definitions of "self-defense." But there's a paradox.
Read the story36 minMexican Military Captures Drug Cartel Leader
Mexico's new President, Enrique Peña Nieto, promised a new strategy in the war against brutal drug gangs, and today he scored a major victory. The Zeta's enforcer and leader, Miguel Ángel Treviño Morales, who once said he'd rather be captured dead than alive, was taken into custody yesterday without a shot being fired.
Read the story7 min
