Unequal Protection: Race, Threat Perception, and Stand Your Ground in Georgia
Faculty Mentor
Meca Williams-Johnson
Location
Russell Union Room 2041
Type of Research
Proposed
Session Format
Oral Presentation
College
College of Education
Department
Curriculum, Foundations, and Reading
Abstract
Stand Your Ground (SYG) statutes are framed as neutral expansions of self‑defense yet growing empirical and case-based evidence suggests they operate in racially disparate and unjust ways. This presentation uses the William “Marcus” Wilson case in Statesboro, Georgia, as a focal example to examine how SYG laws can fail to protect people of color even when they credibly claim self-defense. In June 2020, Wilson, a young Black man, fired at occupants of a pickup truck after alleging racist threats and aggressive driving. Wilson was seeking immunity under Georgia’s SYG statute, but the court denied his claim, and he was ultimately convicted of felony offenses and sentenced to prison.
Drawing on interdisciplinary scholarship and national homicide data, the presentation situates Wilson’s case within broader patterns that show SYG laws are associated with increased “justified” homicides and stark racial gaps in the use of deadly force that is deemed reasonable. Homicides involving White shooters and Black victims are several times more likely to be ruled justified than the reverse, raising serious concerns about embedded racial bias in the application of ostensibly race-neutral laws. Using legal records, media accounts, and existing quantitative studies, the researchers ask: (1) how race, perceived threat, and community narratives shaped interpretations of “reasonableness” in Wilson’s claim, and (2) what this reveals about structural inequities in SYG rulings.
The presentation concludes by outlining implications for reform and developing community-based advocacy strategies grounded in cases like Marcus Wilson’s to challenge the unequal distribution of self-defense rights.
Program Description
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Start Date
4-23-2026 11:45 AM
End Date
4-23-2026 12:00 PM
Recommended Citation
Polk, Julia and Williams-Johnson, Meca, "Unequal Protection: Race, Threat Perception, and Stand Your Ground in Georgia" (2026). GS4 Student Scholars Symposium. 131.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/research_symposium/2026/2026/131
Unequal Protection: Race, Threat Perception, and Stand Your Ground in Georgia
Russell Union Room 2041
Stand Your Ground (SYG) statutes are framed as neutral expansions of self‑defense yet growing empirical and case-based evidence suggests they operate in racially disparate and unjust ways. This presentation uses the William “Marcus” Wilson case in Statesboro, Georgia, as a focal example to examine how SYG laws can fail to protect people of color even when they credibly claim self-defense. In June 2020, Wilson, a young Black man, fired at occupants of a pickup truck after alleging racist threats and aggressive driving. Wilson was seeking immunity under Georgia’s SYG statute, but the court denied his claim, and he was ultimately convicted of felony offenses and sentenced to prison.
Drawing on interdisciplinary scholarship and national homicide data, the presentation situates Wilson’s case within broader patterns that show SYG laws are associated with increased “justified” homicides and stark racial gaps in the use of deadly force that is deemed reasonable. Homicides involving White shooters and Black victims are several times more likely to be ruled justified than the reverse, raising serious concerns about embedded racial bias in the application of ostensibly race-neutral laws. Using legal records, media accounts, and existing quantitative studies, the researchers ask: (1) how race, perceived threat, and community narratives shaped interpretations of “reasonableness” in Wilson’s claim, and (2) what this reveals about structural inequities in SYG rulings.
The presentation concludes by outlining implications for reform and developing community-based advocacy strategies grounded in cases like Marcus Wilson’s to challenge the unequal distribution of self-defense rights.
