Jesus Gonzalez, WI Open Carry Activist, Sentenced to 20yrs in Shooting

It isn't out of the question for killers to call 911 and report incidents in the hopes of doing so will help make it look like they are the victims when they were not.
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I once got a good piece of self-defense from a former LEO and instructor: if you ever have to draw your gun, be the first one to call the police.

I once did, following a fender bender with an aggressive drunk. He threatened me (tire iron in hand) when I said I wanted to file a police report, then fled the scene when he learned I had a weapon. I phoned the police immediately and told them what happened. Good thing, too, since he called the following morning and claimed that he was sober, but that he'd left the scene of the accident because I was ranting and waving a gun around.

He attempted to use that defense at trial, and there was great hilarity.

The underlying lesson is that lethal force is a big deal, even when not deployed. You want to take every measure to make sure the police have a clear depiction of your side of the story. I'm not saying not to wait for a lawyer, but a proper statement should be given as soon as possible.

I can't see any reason for Gonzalez' lawyer to advise him to keep quiet straight through the entire trial unless there was some serious doubt as to his self-defense defense.

Not all gun owners are responsible people, and not all are good people. Sorry. It happens. Reading into the Gonzalez situation (and his prior history does suggest a confrontational streak), it's very possible he jumped the gun.
 
There is obviously more since Gonzalez decided not to testify. Whether or not more evidence would have helped him is uncertain but choosing not to provide it does seem strange.
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No, it is not strange at all if by testifying he is opened up to revealing aspects of the situation that would indicate his guilt. Admitting guilt of illegal acts is more likely to get you convicted than just letting the jury try to sort out the information and possibly decide you aren't guilty.

If on the stand, Gonzalez would have to explain why he was nowhere near his car that his lawyer said he had gone to move (was in the opposite direction from his vehicle) when he shot the two men he claimed to have been assaulted by, one of whom was in a vehicle and the other of whom was on foot. Note that Gonzalez said he shot out windows of a vehicle that drove by and never mentions shooting the guy who as on foot. There is a lot of rectification that needs to go on to make Gonzalez's story sound credible. Gonlzalez claimed in the 911 call that he was assaulted by the two men, but he apparently showed no injuries (not that you always will have them when assaulted, but confirmational evidence would have been nice) and apparently never pressed the police to charge the shootee's with assault.

In the words of Ricky Ricardo, "You gotta lotta 'splaining to do, Lucy" only Lucy (Jesus) didn't want to explain anything.
 
The so-called OC activists I've seen on YouTube are nuts

I am sure there are some rational reasonable people who beleive in OC and work diligently and effectively to further that goal. I'd like the option to OC. i'd also like to live in a cluture where people don't freak out if they see someone with a holstered gun on their hip.

I think in some cases there are some egotists that are out-of-touch with reality. They see themselves as heroes and crusaders, and their goal is to get their 15 minutes of YouTube fame. They love making YouTube videos of the incidents that they themselves instigate.

Worse yet are the trigger-happy Bernhard Goetz types who really want to shoot someone. I get the sense from some of the people who post some of these "What would you do?" scenarios on this very forum, that they are eager to shoot a "bad guy", be the hero, get to post about their ordeal on the gun forums, and tell all their friends and relatives.

Gonzalez probably had the best scenario to do that - two guys who had been drinking all night and were intoxicated, had criminal records.

You can chalk it up to him having a bad lawyer, but I think that what happened was that he gunned those men down, and there was enough evidence to indicate it.
 
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I think it's a pretty risky strategy to assert a self-defense claim and not testify. I've seen a couple of cases where charged defendants tried this and were unsuccessful. I don't think it matters how many times a judge instructs the jury not to hold the defendant's silence against him in a self-defense case. The defendant has to justify the killing and the jury wants to hear from him or her.
 
I don't know if he's any good or not, but his lawyer was a gun-rights attorney from Georgia, not some public defender.
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The docket shows Gonzalez's attorney to be Nelida Cortes, a U. of Wisconsin graduate who worked for for several years in the Public Defender's office in Milwaukee. It also looks like she is now a part of a private law firm, but I can't tell if that is in addition to her PD duties or not. According to the state bar, she has her own practice. http://www.wisbar.org/am/template.c.../lawyerdirectory/newresdetails.cfm&id=1022815

I don't see where she is a guns rights attorney from Georgia.
 
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