Gibbs v. Florida
Florida District Court of Appeal
789 So.2d 443 (2001)
- Written by Carolyn Strutton, JD
Facts
Joelle Gibbs (defendant) said “Good morning. How are you?” to Julia Osmun and the man Osmun was sitting with on a bench. Gibbs was a 40-year-old Black woman. Osmun was White, was 65 years old, and suffered from obesity, cardiac disease, and other chronic conditions. Neither Osmun nor the man she was with replied to Gibbs. When Gibbs asked them why they hadn’t answered her, Osmun said, “Get away from here you dirty [n-word], you don’t belong here.” Gibbs responded to Osmun with a racial slur and an obscene gesture. Osmun got up and moved toward Gibbs, swinging at her. Gibbs stepped back and then pushed Osmun. Osmun staggered and fell down, and she died shortly after of a heart attack. Gibbs was charged with second-degree murder and was found guilty of the lesser included offense of culpable negligence with injury. Gibbs appealed, alleging that the court’s instruction to the jury had been insufficient on the issue of self-defense.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Taylor, J.)
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