Elizabeth Banks Speaks Out On Twitter After 'Stand Your Ground' Bill Passes In Ohio House
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Actress Elizabeth Banks is speaking out in regards to a Stand Your Ground bill that passed the Ohio House on Thursday.
According to Cleveland.com, the bill now must pass the Senate before heading to the desk of Governor Mike DeWine. If the bill were to pass and be signed into law, Ohio would become the 36th state that would no longer require a 'duty to retreat' before using force.
Following the passing of the bill, Elizabeth Banks took to Twitter with threaded commentary on the subject. She referenced a time when she would play hide-and-seek in neighbors' yards with friends a child. One evening, a resident who mistook the children for intruders used a bow and arrow to try and scare them away. Fortunately, no one was hurt, Banks said, but the neighbor didn't yell out any warnings beforehand and she fears a similar situation could lead to a much worse outcome in this age.
"If I'd been shot and killed playing hide and seek would that new neighbor have been able to just shrug his shoulders while living across the street from my grieving parents? With laws like this, probably yes," she writes.
Stand Your Ground is BS. We used to play hide and seek all over the neighborhood on summer nights. Intent was to play. We were kids but some of my cousins were big guys /1 https://t.co/zD3hOG4Tgt
— Elizabeth Banks (@ElizabethBanks) December 18, 2020
Also sometimes our dog got loose. We would go into yards looking for her. All I can think about when people pretend Stand Your Ground is about anything other than permission to kill people are those moments when I myself stepped onto a neighbor's property /5
— Elizabeth Banks (@ElizabethBanks) December 18, 2020
If I'd been shot and killed playing hide and seek, would that new neighbor have been able to just shrug his shoulders while living across the street from my grieving parents? With laws like this, probably yes. /7
— Elizabeth Banks (@ElizabethBanks) December 18, 2020
Her final commentary ended the thread, saying:
"I don't want to live in a world where we fear our neighbors so much that we can't freely lose a ball/dog/frisbee or cut through somebody's yard to avoid harassment - all things I have done. What yards did you wander into and why?"
It's unclear when the Ohio Senate will vote on the bill.