Last week, the Utah Supreme Court ruled that certain Wal-Mart employees who were fired for violating the company's "non-resistance" policy had grounds for a wrongful termination suit so as to preclude summary judgment in favor of the big-box retailer. Both the ABA Journal and the Wall St. Journal reported that the Utah court found that the employees had a right to self-defense under the both the state constitution and Utah's “Stand Your Ground” law. While the court acknowledged the importance of Wal-Mart‘s interest in regulating its workforce, it concluded that there was "a clear and substantial public policy in Utah favoring the right of self-defense” under certain circumstances, namely, when the employee is facing serious, imminent bodily harm by violent customers. The ruling sends the case back to federal court.
Generally, in deciding the merits of a motion for summary judgment, a court decides only whether an entry of judgment is warranted based on the undisputed, material facts before the court at that time. A denial only allow a contested issue to be resolved at trial. While a Utah decision is not binding on New Hampshire courts, it's possible that Wal-Mart may change its non-resistance policy across all its stores, including those in the Granite State.
The concept of stand-your-ground drew renewed national attention a few years ago when Florida teenager Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by George Zimmerman, who claimed self-defense and said he was being beaten by Martin. Variants of stand-your-ground now exist in around half of U.S. states. In 2006, the New Hampshire legislature voted to approve a stand-your-ground law, but then-governor John Lynch vetoed the bill. In 2011, New Hampshire enacted its current stand-your-ground law: RSA 627:4. As before, it became a "loaded issue." HB 135, a 2013 bill to repeal the act, was vigorously opposed: certain Tea party Republicans even wanted to press criminal charges against 189 state legislators who voted in favor of repeal. The attempted repeal ultimately failed.
Given that the Wal-Mart non-resistance policy required employees to withdraw from situations where a suspected shoplifter or a customer pulls a weapon, it will be interesting to see which self-defense tactics are permissible in a megastore already settling guns (at least up here in the Granite State). Significantly, New Hampshire's stand-your-ground law also grants immunity to anyone who injures bystanders while they're using deadly force as permitted by the law.
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