Last summer, veteran and Philadelphia-area business owner Maurice Byrd fatally shot his neighbor Stephen Strassburg, who hurled racial slurs at Byrd while moving aggressively toward him. This was apparently not the first time. According to Byrd and several neighbors, Strassburg, who was white, had harassed Byrd for years. The aggression had led Byrd to call the police on his neighbor five times. In that final confrontation, Strassburg threw a flurry of punches and grabbed Byrd’s shirt. Byrd drew his weapon, for which he had a license, “hoping he was going to be deterred,” he told The Trace’s Mensah M. Dean.
Strassburg was not, Byrd said, and instead lunged for the gun. Byrd, who was on the phone with 911, thought he was acting in self-defense when the gun fired.
When Byrd was arrested, he gave a statement recounting the event, which led authorities to charge him with first-degree murder. His lawyers believe that same statement, however, is what led a jury to acquit him of all charges last month. In between those events, he spent 10 months in jail.
Byrd is one of few Black defendants who have been found not guilty for shooting a white person in the name of self-defense, according to Urban Institute researchers. In the nation’s criminal justice system, data shows that Black people who assert self-defense as a justification for committing violence are less successful at getting acquitted than white people. Other studies by the Duke Center for Firearms Law and the American Bar Association have found racial disparities in self-defense cases emerging at higher rates in states that have adopted “stand your ground” laws. Pennsylvania has such a law.
Byrd’s case illustrates the legal gray areas in self-defense and “stand your ground” cases: Where is the line between self-defense and homicide? And how do you decide when — and to whom — those rules apply?
Read more about Byrd’s acquittal.
From The Trace
Most Black People Who Shoot White People and Claim Self-Defense Are Convicted. Maurice Byrd Is an Exception: The Army veteran and business owner spent nine months in jail before a jury cleared him of first-degree murder and lesser charges.
Another ATF Leadership Shakeup, an Employee Exodus, and Low Morale: Current and former agency officials told The Trace that the appointment of two acting directors in as many months has roiled staff.
Supreme Court Won’t Take Up Age Restrictions for Guns — for Now: The court’s refusal of a Minnesota case effectively requires the state to start accepting applications from young adults to carry concealed guns.
In Cleveland, Shootings Drop but Kids Are at Higher Risk: Activists are scrambling for solutions amid a steady increase in gun violence among young people.
Are You a Gun Owner in Chicago or Cook County? The Trace Wants to Hear From You: We’re a newsroom dedicated to covering guns in America. With your help, we can tell a more complete story.
Announcements
The Trace has been honored with nominations for several prestigious awards.
- “Long Shadow: In Guns We Trust” — the podcast series hosted by Pulitzer-finalist Garrett Graff was produced by Long Lead and Campside Media, and reported in collaboration with The Trace — has been nominated for a Peabody Award in the category of public service.
- Our investigation “Shot by a Civilian Wielding a Police Gun” produced in partnership with Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting and CBS News and Stations, is a finalist for the Investigative Reporters and Editors’ Freedom of Information Award.
- And reporter Chip Brownlee is a finalist for the 2025 Livingston Awards, in the category of excellence in national reporting, for his series “The Bruen Era.” The Livingston Awards recognize exceptional work by young journalists.
What We’re Reading
Families of Uvalde school shooting victims reach settlement with the city: City Council members in Uvalde, Texas, voted unanimously Tuesday to approve a settlement with families of the Robb Elementary School shooting victims. The terms of the agreement are undisclosed. [NBC]
He murdered their loved ones. Their response: Forgiveness — and a hug: From El Paso to Charleston, the families of marginalized victims extending forgiveness to perpetrators of hate crimes is both powerful and polarizing. [The Washington Post]
Highland Park shooter gets life in prison: Judge Victoria Rossetti told a courtroom full of survivors of the 2022 attack that the killer would serve seven life sentences, one after another. [The Chicago Sun-Times]
Crime Is Likely Down An Enormous Amount So Far In 2025: Sifting through the evidence early in the year [Jeff Asher]
DOJ cancels grants for gun-violence and addiction prevention, victim advocacy: In an email to staff, the head of the Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs said the canceled grants did not align with Trump administration priorities. [The Washington Post]
Students from 2 Florida shootings demand the governor reject a law to lower the gun purchasing age: Students who survived the Florida State University shooting and Parkland massacre sent a letter demanding Governor Ron DeSantis to stop efforts to lower the age requirement to purchase a firearm. [Associated Press]
In Memoriam
Imani Naim, 29, was known as the life of the party and a kind mother who dedicated her life to her children. She was shot and killed last Friday while she was dropping her 8-year-old nephew off at a party in West Philadelphia. Naim’s main focus in life was her children, her mother told NBC10: “She loved her children. She took good care of them. She really did.” Naim leaves behind four children, including a 5-month-old son.
Spotlight on Solutions
Health care organizations are partnering with the Ad Council for a new national initiative, Agree to Agree, that uses marketing and branding to address youth gun violence in America. The campaign will focus on suicides and unintentional shootings just as much as intentional shootings, an approach its backers intend to be apolitical. Agree to Agree will also provide resources for gun violence prevention in the communities around participating health care organizations.
New to the initiative is OhioHealth. One of OhioHealth’s first programs will be creating a lock box giveaway at Grant Medical Center in Columbus in June. Learn more about Agree to Agree.
Pull Quote
“Young people who are already on the cusp of being involved in violence are living in a system that hasn’t been set up for them to succeed.”
— Sonya Pryor-Jones, who runs the Office of Prevention, Intervention and Opportunity for Youth and Young Adults in the Mayor’s Office in Cleveland, to The Trace
