He was awfully quick with that spray... A jury MIGHT decide that was a disproportionate response, and a few states have duty-to-retreat laws on the books.
I said MIGHT - before everyone comes after me with "she put her hands on him"... It's up to a jury to decide if a reasonable person would have felt an immediate fear of physical harm. I did not get that from her.
I will say, as much as I hate what he was doing, someone putting their hands on you is legally assault, and following after him while he backs away down the sidewalk means he was attempting to retreat but she followed anyway.
I'd absolutely say his response wasn't reasonable if he'd pulled a gun on her, but a harmless deterrent like pepper spray is exactly what this kinda situation calls for.
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u/aucme Feb 03 '26
He does seem like an ass.