@awesam: The problem with getting out of the car is that he put himself in a situation where he had to use his firearm regardless of who was in the right or in the wrong. The duty of a neighborhood watchman is only to observe and report - the police was already on the way, the kid was running away. This is the same reason as to why vigilantism is illegal - when untrained people wield weapons in the name of justice people get fatally wounded in situations that could have been avoided.
By stepping out of his vehicle he was already exposing his life, as he already thought that the kid was armed. Claiming self-defense in a situation where you could have driven away, or simply stay put, is just a bit too much. It wouldn't have said much about his character, but it also wouldn't have resulted in the death of someone.
The Stand Your Ground law is for unavoidable situations where you believe your life to be in danger and there is just not other way to survive. As this was an avoidable situation, I don't see this law being affected. I think the Marissa Alexander case is a lot more relevant to the "stand your ground" situation, and she only fired a warning shot.
But yeah... to recap, chasing after someone you think might be armed, getting attacked and then shooting the person at point blank range is hardly self defense.
It's a complicated case and it will ultimately be unfair no matter what happens. George Zimmerman didn't seem to be on a racial crusade, and it seemed like he was trying to do what he thought was right. Doing what you think is the right thing can turn ugly rather quickly though.
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