The Death Of Travyon Martin; George Zimmerman Arrested

[princessgrandma]

I'm going to take care of this myself',"

Uh oh. Isn't this the attitude that got him into this mess in the first place?

I'm not getting into some race discussion or argument or rant or whatever. All I'm saying is that it's sad. Parents lost a child. That's always sad. You're not supposed to bury your children.

That being said, there's something in this that kicked me right in the head. All this trademarking and stuff is just starting to sound a bit Cindy Anthony-ish, don't you think?

[Akelda]

That being said, there's something in this that kicked me right in the head. All this trademarking and stuff is just starting to sound a bit Cindy Anthony-ish, don't you think?

This might not be the same, but your comment reminded me of this... I haven't been following the case as much, but it did occur to me that the Skittles, Tea, and Hoodie stocks have probably rocketed through the roof..all because of this case. I hate how people take simple things like that and turn them into icons or whatever. A young man is dead, and the whole situation was fucked up to start with. To me, buying skittles and wearing hoodies and shit trivialize his death.

[Whisper]

Prosecutor poised for announcement in Zimmerman case

RNN) - Mere hours after the lawyers for admitted shooter George Zimmerman dropped him as a client, the special prosecutor announced she would make an announcement about the case within 72 hours.Angela Corey was appointed more than a month after Trayvon Martin, 17, was shot and killed by Zimmerman, a volunteer neighborhood watchman. Martin was unarmed the night of Feb. 26 when he was reported to emergency operators by Zimmerman as suspicious.
Zimmerman has said he shot Martin in self-defense after he was ambushed, punched in the nose, and had his head slammed into the concrete by the teen. An incident report from the night of the altercation says Zimmerman was bloody and his back was wet and covered with grass, indicating a struggle may have occurred.
Earlier Tuesday, Zimmerman's lawyers called a news conference to say they had lost touch with their client and were withdrawing their counsel.
"He has not returned phone calls or text messages or e-mails, which has led me to believe that I cannot go forward speaking [on his behalf]," Craig Sonner, one of Zimmerman's former attorneys, said before a crowd of journalists assembled for the news conference.

The last time they heard from him was Sunday. However Zimmerman has made contact with at least two people: Fox News host Sean Hannity and the prosecutors office handling the shooting.
"We were quite astonished at that," said Hal Uhrig, another former Zimmerman lawyer.
An attorney for Martin's parents, Benjamin Crump, told CNN they were shocked to hear the news.
"'Oh god, they don't know where he is,'" Crump said.
[...]
"Our fear is not so much about the money. We were initially concerned about the website that someone else had set this up and was taking advantage of the situation. Our concern runs deeper than that," Uhrig said. "This has been a terribly corrosive process."
CNN reporter Ashley Banfield said she was told by Zimmerman's lawyers that he never returned a signed letter affirming the attorneys were representing him.
"They've never been retained. They've never been paid," she said.
Uhrig told reporters that he and Sonner have not met Zimmerman face-to-face, which is not out of the norm in Florida, a state with a high number of tourists who might be in need of legal help.
"It was better for him to stay in hiding and stay safe," Sonner said. "Preferably, we'd meet face-to-face, but it's not absolutely necessary
[..]
Both lawyers indicated Tuesday they strongly believe in Zimmerman's innocence, as far as his claims that he acted in self-defense.
[...]

http://www.wtvm.com/story/17371121/z...awyers-bow-out

Lawyers for George Zimmerman announce they will no longer work as his counsel.

[Whisper]

Looks like shes jumping on the fact hes got no representation as of right now
He can get lawyer fast though

[62julietandvoid]

Fuck it. I thought Zimmerman was Hispanic. Not that it makes much difference. We'll still be cleaning this piss of the toilet seats and washing ya'll's shitty draws.

[Rockin Ma]

Uh oh. Isn't this the attitude that got him into this mess in the first place?

I'm not getting into some race discussion or argument or rant or whatever. All I'm saying is that it's sad. Parents lost a child. That's always sad. You're not supposed to bury your children.

That being said, there's something in this that kicked me right in the head. All this trademarking and stuff is just starting to sound a bit Cindy Anthony-ish, don't you think?

And likewise his web page for donations to live and get counsel.

[carolinablue]

This whole kerfuffle has turned into a travesty, and it makes me angry and sick. It's the second decade of the 21st century and the general public can still be whipped into a lynch-mob mentality by fame whores who are exploiting a tragedy in order to further their personal political agendas. We haven't learned a goddam thing from the past, not one. Some loudmouth so-called social activists (on both sides of the race issue) start tossing around emotionally laden words and making this solely a race issue. Those on Trevon's side and those defending Zimmerman are equally guilty.

I say to my black, white, asian, native...all of you: step down, brothers and sisters. Step down and let the machinery of justice take over. Let the heat and name-calling and speculation die down, don't fan the fires of racism, don't believe blindly in whatever you hear, patience, patience and restraint. I believe in our justice system, for all its flaws, it is still the best. Be role models of restraint, dignity and open-mindedness.

Sheesh. I think the real problem with the world is not sin, it's stupidity.

[Rockin Ma]

A decision on whether to charge Florida neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman with the shooting death of unarmed teen Trayvon Martin has been made, sources told ABC News.

The decision by Florida special prosecutor Angela Corey is expected to be announced at a 6 p.m. news conference in Jacksonville, Fla.

The prosecutor's ruling is certain to provoke controversy in Sanford, Fla., where shooting took place and across the country.

Zimmerman, 28, a white Hispanic neighborhood watch captain, shot and killed Martin, who was 17 and black, on Feb. 26 after following the teenager for several minutes.

The special prosecutor's ruling came one day after Zimmerman's legal team quit because they had lost contact with him, and suggested that the pressure of the case had "pushed him over the edge."

His lawyers said that Zimmerman was no longer in Florida and ABC News has learned that prosecutors do not know his exact location.

Earlier this week, Sanford Mayor Jeff Triplett said his city has become a "kindling box" due to the high emotions surrounding the case, and that he would "plan for the worst and hope for the best."




The case gained national prominence with rallies across the country demanding that Zimmerman be arrested and charged with murder. Zimmerman and his supporters say that the shooting had nothing to do with race and that he shot Martin in self-defense.

The city of Sanford has been getting increasingly tense as the decision neared. Six shots were fired into an empty police cruiser earlier this week in the neighborhood where Martin was killed.

The New Black Panther Party offered a $10,000 bounty for Zimmerman and his lawyers said Zimmerman had received death threats.

The New Socialist Movement, a white supremacy group, said they were patrol Sanford to protect whites and racists comments about the shooting have sprung up on social media sites.

Debate over the shooting became so widespread that even President Obama commented, saying if he had a son he would have looked like Trayvon Martin.

On his website, Zimmerman released a statement about the shooting this week, calling the incident a "life-altering event."

"As a result of the incident and subsequent media coverage, I have been forced to leave my home, my school, my employer, my family and ultimately my entire life," he wrote.

In a written statement to police on the night of the shooting, Zimmerman said that he'd called 911 to report a suspicious man and that as he returned to his car, Martin attacked him. Zimmerman said that Martin punched him in the nose and knocked him down, slammed his head on the ground and tried to take his gun.

The police report noted that Zimmerman was bleeding from the back of the head and nose. His lawyer said later that Zimmerman suffered a broken nose.

After Zimmerman received medical attention, it was decided that he was in good enough condition to travel in a police cruiser to the Sanford police station for questioning. He was not arrested.

The U.S. Justice Department is also carrying out an investigation into the shooting.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/george-zimm...9#.T4XMVVG1Cuk

[Whisper]

Reports: Zimmerman To Be Charged
http://www.wtae.com/r/30871643/detail.html

[Nell]

BREAKING: Official tells AP: Trayvon Martin's killer to be charged with 2nd-degree murder; is in custody. -RAS

https://twitter.com/#!/AP/status/190190866151899137

[Dakota Valkyrie]

Florida law on Second Degree Murder:

(2) The unlawful killing of a human being, when perpetrated by any act imminently dangerous to another and evincing a depraved mind regardless of human life, although without any premeditated design to effect the death of any particular individual, is murder in the second degree and constitutes a felony of the first degree, punishable by imprisonment for a term of years not exceeding life or as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/...s/0782.04.html

Minimum sentence if found guilty appears to be a prison sentence of 16¾ years with up to a life sentence possible.

From some Florida lawyer's website:

Defenses to Second Degree Murder

In addition to the pretrial defenses and trial defenses that can be raised in any criminal case, specific defenses to the crime of Second Degree Murder are:

Excusable Homicide
The killing of a human being is excusable, and therefore lawful, under any one of the following three circumstances:

When the killing is committed by accident and misfortune in doing any lawful act by lawful means with usual ordinary caution and without any unlawful intent, or
When the killing occurs by accident and misfortune in the heat of passion, upon any sudden and sufficient provocation, or
When the killing is committed by accident and misfortune resulting from a sudden combat, if a dangerous weapon is not used and the killing is not done in a cruel or unusual manner.

Justifiable Homicide
The killing of a human being is justifiable homicide and lawful if done while resisting an attempt by someone to kill you or to commit a felony against you.

Self Defense
Also known as the justified use of deadly force, self defense is a defense to the crime of Second Degree Murder.

http://www.richardhornsby.com/crimes....html#Defenses

[CelticMyth]

George Zimmerman is already in police custody. He turned himself in. The Special Prosecutor just officially announced that he has been charged with Murder in the 2nd degree.

Well now at least we will have a trial and then the jury will decide. Who knows how that will turn out? It is Florida that let Casey Anthony go pretty much scott free so Florida juries are kind of a wild card. LOL.

What's funny is that some are saying that Sean Hannity could possibly be called as a witness because of the phone conversation he had with George Zimmerman a couple of days ago.

[princessgrandma]

He's in custody already? Wow. Probably best for his own safety, I guess, to get him in custody before it's even known what the charges were even going to be. I'm a bit surprised at 2nd degree murder, though. I figured it would be manslaughter.

Maybe he kinda jumped the gun on dropping his attorneys, or losing touch with them so they dropped him. Let the wheels of justice turn. My whole way of thinking is that, if he's guilty, then let him pay the consequences. If he isn't, the evidence will show that and it will be done with. He deserves his day in court, the same as anyone else in the system.

I just think it's sad that people had to start picking apart all of Trayvon Martin's posts on social media and so forth, picking out the stuff made him look like some kind of hooligan before all the details are even known, and reprinting it all in blogs and so forth. That's no way to get justice for Zimmerman, just the same as trashing Zimmerman isn't going to bring Trayvon Martin back.

[Akelda]

I just think it's sad that people had to start picking apart all of Trayvon Martin's posts on social media and so forth, picking out the stuff made him look like some kind of hooligan before all the details are even known, and reprinting it all in blogs and so forth. That's no way to get justice for Zimmerman, just the same as trashing Zimmerman isn't going to bring Trayvon Martin back.

Yeah!, also when they mentioned that Trayvon had been suspended for having pot at school..That has absolutely nothing to do with what happened. The media twist everything,..get people fired up over shit, and most definitely there are those who use the situation to further their own agendas. I soooo hope Florida doesn't screw it up like they did Casey's trial. After that, I won't be surprised at anything coming out of Florida.

[Whisper]

Zimmerman attorney no stranger to high-profile cases, TV cameras

(CNN) -- The attorney representing George Zimmerman, who is charged with killing an unarmed, black teen, is no stranger to high-profile cases and TV cameras.

Mark O'Mara gained notoriety in Florida for defending a man who killed a woman during a high-speed chase and then later as a legal commentator during the Casey Anthony murder trial.

"Mark knows how to handle the media. But he's also not a media hog," said CNN legal analyst Mark Najame, who has gone up against O'Mara in the courtroom. "He's going to go out and say and do what's appropriate on behalf of his client."

Blog: Updates on charges and arrest as they unfolded

O'Mara is expected to make his first court appearance Thursday with Zimmerman, who faces a second-degree murder charge in the February 26 shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in the suburban Orlando community of Sanford.
[..]

http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/12/justic...html?hpt=ju_c2

[Whisper]

George Zimmerman is facing a judge on second-degree murder charges for shooting Trayvon Martin

[Apostle of Chaos]

You know, I think this case has been blown way out of proportion.

[Rydo Larsson]

Fuck you georgie boy own fucking fault ImO

[Whisper]

Florida investigators say in an affidavit that George Zimmerman profiled, confronted, then fatally shot Trayvon Martin

http://m.cnn.com/primary/Home?cookieFlag=COOKIE_SET

[princessgrandma]

Yeah!, also when they mentioned that Trayvon had been suspended for having pot at school..That has absolutely nothing to do with what happened. The media twist everything,..get people fired up over shit, and most definitely there are those who use the situation to further their own agendas. I soooo hope Florida doesn't screw it up like they did Casey's trial. After that, I won't be surprised at anything coming out of Florida.

You know, all I can think about is the fact that Trayvon Martin's last minutes on earth were full of fear and confusion. He wasn't doing anything. He was coming back from the store carrying a bag of Skittles and a can of iced tea, and he was being followed by someone he didn't know. I have tried to see things from both sides but this is what sorta tipped the scales for me. I guarantee that George Zimmerman was not scared. Nor did he really fear for his life. He was carrying a gun. It all happened so quickly, he obviously took the kid down and shot him in a short amount of time. I've heard on the news that two minutes after the 911 call where the operator tells him not to follow the man, Trayvon was dead on the ground and Zimmerman was yelling for someone to call an ambulance, after one of the residents stepped out and asked what was going on out there, after hearing the gun shot.

I have heard from the online armchair lawyers that Zimmerman will be acquitted. I'm not so sure about that. No matter how much the bloggers and so forth tried to trash Trayvon Martin's rep online by picking and choosing stuff from things like his Twitter and his FB page, at the end of the day, what's going to come out of all this is simply this. A child, 17 year old minor, was shot and killed by an adult man who, not being a cop, did NOT have a badge or the right to pursue Trayvon Martin, and should have listened when the operator told him not to follow. I believe that Zimmerman's setting out to follow was the catalyst for the whole thing. If I were scared, I'd try to get away too, and I'd be afraid if some unknown person were following me. Did Zimmerman verbally identify himself to Martin before they got physical? Or did he simply overtake him and attempt to stop him from running away so the cops could check him out? Or did he just jump the kid without saying anything, shooting him as his solution to the "assholes" getting away all the time?

I just don't think Zimmerman is going to come out of this lily white and innocent. The results of the autopsy have not been released. That might be what does it right there. If Martin were shot in the back at point-blank range, Zimmerman can kiss his ass good-bye, I'm afraid. There is a reason the special prosecutor was willing to prosecute, and I believe there is a reason that the charge went to 2nd degree murder as opposed to manslaughter. I think what it's going to come down to is that Zimmerman was tired of the "assholes" getting away and he was going to stop that kid, no matter what. What's more, I don't think he knew that it even WAS a kid until he had him down, or even after he shot him.

I want to see justice done, and I try very hard to believe in our justice system, but this is FLORIDUH, after all. The state that let Casey Anthony go free. Anything could happen.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

I have heard from the online armchair lawyers that Zimmerman will be acquitted. I'm not so sure about that.

I would tend to agree with you except for one little fact... it's FLORIDA.

In the early days of this case, another case there was before a judge. Greyston Garcia CHASED a man down and STABBED him to death. It was caught on video. He claimed "self defense" under Florida's "Stand Your Ground". Charges were dismissed.

Greyston Garcia, 25, "was well within his rights" when he chased a man accused of stealing his car radio and stabbed the man to death, the judge ruled. The Miami policeman who supervised the case was stunned.

"How can it be Stand Your Ground?" the officer said to The Miami Herald. "It's on [surveillance] video! You can see him stabbing the victim."
[...]

Garcia chased the alleged car-radio thief -- Pedro Roteta, 26 -- for more than a block, the Herald reports. Roteta, carrying a four-pound bag of car radios, swung the bag at Garcia's head; Garcia blocked the bag with one hand and stabbed Roteta in the chest.

Roteta's swinging of the bag could have caused serious bodily injury or death, and placed Garcia in fear for his life, the judge wrote.

Still, after the fatal stabbing, Garcia did not call 911. Instead, he hid the knife and sold two of Roteta's car radios, then initially denied the killing when interviewed by police. None of those facts played into the judge's decision.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...95476820120329

The way they are applying that law there, it seems like any time you're on the losing end of a fight, you can kill the other person.

[malq]

I would tend to agree with you except for one little fact... it's FLORIDA.

In the early days of this case, another case there was before a judge. Greyston Garcia CHASED a man down and STABBED him to death. It was caught on video. He claimed "self defense" under Florida's "Stand Your Ground". Charges were dismissed.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...95476820120329

The way they are applying that law there, it seems like any time you're on the losing end of a fight, you can kill the other person.

The burden of proof is on the prosecution to PROVE it was not self defense. From everything I have seen, that is impossible.
The prosecutor is forced to try this case when there isn't a chance in hell of conviction. It is a lynching and mob mentality in it's highest form.

[Valasca]

Oh, mother night. Last thing we need is Bill Cosby putting in his 2 cents.

Candy Crowley: So you saw more a gun issue than a race issue?

Cosby: How are you going to solve a race issue when it becomes he said, she said or he said, he said? And the other question is, what is solved by saying he's a racist that's why he shot the boy? What solves that? This. [Makes gun symbol with hand] And what is he doing with it? And who taught him and told him how to behave with this? It doesn't make any difference if he's a racist or not racist. If he's scared to death and not a racist, it's still a confrontational provoking of something.

I don't know what happened, but I know that this -- I used to have a gun. The policeman who okayed it said to me, "Mr. Cosby, when you pull this trigger, you can't call it back." And so I had the gun in my pocket. And the reason why I had it was to protect my family. But I also knew that anything that went on outside--and it appeared to be something that wasn't on the OK, I went out with my gun. And the thought was if this person is not right or if that doesn't move when I say move, I'm going to show that I have a gun.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/cutline/...184628189.html

[Dakota Valkyrie]

Oh, mother night. Last thing we need is Bill Cosby putting in his 2 cents.

I see no reason most celebrities have weighed in but HUNDREDS of them have.

[Whisper]

I see no reason most celebrities have weighed in but HUNDREDS of them have.

Cosby will disappear as soon as a 18yo girl he sent to university and had an affair with shows up in pic for money
He will hide for another 10 years then try it again

[Valasca]

I see no reason most celebrities have weighed in but HUNDREDS of them have.

I MEAN... Cosby's son was shot. He's going to have... more of an emotional connection to this case. He CANNOT be biased here.

[malq]

Here's a look at how the two defenses could apply in the circumstances, as related by Zimmerman and media reports so far. Right now there are no "facts" in this case, except that Zimmerman made a 911 call and that he shot Trayvon Martin. The chart may show that "stand your ground" may not provide that much more as a straightforward self-defense claim.

+Unfortunately the format won't let me post it correctly here. But this is a good flowchart of what is relevant to the stand your ground vs the self defense.

It's completely non bias and objective so it is safe for all. I did form an opinion how this will turn out based on this truthtable.
I am curious what you guys think.
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/trending...043707411.html

[Valasca]

I can't even begin to tell you how people down here have said in the past, "Well, I'll shoot him and drag him into my house!"
Like crime scene investigators will be too stupid to figure out why the long blood line is on the ground.

[biteme]

I can't even begin to tell you how people down here have said in the past, "Well, I'll shoot him and drag him into my house!"
Like crime scene investigators will be too stupid to figure out why the long blood line is on the ground.

Florida has stand your ground
Kalifornia has retreat until you can't retreat farther and let the criminal do as he pleases, he has rights, homeowners don't
and if he hurts himself beating on you in your unsafe home, he can and will sue
You better hope he doesn't fall through an unsafe skylight breaking in or he'll own your ass

[Valasca]

Yeah, I just returned to Florida from California. On purpose.