Now what will happen?
George Zimmerman found NOT GUILTY
- Thread starter Chicknladee
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oh ****! I'm not far from that courthouse!
Take GOOD care! and maybe keep the lights out for a couple days...
SANFORD, FL (RNN) – George Zimmerman has been found not guilty in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.
The jury of six women deliberated for more than 16 hours in the last two days, before coming to a decision.
Martin's parents were not present in the court room, when the verdict was announced.
Family and friends embraced Zimmerman and his attorneys, after the verdict was read.
"To the living we owe respect, to the dead we owe the truth. We believe that we brought out the truth in the case of Trayvon Martin," said Florida State Attorney Angela Corey.
Judge Debra Nelson allowed the jury to consider manslaughter, but not third-degree murder in George Zimmerman's second-degree murder charge.
The shooting
On the evening of Feb. 26, 2012, 28-year-old George Zimmerman shot and killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in a Sanford, FL, gated community.
Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch captain, spotted Martin walking in the neighborhood and called a nonemergency police number to report what he said was a suspicious person in his neighborhood.
In Zimmerman's call, he stated that was following Martin. The dispatcher told him, "We don't need you to do that." Zimmerman continued to pursue Martin and the two had an altercation during which Martin was shot and killed by a single gunshot to his chest.
Police reports from that night show that Martin was unarmed, carrying only a bag of candy, a can of iced tea and a small amount of cash.
Zimmerman was not initially charged with a crime in the shooting incident. According to transcripts from Zimmerman's bond hearing, he was initially interviewed by the Sanford Police within an hour and a half of the shooting, and authorities could find no evidence to contradict Zimmerman's claim of self-defense.
Zimmerman's arrest
After public outcry and pressure from Martin's family and the NAACP, the U.S. Justice Department launched an investigation into the shooting on March 19. Florida Governor Rick Scott appointed State Attorney Angela Corey to investigate.
Corey charged Zimmerman with second-degree murder on April 11, 2012, and turned himself in to authorities the same day.
According to CNN, an affidavit of probable cause in Florida's case against Zimmerman says he profiled Martin and disregarded the dispatcher's request that he wait for the police to arrive at the scene.
At a bond hearing on April 20, 2012, Zimmerman was released on bail. On April 27, Zimmerman admitted that approximately $150,000 had been raised for his defense. Prosecutors asked the court to readdress Zimmerman's bail on the basis he had knowingly misled the court.
Zimmerman's bond was revoked on June 1, 2012, and he was put in jail two days later because he and his family knowingly lied about how much money he had access to. On July 5, Judge Kenneth Lester Jr. granted Zimmerman bail and set Zimmerman's bond for $1 million, under several conditions including electronic monitoring and a curfew.
Judge Lester granted bond because Zimmerman didn't commit any crimes while previously on bail and because he believed that Zimmerman didn't pose a threat to the community.
The trial
Jury selection for the trial began on June 10, 2013, and was completed on June 20 when six jurors and four alternates were selected.
The trial began on June 25 with the prosecution's opening statements that used the same language Zimmerman used when he was talking the police dispatcher just before his confrontation with Martin. The prosecution also claimed that Zimmerman, frustrated by crime in his neighborhood, shot Martin simply because he wanted to.
The defense's opening statement began with a knock-knock joke intended to show how difficult it was to select a jury in a case that has nationwide attention.
"Knock. Knock," said defense attorney Don West.
"Who is there?"
"George Zimmerman."
"George Zimmerman who?"
"All right, good. You're on the jury."
West went on to state that "there are no monsters" in the case and asserted that Zimmerman only shot Martin because he was being brutally attacked.
The prosecution
The prosecution's witnesses included members of the Sanford Police Department, a Sanford Fire Department EMT, a police dispatcher, a neighborhood watch coordinator and neighbors who had witnessed the shooting.
Over the course of the trial, the neighbors' testimony served to help Zimmerman's self-defense claim. Legal analysts noted that the prosecution was struggling to meet the burden of proof for the second-degree murder charge.
Rachel Jeantel, a friend of Trayvon Martin, was initially expected to be a star witness for the prosecution. Jeantel was on the phone with Martin on the night of the shooting, talking to him just before the confrontation.
The prosecution also called in Hirotaka Nakasone, a voice-analysis expert, who testified that the recording of the screams on the 911 call were of poor quality and didn't provide enough quality audio to be properly analyzed.
The state rested its case against Zimmerman on Friday, July 5, 2013.
The defense tried to have the case thrown out after the state rested, claiming that the state failed to meet its burden to proceed. Nelson denied the motion.
The defense
The Defense began presenting its case on July 8, 2013
The first witness called by the defense was Gladys Zimmerman, George's mother, who testified that it was her son heard screaming on the 911 recording. Other relatives and friends of Zimmerman who were called to testify confirmed that they believed they heard George Zimmerman's voice on the 911 recording.
Another neighbor, Olivia Bertalan took the stand to describe how she spoke with George Zimmerman after she was the victim of a home invasion that happened before the incident with Martin. She described him as being helpful to her in the aftermath of the break-in.
Adam Pollock, the owner of a kickboxing gym that George Zimmerman had attended, testified that Zimmerman was overweight and not particularly athletic or strong.
The defense brought in Dr. Vincent DiMaio, a forensic pathologist and gunshot-wound expert. He testified that the gunshot wound Martin received was consistent with George Zimmerman's assertion that Martin was on top of him. He also noted that George Zimmerman's head injuries were consistent with his story of having his head banged on a sidewalk.
During cross examination, he said that the evidence is also consistent with Martin pulling away from George Zimmerman.
Dennis Root, a former law enforcement officer and trainer, testified that George Zimmerman's injuries were "consistent with a fight, a physical fistfight."
The defense's last witness was Zimmerman's father, Robert Zimmerman Sr., who briefly testified that he was certain he heard his son's voice on the 911 recording.
George Zimmerman chose not to testify in his own defense. During the course of the trial jurors saw videos in which Zimmerman told his story to investigators.
The defense rested its case on July 10, 2013.
Closing arguments
The prosecution began its closing arguments on July 11, 2013.
State Attorney Bernie De La Rionda's closing arguments reiterated that Trayvon Martin died through no fault of his own, because Zimmerman had essentially profiled Martin and took matters into his own hands. He also called Zimmerman a liar.
The defense began its closing arguments on July 12, 2013.
During Mark O'Mara's closing arguments, he asked the jury to use their common sense and stick with facts while deliberating. He used a chunk of concrete to impress upon the jury that the sidewalk was Martin's weapon.
John Guy gave the state's rebuttal, reminding the jury that if Zimmerman had simply stayed in his car that night, and waited on the police, no one would be there in the courtroom.
The jury deliberates
Judge Debra Nelson gave the jury extensive instructions and the jury began its deliberations on Friday, shortly after the state presented its rebuttal.
The jury deliberated for approximately two hours before asking the judge for a comprehensive list of the evidence presented at the trial.
The jury of six women deliberated for more than 16 hours in the last two days, before coming to a decision.
Martin's parents were not present in the court room, when the verdict was announced.
Family and friends embraced Zimmerman and his attorneys, after the verdict was read.
"To the living we owe respect, to the dead we owe the truth. We believe that we brought out the truth in the case of Trayvon Martin," said Florida State Attorney Angela Corey.
Judge Debra Nelson allowed the jury to consider manslaughter, but not third-degree murder in George Zimmerman's second-degree murder charge.
The shooting
On the evening of Feb. 26, 2012, 28-year-old George Zimmerman shot and killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in a Sanford, FL, gated community.
Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch captain, spotted Martin walking in the neighborhood and called a nonemergency police number to report what he said was a suspicious person in his neighborhood.
In Zimmerman's call, he stated that was following Martin. The dispatcher told him, "We don't need you to do that." Zimmerman continued to pursue Martin and the two had an altercation during which Martin was shot and killed by a single gunshot to his chest.
Police reports from that night show that Martin was unarmed, carrying only a bag of candy, a can of iced tea and a small amount of cash.
Zimmerman was not initially charged with a crime in the shooting incident. According to transcripts from Zimmerman's bond hearing, he was initially interviewed by the Sanford Police within an hour and a half of the shooting, and authorities could find no evidence to contradict Zimmerman's claim of self-defense.
Zimmerman's arrest
After public outcry and pressure from Martin's family and the NAACP, the U.S. Justice Department launched an investigation into the shooting on March 19. Florida Governor Rick Scott appointed State Attorney Angela Corey to investigate.
Corey charged Zimmerman with second-degree murder on April 11, 2012, and turned himself in to authorities the same day.
According to CNN, an affidavit of probable cause in Florida's case against Zimmerman says he profiled Martin and disregarded the dispatcher's request that he wait for the police to arrive at the scene.
At a bond hearing on April 20, 2012, Zimmerman was released on bail. On April 27, Zimmerman admitted that approximately $150,000 had been raised for his defense. Prosecutors asked the court to readdress Zimmerman's bail on the basis he had knowingly misled the court.
Zimmerman's bond was revoked on June 1, 2012, and he was put in jail two days later because he and his family knowingly lied about how much money he had access to. On July 5, Judge Kenneth Lester Jr. granted Zimmerman bail and set Zimmerman's bond for $1 million, under several conditions including electronic monitoring and a curfew.
Judge Lester granted bond because Zimmerman didn't commit any crimes while previously on bail and because he believed that Zimmerman didn't pose a threat to the community.
The trial
Jury selection for the trial began on June 10, 2013, and was completed on June 20 when six jurors and four alternates were selected.
The trial began on June 25 with the prosecution's opening statements that used the same language Zimmerman used when he was talking the police dispatcher just before his confrontation with Martin. The prosecution also claimed that Zimmerman, frustrated by crime in his neighborhood, shot Martin simply because he wanted to.
The defense's opening statement began with a knock-knock joke intended to show how difficult it was to select a jury in a case that has nationwide attention.
"Knock. Knock," said defense attorney Don West.
"Who is there?"
"George Zimmerman."
"George Zimmerman who?"
"All right, good. You're on the jury."
West went on to state that "there are no monsters" in the case and asserted that Zimmerman only shot Martin because he was being brutally attacked.
The prosecution
The prosecution's witnesses included members of the Sanford Police Department, a Sanford Fire Department EMT, a police dispatcher, a neighborhood watch coordinator and neighbors who had witnessed the shooting.
Over the course of the trial, the neighbors' testimony served to help Zimmerman's self-defense claim. Legal analysts noted that the prosecution was struggling to meet the burden of proof for the second-degree murder charge.
Rachel Jeantel, a friend of Trayvon Martin, was initially expected to be a star witness for the prosecution. Jeantel was on the phone with Martin on the night of the shooting, talking to him just before the confrontation.
The prosecution also called in Hirotaka Nakasone, a voice-analysis expert, who testified that the recording of the screams on the 911 call were of poor quality and didn't provide enough quality audio to be properly analyzed.
The state rested its case against Zimmerman on Friday, July 5, 2013.
The defense tried to have the case thrown out after the state rested, claiming that the state failed to meet its burden to proceed. Nelson denied the motion.
The defense
The Defense began presenting its case on July 8, 2013
The first witness called by the defense was Gladys Zimmerman, George's mother, who testified that it was her son heard screaming on the 911 recording. Other relatives and friends of Zimmerman who were called to testify confirmed that they believed they heard George Zimmerman's voice on the 911 recording.
Another neighbor, Olivia Bertalan took the stand to describe how she spoke with George Zimmerman after she was the victim of a home invasion that happened before the incident with Martin. She described him as being helpful to her in the aftermath of the break-in.
Adam Pollock, the owner of a kickboxing gym that George Zimmerman had attended, testified that Zimmerman was overweight and not particularly athletic or strong.
The defense brought in Dr. Vincent DiMaio, a forensic pathologist and gunshot-wound expert. He testified that the gunshot wound Martin received was consistent with George Zimmerman's assertion that Martin was on top of him. He also noted that George Zimmerman's head injuries were consistent with his story of having his head banged on a sidewalk.
During cross examination, he said that the evidence is also consistent with Martin pulling away from George Zimmerman.
Dennis Root, a former law enforcement officer and trainer, testified that George Zimmerman's injuries were "consistent with a fight, a physical fistfight."
The defense's last witness was Zimmerman's father, Robert Zimmerman Sr., who briefly testified that he was certain he heard his son's voice on the 911 recording.
George Zimmerman chose not to testify in his own defense. During the course of the trial jurors saw videos in which Zimmerman told his story to investigators.
The defense rested its case on July 10, 2013.
Closing arguments
The prosecution began its closing arguments on July 11, 2013.
State Attorney Bernie De La Rionda's closing arguments reiterated that Trayvon Martin died through no fault of his own, because Zimmerman had essentially profiled Martin and took matters into his own hands. He also called Zimmerman a liar.
The defense began its closing arguments on July 12, 2013.
During Mark O'Mara's closing arguments, he asked the jury to use their common sense and stick with facts while deliberating. He used a chunk of concrete to impress upon the jury that the sidewalk was Martin's weapon.
John Guy gave the state's rebuttal, reminding the jury that if Zimmerman had simply stayed in his car that night, and waited on the police, no one would be there in the courtroom.
The jury deliberates
Judge Debra Nelson gave the jury extensive instructions and the jury began its deliberations on Friday, shortly after the state presented its rebuttal.
The jury deliberated for approximately two hours before asking the judge for a comprehensive list of the evidence presented at the trial.
if anything were to happen, keep us informed......and reddit too
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- Dec 29, 2012
- Messages
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Glad to hear this! I am not prejudice by any means, but with the media only showing Trayvon Martin when he was a young teen, that should have told people something. . . Even President Obama weighed in a month after the shooting, expressing ...sympathy for Mr. Martin’s family and urging a thorough investigation. “If I had a son,” Mr. Obama said, “he’d look like Trayvon.” Sorry Obama, but I would not be proud of a son that looked like he did or proud of his long rap sheet with police.
or they kept referring to treyvon as a child, he was 17, if he got caught with a 16 year old, they would have tried him as an adult. any one else would be an adult at age 17?
or how about when a news station played back the police recordings, and played only parts to make zimmerman sound racist.
or the edited picture of the back of his head where nothing was visible.
gf who cant read the note she and a fried wrote"
or the tech person who got fired for finding certain images on the phone.
or how about when a news station played back the police recordings, and played only parts to make zimmerman sound racist.
or the edited picture of the back of his head where nothing was visible.
gf who cant read the note she and a fried wrote"
or the tech person who got fired for finding certain images on the phone.
And now NAACP cries to Obama admin's DoJ to step in. Naturally Eric Holder will be all over it.
http://dailycaller.com/2013/07/13/n...ursue-civil-rights-charges-against-zimmerman/
As the Godfather Governor of Illinois once said... "Never let a good crisis go to waste".
I am by no means "racist", and this statement I am making is by no means a racist remark.
It seems "self defense" is now illegal unless your African American. I do not recall the Clinton admin getting involved after the Rodney King verdict.
http://dailycaller.com/2013/07/13/n...ursue-civil-rights-charges-against-zimmerman/
As the Godfather Governor of Illinois once said... "Never let a good crisis go to waste".
I am by no means "racist", and this statement I am making is by no means a racist remark.
It seems "self defense" is now illegal unless your African American. I do not recall the Clinton admin getting involved after the Rodney King verdict.
Black, white, yellow or green. I hope all my DPF friends are safe, sound and away from any trouble.
Stay safe my friends.
Wayne aka HVP.
Stay safe my friends.
Wayne aka HVP.
I hope this doesn't turn into a nationwide Rodney King scenario. I haven't been anywhere today and I don't live in a mixed area, so I don't know of anything going on.
Actually, looking at some of the news on the web, it's liable to get real ugly in some places. Please stay safe y'all.
I have a bad feeling it is going to get real ugly real soon!
yeah.real ugly soon.and that means not going to town when not needed..only if i was more prepared then i am..then i might at least feel a lil comfatable about it.
You make damn skippy certain you are carrying when you go into the city to work, sister. If I have to go up there and beat down some punk for messing with you, I'll do it gladly!
And you be careful as well Jim. I know that this is going to sound racist, but I am so dang glad I live in an agriculture area right now, very few of the city types here.
Yes, I've been lax the last couple of days...I'll get the gun now and set it by my work bag!!!!
thing about where i live.is i live 6 miles out of town..so there might not be much trouble here.it's the going to town i worry about..and one good thing about me and some folks in town.and dont wanna sound racist with thie but i think its true.i have made some black friends in town that i do joke with n all.so i might get a lil bit of slack in town..
I hope that's the case. The people we had here today work at the same hospital my Hubs does and they were apparently talking about segregating the wards to keep trouble down.
oh gezzzzzzz it is gonna get way out of hand if they start doing things like that
Well, I get to go downtown Minneapolis tomorrow...
go armed and prepared if u can
If you go call me for backup. I would hate missing a can of whoop ass being opened up!
You know Trapper, when I finally meet you, I am going to look for Randy Quaid, lol
Close, I have more hair and Better looking!!
well more hair maybe..lol
I don't live in a big city but the city nearby that I work in is primarily a college town. Lots of kids looking for a cause and lots of diversity in one area. I'm glad it's summer session right now so that may keep it from getting nasty here. However, at work today I did feel a bit of tension. I work with returns and people get upset sometimes when you have to say 'no' on a return. I've had people accuse me of being racist for doing my job before (dropped my jaw and hurt me more than if someone had punched me. I love studying cultures, speak bits and pieces of several languages, and study both Anthropology and Sociology.) I was worried that something like that would happen again with the tension of this whole thing building up. I've been keeping an eye on the news and crossing my fingers that this doesn't get bad. The media isn't helping though. They keep fanning the flames.
Exactly... The reason being is they will NOT stop talking about it until there is utter chaos (Racial war) across the nation. Why? Well they need something new to talk, report, yell at each other about. You know... Anything for a story is mainstream media's motto. MSM is so freakin predictable these days it is not even funny anymore. Now all they can talk about is how and why Zimmerman won. And they wonder why their ratings are dropping so drastically. We should rename MSNBC to BSNBC.
anymore on this I haven't been watchin the TV or news threads on the comp. That other case due to come back around soon eh..Jodi Aries
