Trayvon Martin and "Stand Your Ground" in FL

[HSKR]

Speaking of "so much information to come out about this situation," here's an excerpt from the report of the first officer on the scene:

 

"While I was in such close contact with Zimmerman, I could observe that his back appeared to be wet and was covered in grass, as if he had been laying on his back on the ground. Zimmerman was also bleeding from the nose and back of his head."

 

 

 

"Zimmerman was placed in the rear of my police vehicle and was given first aid by the SFD. While the SF was attending to Zimmerman, I overheard him state, 'I was yelling for someone to help me, but no one would help me.' At no point did I question Zimmerman about the incident that had taken place."

 

LINK

 

Uh oh.

[The Dude]

NBC issues apology on Zimmerman tape screw-up

 

http://www.washingto...m5jtS_blog.html

That apology addresses the “Today” show’s failure to abridge accurately the conversation between Zimmerman and the dispatcher in this high-profile case. This is how the program portrayed a segment of that conversation:

 

Zimmerman: This guy looks like he’s up to no good. He looks black.

 

And here is how it actually went down:

 

Zimmerman: This guy looks like he’s up to no good. Or he’s on drugs or something. It’s raining and he’s just walking around, looking about.

Dispatcher: OK, and this guy — is he black, white or Hispanic?

Zimmerman: He looks black.

[The Dude]

Whoops, didn't see that was already covered in this thread. Just found it to be completely f'd up.

[walksalone]

If you've got the media, "editing" phone conversations that are used for broadcast, and the shadiness of this Zimmerman guy, you're never really going to get a straight story. You're going to get one side of the fence, saying racist hate crime, while the other side is saying self defense...

[carlfense]

If you've got the media, "editing" phone conversations that are used for broadcast . . .

That was bad. Someone needs to lose their job over that.

[Muck]

That was bad. Someone needs to lose their job over that.

 

NBC fires producer over edited Trayvon Martin call

[carlfense]

That was bad. Someone needs to lose their job over that.

 

NBC fires producer over edited Trayvon Martin call

Such is the power of the carlfense. Let it be known.

[walksalone]

If you've got the media, "editing" phone conversations that are used for broadcast . . .

That was bad. Someone needs to lose their job over that.

 

Just goes to prove, if it's on TV, you probably shouldn't believe it...

[knapplc]

George Zimmerman to be charged as early as Wednesday

 

 

 

 

Florida special prosecutor Angela Corey plans to announce as early as Wednesday afternoon that she is charging neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, according to a law enforcement official close to the investigation.

 

It was not immediately clear what charge Zimmerman will face.

 

Martin, 17 and unarmed, was shot and killed Feb. 26 by Zimmerman, who said he was acting in self-defense. Police in Sanford, Fla., where the shooting took place, did not charge Zimmerman, citing the state’s “stand your ground” law.

 

 

Probably best to let this go to trial. If Zimmerman is innocent under "Stand Your Ground," it'll come out in court.

[carlfense]

George Zimmerman to be charged as early as Wednesday

 

 

 

 

Florida special prosecutor Angela Corey plans to announce as early as Wednesday afternoon that she is charging neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, according to a law enforcement official close to the investigation.

 

It was not immediately clear what charge Zimmerman will face.

 

Martin, 17 and unarmed, was shot and killed Feb. 26 by Zimmerman, who said he was acting in self-defense. Police in Sanford, Fla., where the shooting took place, did not charge Zimmerman, citing the state’s “stand your ground” law.

 

 

Probably best to let this go to trial. If Zimmerman is innocent under "Stand Your Ground," it'll come out in court.

Would have been easier to win (for the prosecution) if he had been arrested and charged shortly after the event.

 

The defense attorney will almost certainly focus a lot of attention on the fact that he wasn't arrested, the local prosecutor didn't file charges, etc.

[The Dude]

George Zimmerman to be charged as early as Wednesday

 

 

 

 

Florida special prosecutor Angela Corey plans to announce as early as Wednesday afternoon that she is charging neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, according to a law enforcement official close to the investigation.

 

It was not immediately clear what charge Zimmerman will face.

 

Martin, 17 and unarmed, was shot and killed Feb. 26 by Zimmerman, who said he was acting in self-defense. Police in Sanford, Fla., where the shooting took place, did not charge Zimmerman, citing the state’s “stand your ground” law.

 

 

Probably best to let this go to trial. If Zimmerman is innocent under "Stand Your Ground," it'll come out in court.

Would have been easier to win (for the prosecution) if he had been arrested and charged shortly after the event.

 

The defense attorney will almost certainly focus a lot of attention on the fact that he wasn't arrested, the local prosecutor didn't file charges, etc.

I don't think there's a much of a chance he gets convicted of 2nd degree murder.

 

 

Florida Statute 776.012 states that "a person is justified in the use of deadly force and does not have a duty to retreat if he or she reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the imminent commission of a forcible felony."

 

To my knowledge, Florida state law does not provide an exception to this statute in the case of a citizen taking it upon himself or herself to investigate suspicious activity.

[carlfense]

I don't think there's a much of a chance he gets convicted of 2nd degree murder.

 

 

Florida Statute 776.012 states that "a person is justified in the use of deadly force and does not have a duty to retreat if he or she reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the imminent commission of a forcible felony."

 

To my knowledge, Florida state law does not provide an exception to this statute in the case of a citizen taking it upon himself or herself to investigate suspicious activity.

IMO, the issue will come down to who is the original aggressor. If Martin was "standing his ground" (so to speak) to defend himself then Zimmerman doesn't automatically get the benefit of 776.012. In fact, I think Zimmerman would have a fairly high burden of proof to fall back under the 776.012 umbrella.

 

Take it with a grain of salt. I don't know a damn thing about FL law other than the plain language of the statute and intuition.

[Enhance]

I don't know if anybody has mentioned this, but this case reminds me a lot of the Duke lacrosse rape case. So much misinformation, and a lot of public vilification, when nobody has all the answers.

[knapplc]

Turns out there's a picture from the night of the shooting showing Zimmerman's bloody head.

 

LINK

 

Gotta love the "warning - graphic content" crap splayed all over the page. I've seen far worse on primetime TV.

[gobiggergoredder]

Turns out there's a picture from the night of the shooting showing Zimmerman's bloody head.

 

LINK

 

Gotta love the "warning - graphic content" crap splayed all over the page. I've seen far worse on primetime TV.

 

I know it ultimately doesn't lead to justification for the shooting, but I do find it interesting. The photo appears legit. They have all the iPhone data (GPS & Timing) to sync it up.