At this current juncture, I will go with not guilty.
More and more is coming out about this case. It was initially reported that Zimmerman wasn't even arrested. I've since heard otherwise. It was initially reported that Zimmerman attacked Martin. I've since heard it was the other way around, the "following" notwithstanding.
I believe the prosecution will be urged to take it to trial but that Zimmerman will be found to have acted in self defense.
My fear is that this will be the wrong verdict and that it will set a bad precedent.
I don't know what's what yet; I can only go by what I heard. So assuming that what I've heard is in fact accurate, you should not be allowed to create the situation in which deadly force is needed for self defense.
There was no reason to follow Martin. Without a gun, I doubt Zimmerman would have been brave enough to follow him. He would have called the cops and left it at that. He should have left it at that.
Although, the seeds are out there. They'd be hard pressed to find jurors who don't have Martin's baby picture etched into their brains. Jurors will probably feel a level of guilt or loathing about the racial issue, as Zimmerman will be presented as a white racist whose profiling led to murder. So it is up in the air.
The newly released videos from the Sanford police department shows Zimmerman emerging from the squad care, unassisted, with his hands handcuffed behind his back. There isn't any blood on the front of his tee shirt [supposedly he had his nose broken]. His nose is not bloodied or swollen, the back of his head is not bloodied. We also heard, last night, from Zimmerman's father, a retired judge, that Zimmerman told his father that Trayvon said he, Zimmerman was going to die. The police record shows that Zimmerman did not report this threat to them when Zimmerman was arrested.
Could Zimmerman have forgotten to tell police that Trayvon threatened his life? You decide. That would be the very FIRST thing anyone in this situation would tell the police. Why didn't Zimmerman tell the police when they took him in for questioning that Trayvon threatened him? Why did he wait to tell his father?
Leticia believes Zimmerman is not guilty. I don't know yet, but from what we have seen with our eyes and heard from those involved in the crime, it would take a huge stretch of credulity to make the judgement that Zimmerman is NOT guilty.
That video is pretty damning evidence. Not a drop of blood on him after allegedly being pummled in the face and then shooting Trayvon in the chest while Trayvon was on top of him and hitting him?
The other VERY curious part of this is Joe Oliver--Zimmerman's supposed "friend."
The guy quit his job to go around the news stations and defend him? He admitted to Lawrence O'Donnell that he really wasn't that close to Zimmerman--more of an acquaintance.
So someone please explain how a man with a family--he has teenage children-- who is not independently wealthy quits his job to defend someone he admits is an acquaintance?
Everything in story smells very much like a rodent.
Call me silly but I'm not really sure what the poll question is. If the question is what will the outcome of Zimmerman being charged with murder be, then it will be not guilty. But I don't think that he will be tried for murder and I'm not sure that he should be in any case. Now if you're asking what will happen if Zimmerman faces manslaughter charges, as long as they don't have the same idiots that tried the Casey Anthony case have anything to do with this thing, then he should be found guilty - man 2 if nothing else that I think is self-evident.
But trials are tricky and I've heard that Zimmerman's dad is a former judge. Now whether he was a US District Court Judge or a traffic court judge I don't know but he may have a few levers that he can pull or favors that are owed to him that he could use in his son's defense. I mean he's already putting out there that it was his son, a friend to all those in the community, who was the original victim. Plus the backlash that's beginning against young Trayvon by those who like to take the ugly stance of "us against those people" may influence whatever happens.
No, now that I think about it no matter what your question is, and no matter what I believe should be the outcome, there's too much in the air for me or maybe anyone else to predict what the true outcome of this will eventually be and so I won't.
Josh: It's funny how this case has taken so many twists and turns. When I first posted this, I was on the fence. Now that the video of Zimmerman being taken into custody has surfaced, I think there will be a verdict of guilty. According to some news reports, there may have been some sort of injury to the back of Zimmerman's head. However, there are no visible injuries on Zimmerman's face nor does he have the demeanor of someone who's one head blow away from (as his brother said) "wearing diapers for the rest of his life and being spoon fed by his brother".
Has your stance changed since your original comments?
Leticia: In light of the new evidence that's surfaced in this case (such as what me and Shaw above outlined), do you still think Zimmerman will be found not guilty?
Shaw: You've made some excellent points! When I first heard about Joe Oliver's backstory, something seemed off to me. I think he's being paid off by someone. Since he's a former television news reporter, I wouldn't be surprised if he's angling for a cable news gig. Also, there are reports that George and his brother Robert Zimmerman Jr. hadn't spoken to each other in a couple of years. If this is true, he probably isn't the best judge of what his brother might have done.
Curious: When I created the poll, I didn't think to make a legal distinction on what Zimmerman might be charged with in this case. I was thinking if it goes to trial, it'll be a murder case. With that being said, your decision to abstain from voting in the poll is a fair one.
I'm mainly looking forward to a formal arrest so that we can know all of the evidence here. Even if Zimmerman ends up without an ultimate prosecution, an arrest would still quell some of these tensions.
With politicians and such likening this to the heinous incidents of past, it's a powder keg to put it lightly. All the "hunted down" and "WWB" stuff and bounties and texted addresses -- nuts!
I saw the damaged head. From what I saw, it looked like two gashes and a knot. In terms of a broken nose, I've had mine broken three times. One time it bled. The other two you couldn't tell anything was "wrong" until my eyes turned black a day or two later. But I agree he didn't look like someone near death. In terms of how the severity of any supposed injuries plays in a state with that particular law, I'm not sure.
Doctored 911 tapes. In-the-bag witnesses. Conflicting voice analysis. A suspicious act of following someone you think is up to no good. Federal overreaching to appease a distressed pubic. It's all strange and it seems pointless.
Per the public, it's all under the banner of "white vs. black." Only in the case of a dead black teen would Zimmerman even be considered white. Just weirdness.
I feel I know less about the case now than before. At least with the piddly amount of evidence originally, I felt there was a beginning, middle and end. Now I have no idea.
Josh: "I'm mainly looking forward to a formal arrest so that we can know all of the evidence here. Even if Zimmerman ends up without an ultimate prosecution, an arrest would still quell some of these tensions."
7 comments:
At this current juncture, I will go with not guilty.
More and more is coming out about this case. It was initially reported that Zimmerman wasn't even arrested. I've since heard otherwise. It was initially reported that Zimmerman attacked Martin. I've since heard it was the other way around, the "following" notwithstanding.
I believe the prosecution will be urged to take it to trial but that Zimmerman will be found to have acted in self defense.
My fear is that this will be the wrong verdict and that it will set a bad precedent.
I don't know what's what yet; I can only go by what I heard. So assuming that what I've heard is in fact accurate, you should not be allowed to create the situation in which deadly force is needed for self defense.
There was no reason to follow Martin. Without a gun, I doubt Zimmerman would have been brave enough to follow him. He would have called the cops and left it at that. He should have left it at that.
Although, the seeds are out there. They'd be hard pressed to find jurors who don't have Martin's baby picture etched into their brains. Jurors will probably feel a level of guilt or loathing about the racial issue, as Zimmerman will be presented as a white racist whose profiling led to murder. So it is up in the air.
What a strange, tragic case.
Right now, from I heard on the radio. A witness, says he saw Zimmerman on the ground being pummeled by Trayvon and was screaming for help.
At this point, I believe it was in self-defense. Not guilty.
The newly released videos from the Sanford police department shows Zimmerman emerging from the squad care, unassisted, with his hands handcuffed behind his back. There isn't any blood on the front of his tee shirt [supposedly he had his nose broken]. His nose is not bloodied or swollen, the back of his head is not bloodied. We also heard, last night, from Zimmerman's father, a retired judge, that Zimmerman told his father that Trayvon said he, Zimmerman was going to die. The police record shows that Zimmerman did not report this threat to them when Zimmerman was arrested.
Could Zimmerman have forgotten to tell police that Trayvon threatened his life? You decide. That would be the very FIRST thing anyone in this situation would tell the police. Why didn't Zimmerman tell the police when they took him in for questioning that Trayvon threatened him? Why did he wait to tell his father?
Leticia believes Zimmerman is not guilty. I don't know yet, but from what we have seen with our eyes and heard from those involved in the crime, it would take a huge stretch of credulity to make the judgement that Zimmerman is NOT guilty.
That video is pretty damning evidence. Not a drop of blood on him after allegedly being pummled in the face and then shooting Trayvon in the chest while Trayvon was on top of him and hitting him?
The other VERY curious part of this is Joe Oliver--Zimmerman's supposed "friend."
The guy quit his job to go around the news stations and defend him? He admitted to Lawrence O'Donnell that he really wasn't that close to Zimmerman--more of an acquaintance.
So someone please explain how a man with a family--he has teenage children-- who is not independently wealthy quits his job to defend someone he admits is an acquaintance?
Everything in story smells very much like a rodent.
Call me silly but I'm not really sure what the poll question is. If the question is what will the outcome of Zimmerman being charged with murder be, then it will be not guilty. But I don't think that he will be tried for murder and I'm not sure that he should be in any case. Now if you're asking what will happen if Zimmerman faces manslaughter charges, as long as they don't have the same idiots that tried the Casey Anthony case have anything to do with this thing, then he should be found guilty - man 2 if nothing else that I think is self-evident.
But trials are tricky and I've heard that Zimmerman's dad is a former judge. Now whether he was a US District Court Judge or a traffic court judge I don't know but he may have a few levers that he can pull or favors that are owed to him that he could use in his son's defense. I mean he's already putting out there that it was his son, a friend to all those in the community, who was the original victim. Plus the backlash that's beginning against young Trayvon by those who like to take the ugly stance of "us against those people" may influence whatever happens.
No, now that I think about it no matter what your question is, and no matter what I believe should be the outcome, there's too much in the air for me or maybe anyone else to predict what the true outcome of this will eventually be and so I won't.
Josh: It's funny how this case has taken so many twists and turns. When I first posted this, I was on the fence. Now that the video of Zimmerman being taken into custody has surfaced, I think there will be a verdict of guilty. According to some news reports, there may have been some sort of injury to the back of Zimmerman's head. However, there are no visible injuries on Zimmerman's face nor does he have the demeanor of someone who's one head blow away from (as his brother said) "wearing diapers for the rest of his life and being spoon fed by his brother".
Has your stance changed since your original comments?
Leticia: In light of the new evidence that's surfaced in this case (such as what me and Shaw above outlined), do you still think Zimmerman will be found not guilty?
Shaw: You've made some excellent points! When I first heard about Joe Oliver's backstory, something seemed off to me. I think he's being paid off by someone. Since he's a former television news reporter, I wouldn't be surprised if he's angling for a cable news gig. Also, there are reports that George and his brother Robert Zimmerman Jr. hadn't spoken to each other in a couple of years. If this is true, he probably isn't the best judge of what his brother might have done.
Curious: When I created the poll, I didn't think to make a legal distinction on what Zimmerman might be charged with in this case. I was thinking if it goes to trial, it'll be a murder case. With that being said, your decision to abstain from voting in the poll is a fair one.
I'm mainly looking forward to a formal arrest so that we can know all of the evidence here. Even if Zimmerman ends up without an ultimate prosecution, an arrest would still quell some of these tensions.
With politicians and such likening this to the heinous incidents of past, it's a powder keg to put it lightly. All the "hunted down" and "WWB" stuff and bounties and texted addresses -- nuts!
I saw the damaged head. From what I saw, it looked like two gashes and a knot. In terms of a broken nose, I've had mine broken three times. One time it bled. The other two you couldn't tell anything was "wrong" until my eyes turned black a day or two later. But I agree he didn't look like someone near death. In terms of how the severity of any supposed injuries plays in a state with that particular law, I'm not sure.
Doctored 911 tapes. In-the-bag witnesses. Conflicting voice analysis. A suspicious act of following someone you think is up to no good. Federal overreaching to appease a distressed pubic. It's all strange and it seems pointless.
Per the public, it's all under the banner of "white vs. black." Only in the case of a dead black teen would Zimmerman even be considered white. Just weirdness.
I feel I know less about the case now than before. At least with the piddly amount of evidence originally, I felt there was a beginning, middle and end. Now I have no idea.
Josh: "I'm mainly looking forward to a formal arrest so that we can know all of the evidence here. Even if Zimmerman ends up without an ultimate prosecution, an arrest would still quell some of these tensions."
Agreed.
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