Trayvon Martin Shooter Released On $150,000 Bond

[Jingthing]

You are considering race bias too narrowly. All black boys walking his neighborhood aren't criminals. Crime wave or no crime wave, treating them all as guilty still is race bias.

But we can afford to be generous in our assessment of the situation that night.

We don't live in that particular crime ridden neighborhood and weren't there that particular dark, rainy night.

I actually have personal experiences with housing situations with the EXACT SAME issues as in that article. What you do is ... call the police. You don't chase people you are suspicious of armed with a lethal weapon and you don't not listen to the police when they advise you not to pursue. I am sorry, let the murder trial proceed.

[chuckd]

You are considering race bias too narrowly. All black boys walking his neighborhood aren't criminals. Crime wave or no crime wave, treating them all as guilty still is race bias.

But we can afford to be generous in our assessment of the situation that night.

We don't live in that particular crime ridden neighborhood and weren't there that particular dark, rainy night.

I actually have personal experiences with housing situations with the EXACT SAME issues as in that article. What you do is ... call the police. You don't chase people you are suspicious of armed with a lethal weapon and you don't not listen to the police when they advise you not to pursue. I am sorry, let the murder trial proceed.

But what I am saying, JT, is that there is so much none of us really know.

Was Zimmerman "chasing" Trayvon as you claim?

I have read somewhere that Zimmerman was heading back to his vehicle when Trayvon accosted him.

Maybe Trayvon saw this much smaller man and thought this might be a good time to get aggressive.

But then, maybe not.

All we can do is speculate at this point.

Unless a judge throws out the charges, the trial looks like it will proceed.

[koheesti]

You are considering race bias too narrowly. All black boys walking his neighborhood aren't criminals. Crime wave or no crime wave, treating them all as guilty still is race bias.

Wow, ALL "black boys" are treated as criminals yet only one has been shot? Hmmm. Maybe not all attack a man with a gun?

Edited April 27, 2012 by koheesti

[koheesti]

The yahoo site that pops up when I turn on my browser had this report on Zimmerman. I scanned it and have no strong opinion one way or the other on the shooting as it will be up to the Court to decide guilt or innocence. It might be of interest to some of our posters:

http://news.yahoo.co...-194235114.html

Have you ever done anything that makes you feel like Rodney Dangerfield???

I posted this same article in post #43.

Doesn't ANYBODY read my posts?

From Scott's link (oh, and chuckd's too):

The homeowners association asked him to launch a neighborhood watch, and Zimmerman would begin to carry the Kel-Tec on his regular, dog-walking patrol - a violation of neighborhood watch guidelines but not a crime.

Exactly, Zim shouldn't have been carrying a gun in the first place. That's why I believe even if he gets off the 2nd degree murder charge, or if the shooting is ruled self defense he needs to get some kind of punishment. Guilty or not, Trayvon would be alive today if Zim had stuck to the rules and kept the gun at home. This much is probably fact.

Of course, the other side is that without the gun, Zim might have had his head completely smashed in by this out of control 6'3" "kid", and the trial would be Trayvon's with him going to prison for the rest of his life. This part is only conjecture.

Edited April 27, 2012 by koheesti

[koheesti]

You don't chase people you are suspicious of armed with a lethal weapon and you don't not listen to the police when they advise you not to pursue. I am sorry, let the murder trial proceed.

From what I understand is that after the dispatcher told Zim not to follow the guy, he replied, "OK". Whether he did or not I don't know. But as the story goes, Zim lost track of Trayvon and returned to his car where he was ambushed/confronted by Trayvon who wanted to know why Zim had been following him. A struggle ensued - most likely started by the larger guy without the gun. That would be Trayvon. If the trial shows this to be the case, Zim walks.

[koheesti]

The yahoo site that pops up when I turn on my browser had this report on Zimmerman. I scanned it and have no strong opinion one way or the other on the shooting as it will be up to the Court to decide guilt or innocence. It might be of interest to some of our posters:

http://news.yahoo.co...-194235114.html

Have you ever done anything that makes you feel like Rodney Dangerfield???

I posted this same article in post #43.

Doesn't ANYBODY read my posts?

I just read the entire article - and it is a long one. I CHALLENGE Jingthing and anyone else who thinks Zimmerman is a racist and/or crazed shooter to read this. I don't expect any of you to post apologies or that you have now changed your minds. Just knowing that you will have after reading this is enough. I now need to find an online betting website and lay $1000 on Zimmerman being found not guilty. Easy money.

[flying]

I now need to find an online betting website and lay $1000 on Zimmerman being found not guilty. Easy money.

I read it but I fail to see why after reading it you think it is a slam dunk for him to be found not guilty

The article seems 50/50 as to character. The part about they always get away possibly does not help him either

PS ...in regards to the rest of your post....I did not read it because I think Zimmerman is a racist nor did I think

that Martin was a thug

I have no pre-conceived idea about either

As an aside I am surprised he hit anything with a Kel-Tec

Edited April 27, 2012 by flying

[kerryk]

Does everyong know the sheriff was forced to resign? I wonder if everyone knows, why you all are not making a big deal about it?

[Jingthing]

Does everyong know the sheriff was forced to resign? I wonder if everyone knows, why you all are not making a big deal about it?

Zimmerman should have been charged with at least manslaughter immediately after he killed the unarmed boy. The Sheriff showed bias and incompetence. The police stupidly believed everything Zimmerman told them, including the lie that he has no police record. Good old boy network, Southern style.

Anyway, I find it hilarious how some of you believe anything Zimmerman says, especially his story about the killing. He has no credibility. Consider also how he took on the responsible role for his homeowners group which had rules not to carry a firearm, yet he carried it violating their rules, and also not telling them. At the same time painting the poor dead victim as some kind of violent criminal thug, when he obviously was nothing of the kind.

Now it seems Zimmerman may be caught in a serious lie about his financial status. The false information he supplied was used to calculate the rather low bail for an accused murderer.

O'Mara will formally disclose the donations at a Friday hearing originally intended to handle issues surrounding the unsealing of Zimmerman's criminal file. It's possible that a judge will order Zimmerman back into custody after the disclosure.

http://slatest.slate..._disclosed.html

Edited April 27, 2012 by Jingthing

[Colin Yai]

Does everyong know the sheriff was forced to resign? I wonder if everyone knows, why you all are not making a big deal about it?

Forced to resign?, could you please be a bit more specific, Cheers.

[Jingthing]

Does everyong know the sheriff was forced to resign? I wonder if everyone knows, why you all are not making a big deal about it?

Forced to resign?, could you please be a bit more specific, Cheers.

Here you go. Sanford Police Department Chief Bill Lee resigned. And then his resignation was not accepted to avoid it being seen as a forced resignation.

http://www.cbsnews.c...fs-resignation/

Here's some more excellent source material about the insidious reality of pervasive anti-black race bias in America even among those with close black friends. Also, of course, how it relates to murder defendant Zimmerman.

http://ideas.time.co...?xid=gonewsedit

Perhaps even more surprisingly, a 2011 study specifically looking at the impact of interracial friendship on white concern about local crime found that when white people have close relationships with black people, their concerns about crime actually increase. More broadly, when scholars have studied the racial beliefs, feelings and policy views of whites who have contact with blacks as friends, acquaintances or neighbors, they consistently find that the negative racial perceptions of those whites are substantially similar to the perceptions of whites who have no black friends. Friendship with black people — and even being a black person — does nothing to change racial bias. Indeed, almost one-third of black people hold similarly negative views.

Edited April 27, 2012 by Jingthing

[Ulysses G.]

"Friendship with black people — and even being a black person — does nothing to change racial bias. Indeed, almost one-third of black people hold similarly negative views".

So black people are "biased" against black criminals too. I guess Jesse Jackson had a point.

"There is nothing more painful to me at this stage in my life than to walk down the street and hear footsteps and start thinking about robbery. Then look around and see somebody white and feel relieved."

As far as Zimmerman's "serous lie" about his financial status, his lawyer did not realize that his very recent appeal for funds for his defense on the Internet had generated a considerable amount of money very quickly, so did not report it. I'm not sure that it was an intentional "lie" or how "serious" it was.

[TAWP]

You are considering race bias too narrowly. All black boys walking his neighborhood aren't criminals. Crime wave or no crime wave, treating them all as guilty still is race bias.

A guard should investigate everyone suspicious.

A person in a hoody [sporting gold-teeth and poor grammar - yes, unknown to Zimmerman, but still true] lurking in shadows in a area they don't live in...well, sounds legit, right? Maybe, maybe not - but you cannot blame Zimmerman for investigating.

And it was very typical to see NBC editing the 911-dispatch call to make it look like Zimmerman was doing racial profiling when it was far from clear he was, as he (as it turns out) was in the end only answering the dispatchers question as to skin-color, never giving this info upfront or before asked...perhaps since it wasn't the most important factor by far.

Edited April 28, 2012 by TAWP

[Jingthing]

As far as the "blame game" society is in the process of blaming Zimmerman for the murder of an unarmed innocent boy taking an evening stroll, and rightly so. The justice system should decide, not some corrupt good old boy police network who took the dubious word of Zimmerman as pure truth on the night of the killing.

[koheesti]

I now need to find an online betting website and lay $1000 on Zimmerman being found not guilty. Easy money.

I read it but I fail to see why after reading it you think it is a slam dunk for him to be found not guilty

The article seems 50/50 as to character. The part about they always get away possibly does not help him either

He should be found guilty for carrying a gun while on neighborhood watch patrol. If the info in the article is presented to the jury and they find it believable, Zimmerman will not be found guilty of the 2nd degree murder charge they are trying to get. He is made out as a much more sympathetic figure and good neighbor than his detractors would care to believe.

[Jingthing]

I don't care if he's Mother Theresa, if he murdered an unarmed boy and he is found guilty of it, he goes down.

[koheesti]

Here's some more excellent source material about the insidious reality of pervasive anti-black race bias in America even among those with close black friends. Also, of course, how it relates to murder defendant Zimmerman.

You want to know another example of racism? Focusing all this energy on one tragic shooting because a white guy was thought to be involved (when really he has as much white blood in him as Obama) while at the same time not caring one bit about all the black-on-black killings that happen on a daily basis in our cities. The thousands of blacks murdered across the USA each year by other blacks aren't deemed by the media as important as when a white guy does the killing. Why? Is it because it is NEWS when a white guy does the killing and about as newsworthy as the sun rising when a black guy does the killing? Or maybe the media just doesn't think blacks are important enough? Why else is a black child (not some 17 yr old 6'3" football player, but a real child) being shot not considered important enough for media attention? Why is it national news when a little, blond, white girl goes missing but the media is silent when a little black girl disappears? The answer - racism. So if the media wants to use racism to sell papers and TV advertising, maybe they should tell their reporters to look inwards.

[Jingthing]

This became a major story because the local police let him go. A "black" shooter wouldn't have been. You know, I know, the world knows it. Now Zimmerman is facing murder charges. As should have happened from the outset.

Edited April 28, 2012 by Jingthing

[Ulysses G.]

Not true. Many black people's word would have been accepted under similar circumstances. This is not 1890.

[koheesti]

I don't care if he's Mother Theresa, if he murdered an unarmed boy and he is found guilty of it, he goes down.

I understand that constantly referring to him as "boy" helps justify your outrage to this tragic event, and for some reason that brings you pleasure, but if you called him "boy" to his face while he was alive he would beat your azz and you know it. The guy was 17 yrs old and 6' 3". I've made it clear that I think Zim should be punished but all this crap about "shooting a boy walking home from the store with candy" along with a photo of a much younger Trayvon is criminal in itself with all the hatred and violence it has provoked. Incitement to violence is also a crime and some people should be locked up for that as well. Of course, not you JT, you're just a harmless TV poster.

Edited April 28, 2012 by koheesti

[koheesti]

Not true. Many black people's word would have been accepted under similar circumstances. This is not 1890.

Well, you don't need to go nearly that far back.

Edited April 28, 2012 by koheesti

[koheesti]

This became a major story because the local police let him go. A "black" shooter wouldn't have been. You know, I know, the world knows it. Now Zimmerman is facing murder charges. As should have happened from the outset.

But, if the shooter had been black, the police never would have even come down in the first place.

[Steely Dan]

Here's some more excellent source material about the insidious reality of pervasive anti-black race bias in America even among those with close black friends. Also, of course, how it relates to murder defendant Zimmerman.

You want to know another example of racism? Focusing all this energy on one tragic shooting because a white guy was thought to be involved (when really he has as much white blood in him as Obama) while at the same time not caring one bit about all the black-on-black killings that happen on a daily basis in our cities. The thousands of blacks murdered across the USA each year by other blacks aren't deemed by the media as important as when a white guy does the killing. Why? Is it because it is NEWS when a white guy does the killing and about as newsworthy as the sun rising when a black guy does the killing? Or maybe the media just doesn't think blacks are important enough? Why else is a black child (not some 17 yr old 6'3" football player, but a real child) being shot not considered important enough for media attention? Why is it national news when a little, blond, white girl goes missing but the media is silent when a little black girl disappears? The answer - racism. So if the media wants to use racism to sell papers and TV advertising, maybe they should tell their reporters to look inwards.

As with so many world events the importance of the 'victim' depends largely on who the aggressor happens to be as oppose to the facts surrounding the death.

[kerryk]

I don't care if he's Mother Theresa, if he murdered an unarmed boy and he is found guilty of it, he goes down.

Lets get real here. If Mother Theresa shot a black guy she would walk. I assume the shooting takes place in India. Now if Mother Theresa shot a black guy in Florida she gets canonized on the spot and the statues go up the next day. You do know about the Catholics in Florida?

Now for those who might think I am going off topic, I didn't bring the Mother Theresa thing up and the post has been up for quite a whlle equal rights and all.

[Jingthing]

It's a figure of speech.

[kerryk]

It's a figure of speech.

I know what you meant to say but you are wrong. Mother T is one of those people like Princess Diana and Helen Keller who get a pass for shooting a black guy at night wearing a hoodie and trying to knock their head in.

[koheesti]

It's a figure of speech.

I know what you meant to say but you are wrong. Mother T is one of those people like Princess Diana and Helen Keller who get a pass for shooting a black guy at night wearing a hoodie and trying to knock their head in.

Add Obama to that list. He would just blame Bush and get away with it.

[Scott]

Please get back on the topic.

Nobody should get a free pass on killing someone. Regardless of which side of the argument you are on, a number of lives have been forever changed because of this unfortunate event.

Edited April 28, 2012 by Scott

[Scott]

An off-topic post and reply have been deleted.

[Jingthing]

BTW, I know there are some big fans of Alan Dershowitz's views on this case. Today on television he posited that withholding the financial information to the court was indeed a very serious offense and deserves full investigation and potential punitive action. (So there.) Let's face it, nobody really knows why the prosecution is going for what looks like an overcharge, second degree murder, instead of manslaughter, but there is a very good case for a manslaughter conviction. There is also an expected defense of self defense.