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Author Topic: The Slaying of Trayvon Martin in Florida #2 5/10/12 - 7/12/12  (Read 363330 times)
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MuffyBee
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« Reply #220 on: May 23, 2012, 07:51:53 PM »

https://twitter.com/#!/MarkNejame

4h Greg Diaz Greg Diaz ‏@Gregory305
@MarkNeJame she is using that common sense i spoke of so many times n she is a older white woman part of ur jurry pool
1:54 PM - 23 May 12 via web · Details

3h Mark NeJame Mark NeJame ‏@MarkNeJame
@Gregory305 You look at pieces of puzzle & not whole picture. Wounds can't be self inflicted. All forensics show otherwise. Use common sense
3:18 PM - 23 May 12 via TweetDeck · Details

Greg Diaz ‏@Gregory305
@MarkNeJame add 2 that his very agresive talk towards minorities n borderline racist talk on his myspace page add 2 that him carrying a gun
1:21 PM - 23 May 12 via web · Details


5h Mark NeJame Mark NeJame ‏@MarkNeJame
@Gregory305 Irrelevant. Won't get into evidence anyway. MS is vague but still legally irrelevant and immaterial. I focus on case outcome.
1:23 PM - 23 May 12 via TweetDeck · Details

5h Greg Diaz Greg Diaz ‏@Gregory305
@MarkNeJame add 2 GZ takin that job n calling sum 45 times 2 him doing private security 4 atleast 1 party thats known with photos add 2 that
1:18 PM - 23 May 12 via web · Details

5h Mark NeJame Mark NeJame ‏@MarkNeJame
@Gregory305 The calls can cut both ways. If not race specific or disproportionately black they can help. If disproportionate then can hurt.
1:21 PM - 23 May 12 via TweetDeck · Details

Greg Diaz ‏@Gregory305
@MarkNeJame 1 of the problems with the GZ case is his gung ho or agresive atitude by nature ne1 who takes nw job is a lil gung ho add 2 that
1:15 PM - 23 May 12 via web · Details


5h Mark NeJame Mark NeJame ‏@MarkNeJame
@Gregory305 Agree. If aggressive nature established will be more problematic. Prior acts typically inadmissible though.
1:18 PM - 23 May 12 via TweetDeck · Details

Selina Grissom ‏@LilRdVet2
@MarkNeJame if they ran into each other face 2 face it would be hard enough to break his nose and send him backwards to pavement
8:01 AM - 23 May 12 via web · Details


9h Mark NeJame Mark NeJame ‏@MarkNeJame
@LilRdVet2 Layout of complex, lighting & forensics don't support. TM had no injuries but for finger & shot & GZ had addtl injuries on face
9:23 AM - 23 May 12 via TweetDeck · Details


6h Selina Grissom Selina Grissom ‏@LilRdVet2
@MarkNeJame TM tiny scratch on ring finger (NO bruises) does not support beating GZ. I don't believe GZ or HIS witness accounts.
11:48 AM - 23 May 12 via web · Details

5h Mark NeJame Mark NeJame ‏@MarkNeJame
@LilRdVet2 witnesses were independent witnesses to my knowledge, didnt know either one. Simply described what they saw to law enforcement.
1:05 PM - 23 May 12 via TweetDeck · Details

10h Selina Grissom Selina Grissom ‏@LilRdVet2
@MarkNeJame if they ran into each other face 2 face it would be hard enough to break his nose and send him backwards to pavement
8:01 AM - 23 May 12 via web · Details


9h Mark NeJame Mark NeJame ‏@MarkNeJame
@LilRdVet2 Layout of complex, lighting & forensics don't support. TM had no injuries but for finger & shot & GZ had addtl injuries on face
9:23 AM - 23 May 12 via TweetDeck · Details

6h Selina Grissom Selina Grissom ‏@LilRdVet2
@MarkNeJame TM tiny scratch on ring finger (NO bruises) does not support beating GZ. I don't believe GZ or HIS witness accounts.
11:48 AM - 23 May 12 via web · Details

5h Mark NeJame Mark NeJame ‏@MarkNeJame
@LilRdVet2 witnesses were independent witnesses to my knowledge, didnt know either one. Simply described what they saw to law enforcement.
1:05 PM - 23 May 12 via TweetDeck · Details

9h Mark NeJame Mark NeJame ‏@MarkNeJame
@LilRdVet2 Layout of complex, lighting & forensics don't support. TM had no injuries but for finger & shot & GZ had addtl injuries on face
9:23 AM - 23 May 12 via TweetDeck · Details


6h Selina Grissom Selina Grissom ‏@LilRdVet2
@MarkNeJame TM tiny scratch on ring finger (NO bruises) does not support beating GZ. I don't believe GZ or HIS witness accounts.
11:48 AM - 23 May 12 via web · Details

Mark NeJame ‏@MarkNeJame
@LilRdVet2 witnesses were independent witnesses to my knowledge, didnt know either one. Simply described what they saw to law enforcement.
1:05 PM - 23 May 12 via TweetDeck · Details








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« Reply #221 on: May 23, 2012, 10:08:06 PM »

How do Zimmerman prosecutors prove case when key witnesses now have reasonable doubts?

The Orlando Sentinel reports that several witnesses have changed their stories from the initial interviews, mostly (but not completely) to the detriment of George Zimmerman:
 

Evidence released last week in the second-degree-murder case against George Zimmerman shows four key witnesses made major changes in what they say they saw and heard the night he fatally shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford.
 
Three changed their stories in ways that may damage Zimmerman. A fourth abandoned her initial story, that she saw one person chasing another. Now, she says, she saw a single figure running.
 
They were reinterviewed in mid-March, after Sanford police handed the case off to State Attorney Norm Wolfinger. The case changed hands again when Gov. Rick Scott passed it on to a special prosecutor. Zimmerman was arrested April 11 on a charge of second-degree murder.
 
So … witnesses change their recollections in ways which hurt Zimmerman after the public outcry, charges of racism, death threats against Zimmerman, marches, and public protests in the town in which the shooting took place.   ::snipping2:: 

http://legalinsurrection.com/2012/05/how-do-zimmerman-prosecutors-prove-case-when-key-witnesses-now-have-reasonable-doubts/
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« Reply #222 on: May 24, 2012, 12:14:42 PM »

http://www.standard.net/stories/2012/05/24/prosecutors-want-seal-statements-zimmerman-made-police

Prosecutors want to seal statements Zimmerman made to police
Thu, 05/24/2012 - 9:23am

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Prosecutors want a judge to seal key evidence in the case against George Zimmerman from the public until trial, including the statements he made to law enforcement during the investigation of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin's death.
 
Citing an exemption barring the release of confessions, the prosecution asks Judge Kenneth Lester in a new motion to seal Zimmerman's statements, as well as photos that show the teen's body.
 
Zimmerman admits shooting the teen but says he did so in self-defense as he was being pummeled on the ground. He has made at least five statements to law enforcement.
 
The records the state is asking to have sealed were left out of evidence released to the public last week. Statute allows information "revealing the substance of a confession" to be withheld.
 
Bernie de la Rionda, the lead prosecutor, argues in the motion that because Zimmerman's statements "could be used against him at trial," the records should not be public. According to de la Rionda, those statements "are contradictory, and are inconsistent with the physical evidence and statements of witnesses."
 
The prosecutor also asked the state to seal the cellphone records of Zimmerman, Trayvon and a South Florida girl who says she was on the phone with Trayvon in the moments before his death Feb.26 in Sanford.
 
The state also asked the judge to seal witness names. Both the prosecution and the defense have argued for that.
 
The new motion was provided to Lester, the defense and attorneys for multiple media outlets Wednesday.
 ::snipping2::
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« Reply #223 on: May 24, 2012, 12:39:39 PM »

Zimmerman complained about Sanford police in 2011
Published May 23, 2012


ORLANDO, Fla. –  George Zimmerman accused the Sanford police department of corruption more than a year before he shot Trayvon Martin, saying at a public forum the agency covered up the beating of a black homeless man by the son of a white officer.

<snipped>

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/05/23/zimmerman-complained-about-sanford-police-in-2011/?test=latestnews
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« Reply #224 on: May 24, 2012, 04:39:23 PM »

Zimmerman wants evidence private in Martin case

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Attorneys in the Trayvon Martin case want some evidence kept out of the public realm until trial.
 
Prosecutors and George Zimmerman's attorneys filed motions Thursday asking a judge to keep statements Zimmerman gave detectives and the names and addresses of witnesses from being publicly released. Both items normally would be part of the public record under Florida law.
 
Zimmerman's attorney also wants to keep private text messages, emails and journal entries Zimmerman made, at least until he can review them. Prosecutors asked that Martin's cell phone records not be released publicly.   ::snipping2:: 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/47556757
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« Reply #225 on: May 24, 2012, 06:35:11 PM »

Poll: Floridians Support "Stand Your Ground" Law

ORLANDO (WKMG/CNN) - A new poll finds that majority of Florida voters support the state's "Stand Your Ground" law.

The law has been heavily debated in the wake of the death of Trayvon Martin.

The 17-year-old was shot and killed by a neighborhood watch volunteer who claimed self defense.

A Quinnipiac University survey of Florida voters finds that 56 percent are in favor of "Stand Your Ground."   ::snipping2:: 

http://www.kplctv.com/story/18619193/poll-floridians-support-stand-your-ground-law
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« Reply #226 on: May 24, 2012, 08:45:59 PM »

http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Prosecutors-George-Zimmermans-Attorney-Ask-To-Seal-Discovery-Materials-153838635.html

Prosecutors, George Zimmerman's Attorney Ask To Seal Discovery Materials
Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester Jr. has ordered a hearing for next Friday, June 1
Thursday, May 24, 2012  |  Updated 8:10 PM EDT

George Zimmerman’s attorney has agreed with prosecutors’ request that numerous discovery materials be sealed in new court motions.

“The State and Defendant wish to be able to receive a fair trial and try this case in the courtroom and not in the media,” prosecutors wrote in their motion for a protective order from Seminole County Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester Jr. They said that publishing various discovery materials in the media would result in the case being tried in the press and not in court, and would make it not possible to seat a fair, impartial jury in the county.

The state said that releasing evidence such as the names, addresses and phone numbers of potential witnesses would constrain both sides’ ability to hold a fair and independent investigation and present witnesses.

Lester has ordered a hearing on the matter for next Friday afternoon, June 1 in the Sanford courthouse.
 ::snipping2::
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« Reply #227 on: May 24, 2012, 09:25:01 PM »

Trayvon Martin family attorney: Zimmerman had ‘cozy’ relationship with police

Surveillance video released by the Florida State Attorney’s Office shows that George Zimmerman had a “cozy” relationship with the Sanford Police Department, an attorney for Trayvon Martin’s family told the Huffington Post.
 
The video shows Zimmerman walking unescorted through a Sanford police station three days after he shot and killed Martin. He also reportedly had a number of “ride alongs” with police, which he later described as “disgusting” because of the officers’ laziness.
 
“This video of Zimmerman just walking through the police department so casually underscores that people in that department have a familiarity with him,” attorney Benjamin Crump said. “It means that he had a relationship with the Sanford police department. And it’s just unusual that all along they would say they didn’t. But he went on several ride alongs with them and he was comfortable enough to walk unescorted through their department.”
 
On February 26, Zimmerman told police that he shot and killed the unarmed African American teenager out of self-defense. Zimmerman was not arrested that night, a fact that later sparked national outrage and a flood of criticism. Martin’s family attorney had questioned his relationship with the police, noting Zimmerman was a criminal justice student.   ::snipping2:: 

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/05/24/trayvon-martin-family-attorney-zimmerman-had-cozy-relationship-with-police/
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« Reply #228 on: May 24, 2012, 09:28:12 PM »

Grapevine: MSNBC pulling back on Trayvon Martin coverage?

Change of Tune
MSNBC is being accused of backing off of its coverage of the Trayvon Martin case after new evidence favorable to George Zimmerman -- the man charged with second degree murder in the case -- came to light.
 
The network spent hours, even full shows, covering the shooting for days after it happened.
 
But, according to Mediaite, last week after the new evidence about Zimmerman emerged there was not a single mention of the case on MSNBC's prime time programming...not one.
 
Even Reverend Al Sharpton who had taken his show on the road to cover the Martin case didn't mention it.  ::snipping2:: 


Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/special-report/2012/05/24/grapevine-msnbc-pulling-back-trayvon-martin-coverage#ixzz1vq9jrHJL
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« Reply #229 on: May 24, 2012, 10:35:48 PM »

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2012-05-24/news/os-george-zimmerman-secret-witnesses-20120524_1_special-prosecutor-angela-corey-witness-safety-trial
Legal fight likely looms over identifying witnesses in Zimmerman case
By Jeff Weiner and Rene Stutzman, Orlando Sentinel
May 24, 2012

If George Zimmerman goes to trial in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, a jury will be asked to determine whether the teen's death was a result of self-defense or murder. Anyone who saw or heard part of the deadly conflict could prove vital as jurors seek to piece together who was responsible.

But attorneys on both sides of the case have said they're concerned about what could happen if important civilian witnesses are identified publicly before trial. When a large portion of the evidence in the case was released last week, 22 witnesses were identified only by number.

That includes a South Florida girl who says she was on the phone with Trayvon in the moments before his death and a man who says he saw the teenager on top of Zimmerman as they struggled on the ground.

Media companies are expected to intervene, seeking to force the state to release the names, in what boils down to a struggle between the public's right to know and the defendant's right to a fair trial.

Ultimately, it will be up to Judge Kenneth Lester to decide what the public should see. On June 1, Lester will hear arguments on a motion to seal witness information and other evidence.

"The judge here is placed between a rock and a hard place," said Clay Calvert, director of the Marion B. Brechner First Amendment Project at the University of Florida. "Especially in a case that has been politicized so heavily."
More...
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« Reply #230 on: May 24, 2012, 11:13:37 PM »

“Trayvoning” image as seen on Facebook page.


1 of 5
 
Nearly three months have gone by since unarmed Florida teen Trayvon Martin, 17, was shot and killed by George Zimmerman, 28, while he was on his way home from 7-Eleven carrying Skittles and an iced tea. Martin’s case was low-profile until it got its buzz on social media and began making national headlines, which sparked a national conversation about race, “Stand Your Ground,” and gun laws in America.
 
While many Americans empathized with Martin’s family, others apparently found humor in Trayvon’s death.
 
A new photo meme called “Trayvoning” have been gaining steam on the Internet. The photos illustrate men wearing hoodies, with iced tea cans in one hand and Skittles in the other, laying down on their backs or stomachs as if they were dead. This “Trayvoning” trend has prompted Tumblr and Facebook pages.
 
The Facebook page called Trayvoning currently has just 5 likes. The anonymous authors of the page describe it:
 
Trayvoning is when you
 1. get hoodie
 2. get skittles
 3. get arizona
 4. wear hoodie
 5. go to florida
 6. get shot
Trayvon Martin was a 17-year-old African American male who was unarmed and got shot by a raciest [sic] mexican american.   ::snipping2:: 

http://thegrio.com/2012/05/24/trayvoning-trend-outrages-online-community/#s:trayvoning-1
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« Reply #231 on: May 24, 2012, 11:38:02 PM »



Agreeing with you, Red.

Initially I had thought Zimmerman was..as portrayed in those early reports..an out of control neighborhood vigilante.

Then, slowly but surely  we got to learn more.

Probably in the minority here but...the more I read of Trayvon Martin, stolen jewelry, burglar tool, weed residue in his back pack..and more, well..I then began to wonder what kind of parental control he had. All that trouble at school and the response was to ship him off to his father's girlfriend. His father didn't even stay home that night, not sure about the girlfriend. Had he been my child with that kind of track record there's no way in hell he would've had a cell phone that night, 40 bucks in his pocket and been out and about anywhere. I believe that he did attack Zimmerman.


Agreeing with both Red and Toler.

Let's not forget that TM was supposedly going to the store for his younger brother.  (Hadn't seen or heard hide nor hair about that brother since.  Was the younger brother living with the father?  It would have been a school night for him.)  What kind of parental unit let's their 17 yo walk to a store 20 minutes away in the rain in the dark?

A mention about marijuana that I hadn't seen noted yet, is that it can cause paranoid behavior.

There are so many unanswered questions.

Am not the greatest with internet search, did the best I could and came up with not a lot.
This:- portion of a comment

" I can’t even find out how many children Sybrina or Tracy had. I know TM did not have any full brothers or sister but had maybe 4 or 5 half brothers and sisters. I can’t even find out who raised TM as it was said early in the story that someone not involved in the past year or so actually raised him."

http://www.cayleedaily.com/2012/05/autopsy-trayvon-martin-tested-positive-for-marijuana-george-zimmerman-shot-him-in-heart-at-close-range/comment-page-31/
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« Reply #232 on: May 25, 2012, 02:15:37 AM »

http://wavenewspapers.com/news/national_world/article_227eea10-a626-11e1-9ecf-0019bb30f31a.html
Tape showed Zimmerman's anger over black man's beating
May 24, 2012

(CNN) — George Zimmerman gave a scathing review of the Sanford Police Department and accused its chief of engaging in a cover-up during a public meeting in January 2011.

Zimmerman's anger stemmed from the case of Sherman Ware, a black homeless man who was beaten by the son of a white police lieutenant.

Since Zimmerman shot and killed unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin in February — in what he insists was self-defense — Zimmerman's family has pointed to his efforts to "get justice" for Ware in response to people around the country who have accused him of racially profiling the 17-year-old. Zimmerman is Hispanic; Trayvon Martin was black.

Last year in September, Zimmerman wrote an e-mail to Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee saying, "In the past, I have not had a positive perspective of Sanford Police Department, due primarily to the Sherman Ware incident."

A video from the night of Ware's beating showed Justin Collison hitting the young man. Collison ended up pleading guilty to misdemeanor battery

Zimmerman's outrage over the incident was clear at the public meeting the previous January.

"I would just like to state that the law is written in black and white. It should not and cannot be enforced in the gray for those that are in the thin blue line," he said at the hearing. CNN obtained a recording this week.

He mentioned Brian Tooley, who was Sanford's police chief at the time of the Ware incident. "I'd like to know what action the commission intends on making in order to repeal Mr. Tooley's pension. I'm not asking you to repeal his pension. I believe that he's already forfeited his pension by his illegal cover-up and corruption and what happened in his department."

While Zimmerman is not heard specifically mentioning Ware in the recording, the official minutes from the hearing state that citizen demands included "a full review of the Sherman Ware cover-ups on behalf of" Sanford police.

Public outcries of police misconduct forced Tooley into early retirement. He was not charged with illegal activity.
 ::snipping2::
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« Reply #233 on: May 25, 2012, 10:43:22 AM »

Trayvon Martin Day declared at D.C. elementary school

A D.C. elementary school has declared Friday “Trayvon Martin Day.”
Teachers at Malcolm X Elementary in southeast are using the unfolding case to teach children about social injustice and race relations in the U.S.  ::snipping2:: 

http://www.wjla.com/articles/2012/05/trayvon-martin-day-declared-at-d-c-elementary-school-76327.html

Vid at link.
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« Reply #234 on: May 25, 2012, 10:49:25 AM »

Trayvon Martin Day declared at D.C. elementary school

A D.C. elementary school has declared Friday “Trayvon Martin Day.”
Teachers at Malcolm X Elementary in southeast are using the unfolding case to teach children about social injustice and race relations in the U.S.  ::snipping2:: 

http://www.wjla.com/articles/2012/05/trayvon-martin-day-declared-at-d-c-elementary-school-76327.html

Vid at link.

I'm not grasping this at all...how is this case about race except for through the one's that are stating this case is about racism?  I understand using this case to teach children about gun safety.  I understand using this case to teach about how a nation can use the media for their own agenda...and turn something like this into a racial case...but not about social injustice and race combined...blah. 
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« Reply #235 on: May 25, 2012, 11:45:34 AM »

Trayvon Martin Day declared at D.C. elementary school

A D.C. elementary school has declared Friday “Trayvon Martin Day.”
Teachers at Malcolm X Elementary in southeast are using the unfolding case to teach children about social injustice and race relations in the U.S.  ::snipping2:: 

http://www.wjla.com/articles/2012/05/trayvon-martin-day-declared-at-d-c-elementary-school-76327.html

Vid at link.

I'm not grasping this at all...how is this case about race except for through the one's that are stating this case is about racism?  I understand using this case to teach children about gun safety.  I understand using this case to teach about how a nation can use the media for their own agenda...and turn something like this into a racial case...but not about social injustice and race combined...blah. 

I agree.

I hope the school is teaching that GZ has had his civil rights stripped away by politicians, celebrities,
MSM and so forth, and that he is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law by a jury of his peers. Or the sad statistics of young black males dead or in prisons due to crime, violence, poverty and lack of education.

Unfortunately, I doubt this will be the case at Malcolm X Elementary.
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« Reply #236 on: May 25, 2012, 03:18:22 PM »

Trayvon Martin day at D.C. school

My fellow political junkies…allow me to briefly stray from usual fare of R’s vs. D’s and delve a bit into a subject I’ve been knee deep in lately. A couple of weeks ago I was sent to Florida to, as the boss put it, “dig up something new” on the Trayvon Martin case - a daunting assignment since it’s a story much of the media world had already thoroughly exposed…or so we thought.
 
While we were successful in finding some undiscovered nuggets in the investigation, what I really determined after surveying the neighborhood at day and night, reading countless background reports and talking with neighbors is that….we got it WRONG!
 
Yes, egg-on-our-faces wrong. We the media. We the general public. We the newsmakers on Capitol Hill.
 
How? We assumed. Then we took those assumptions, mixed them in a bowl full of emotions, prejudices, bigotry and election-year politics and got what we have now: a pressure cooker ready to constantly boil over.
 
Let’s start with the associations.
 
Case in point:
 
Friday, Malcolm X Elementary School in Washington DC decided to hold essentially a Trayvon Martin day. Students received bags of Skittles. Parents were encouraged to gulp down cold cans of Arizona Iced Tea.
I’m not being glib. This is true. Really.
 
The school is technically calling it the “Let’s Save Our Children” seminar to “allow this travesty to become a teachable moment in our community. This seminar will also act as a vehicle to establish partnerships between all community stakeholders.”
 
It seems countless people instantly picked sides…which are fine. We do it with sports/politics/reality TV.
 
But carrying ‘We Are Trayvon’ signs and donning hoodies or donating piles of money to the GZ Defense Fund were a bit presumptuous on most peoples’ behalves. None of us knows what really happened that night…yet passionate arguing could break out in any office space or cul-de-sac if you voiced favor for the ‘team’ opposite your co-worker or neighbor.
 
The photos of the two were subject to completely different interpretation based on which ones hit your ‘inbox’ (or which ones the news chose to publish). The backgrounds of the two were challenged or dismissed based on one’s own life experience. (Mind you, both had differences with the law over the years) The evidence was unknown yet we all seemed positive we could determine wound severity from some grainy surveillance video.
 
It was like a really bad game of Clue and none of us were going to win.
 Supposedly there was no doubt Trayvon Martin was the one yelling for help 14 times in 38 seconds. Then came the discovery papers last week and we learned neighbors say it was Zimmerman crying for help and that even Trayvon’s father after listening to 6 different audio tapes, admitted it was not his son shouting for assistance.
 
Supposedly Zimmerman’s injuries were superficial. Then we learn he suffered (although not requiring immediate hospitalization) a broken nose and serious cuts to the back of his head.
 
Supposedly officers gave Zimmerman a pass because he was ‘white’ and a neighborhood watch captain. Then we discover at least one officer felt Zimmerman should be charged with manslaughter and a special prosecutor with a highly-impressive record chose to charge him with the greater crime of 2nd degree murder.
 
Now, despite those accounts, reporters and supporters alike refuse to admit anything’s been clarified though some would really just rather not admit they got it wrong.
 
Sound confusing?
 
That’s the point. We don’t know.
 
We don’t know!
 
Yet we are almost all guilty of spreading half-truths and stirring the pot, even if unintentionally.
 
Finally, there’s Washington. You show me a polarizing controversy and I’ll show you a beltway full of politicos ready to take up verbal arms.
 
And of course, it also doesn’t help race relations when the President of the United States says if he had a son he would “…look like Trayvon.” He added another ingredient to this culinary disaster.
 
Further, plenty of people in-the-know have told me we’d be naïve to think DC didn’t have a heavy hand in the FBI’s choice to open a civil rights investigation to determine if what George Zimmerman did was a hate crime. IE, the orders came from up high.  ::snipping2:: 

http://www.wjla.com/articles/2012/05/trayvon-martin-day-at-d-c-school-76338.html
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« Reply #237 on: May 25, 2012, 07:26:16 PM »

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1205/24/ijvm.01.html
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL
What was George Zimmerman`s Relationship with Sanford Police?
Aired May 24, 2012 - 19:00   ET
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  " Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts."  - Daniel Moynihan
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« Reply #238 on: May 25, 2012, 09:21:34 PM »

Sybrina Fulton’s Class and Dignity

It’s as I suspected: Sybrina Fulton is a much better person than I am.
 
Fulton is better known as the mother of Trayvon Martin. Before February 26, 2012 of this year, Martin was just another 17-year-old American teen. That was before George Zimmerman changed all that.
 
Zimmerman fired one fatal shot into Martin’s heart the night of February 26 and then claimed self-defense under Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law. The incident happened in a small Florida town called Sanford.
 
Fulton didn’t buy Zimmerman’s self-defense claim. Tracy Martin, Trayvon Martin’s father, didn’t buy it either.
 
Plenty of people in this country DO buy Zimmerman’s self-defense claim, but trust me: many of those folks are the same ones who made Lt. William Calley a hero, and he wasn’t innocent either.
 
After Sanford police released Zimmerman without charging him and conducted what might kindly be called a Keystone Kops investigation, Fulton and Tracy Martin got a hold of lawyer Benjamin Crump.
 
Crump got a hold of some folks who took the Trayvon Martin case national. Martin went from ordinary 17-year-old teen to slain teen to national cause célèbre within a matter of months.
 
On Sunday, May 20, 2012 Fulton visited Baltimore’s Empowerment Temple to say thank you to some of the thousands of people who have supported her nationwide. She talked of how her faith in God got her through the pain of losing her son; she hugged Empowerment Temple members who had lost their own family members to violence.
 
She did not mention the name “George Zimmerman” not once. That’s why she’s a much better person than I am.
 
Were I in her shoes, I’d mention Zimmerman’s name constantly, even in the wake of all that “evidence” released only a few days before Fulton visited Baltimore.
 
Prosecutors released the evidence showing Zimmerman with cuts to the back of his head and blood on his nose. Zimmerman’s supporters are now clucking about how the photos “prove” that he acted in self-defense.
 
They “prove” no such thing. They only prove a fight took place. We already knew that. What we don’t know is who started the fight. We do know, from Zimmerman’s injuries, that Martin was the one about to finish it before Zimmerman shot him.
 
If Zimmerman started the fight, then Martin was the one acting in self-defense. If Martin started the fight, then Martin was the one acting in self-defense.
 
Sounds contradictory? It isn’t. I contend that just before the fight started it was Trayvon Martin who genuinely feared for his life, because he was been followed and stalked by a bona fide nut job. And when you are being followed and stalked by a bona fide nut job, you are perfectly justified in doing what Martin did to Zimmerman.   ::snipping2:: 

http://baltimoretimes-online.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1509:sybrina-fultons-class-and-dignity-&catid=107:gregory-kane&Itemid=489
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« Reply #239 on: May 25, 2012, 09:24:47 PM »

Trayvon Martin's father decries violence in visit to East St. Louis

Tracy Martin survived this city's tough streets, only to have his son, Trayvon, killed in a gated community in Florida.
 
Tracy Martin, who graduated from high school in East St. Louis in 1986, returned to his hometown on Friday as his son’s killing has thrust him into the national spotlight in a conversation over racial profiling.
 
Martin spoke about the heartache of losing his promising 17-year-old son in an encounter with a neighborhood watch coordinator at a small gated community in Sanford, Fla. George Zimmerman was charged with second-degree murder six weeks after shooting the unarmed Trayvon while the teenager was walking to his father’s home after buying Skittles and iced tea at a 7-Eleven on Feb. 26.
 
The episode put a fresh national focus on issues of race and what constitutes self-defense.
 
Martin was joined by Trayvon’s mother, Sybrina Fulton, and brother Jahvaris Fulton, before an enthusiastic crowd of about 300 people at the North End Missionary Baptist Church, 463 North 88th Street, to encourage those who have lost loved ones to speak against violence and the use of guns. They have appeared at many such events, including in Miami, Los Angeles, New York and London.
 
Martin took the stage to chants of “Tracy! Tracy!”
 
He listed the names of streets and housing projects here where he had lived, explaining, “I’m from all over East St. Louis.”
 
He added: “I’m coming here because these are my people.”
 
Lamenting the change since children could safely play in the streets, he called for more outreach programs to educate them, keep them safe and occupy their time. “If you are going to take the guns away, you have to replace it with something,” he said. “The first thing is God.”
 
The crowd responded with the refrain “I am Trayvon Martin,” which has become a catchphrase for protesters expressing solidarity.
 
Sybrina Fulton, Trayvon’s mother, said of her son: “Trayvon was no different from any one of your kids. He’s your son, he’s your stepson, he’s your godson, he’s your nephew ... he’s all of our sons.”
 
Martin and Fulton have developed a nonprofit in their son’s memory to help fund the costs of traveling and organizing rallies.  ::snipping2:: 


Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/trayvon-martin-s-father-decries-violence-in-visit-to-east/article_d3e19518-a686-11e1-9c15-0019bb30f31a.html#ixzz1vvzTZOru
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