Wednesday, April 11, 2012

If Zimmerman isn't convicted there will be riots. Bet on it.
A better bet still: he will get convicted, because too much depends on it politically.

10 comments:

Mr. D said...

The only thing that surprises me is that Zimmerman has been charged with second degree murder. I assume that's a way to try to get him to cop a plea for manslaughter. Second degree murder is going to be a tough thing to prove in this case.

Gino said...

yeah, i was thinking the same thing.
murder is pretty severe.

i just want justice to take place, fair trial and all that....

i dont want to exonerate him or convict him. too bad either/or has already taken place in the media.

to their credit: Trayvon's parents seem on the level, not calling for a result, just a fair process.
but how much of their input matters at the street/al sharpton level remains to be seen.
i'm guessing not much, at this point.

John said...

If he accepts a plea to a lessor penalty then I suspect there will be outrage, but keep in mind a FL jury can do the unexpected. Remember Caylee Anthony? The entire nation had her mother Casey tried and convicted and the jury returned a not guilty verdict on the primary counts.
When you are required to prove the facts, it isn't the slam dunk the press seems to think it is.

my name is Amanda said...

I personally don't give a damn whether he gets convicted for "political" reasons. It's *thanks* to the media that he's not getting away with it. He followed and approached a KID who was merely walking down the street, started and fracas for no reason at all, and effing shot him. He's lost his pass for living in a peaceful society. It's egregious that it took this long to arrest him; the whole thing has made me sick from the beginning.

Gino said...

amanda: convict much?

VLW said...

Amanda, are you serious?

After weeks of study and deliberation, my general view on the sad case of Martin/Zimmerman is this: We don't have all the details on the attack and the shooting and we probably never will, even with the video and 911 calls.

Both victims were of a typical knee jerk law (Stand Your Ground) that dispensed with due process for the sake of expediency and solving a temporary problem that no longer existed (Katrina).

Making matters worse was a media that put speedy sensationalism above anything else, on both sides of the story. Zimmerman was tried by the media, completely undermining "innocent until proven guilty." Martin was dragged through the mud with sloppy information before the media had all its facts straight. Worst of all, thanks to NBC's absolutely unethical editing and the fact that people assumed that Zimmerman was white (I immediately could tell he wasn't, because I too am Hispanic,) was conflated into a really sad self-defense situation and turned into an imaginary hate crime.

Additionally, there's the fact that self-defense situations can often be very complicated and difficult to sort out, especially when someone dies. I have been in self-defense situations where I've had to physically attack or punch men for pinning me with the intention of sexual assault or groping me. Yes, the retaliatory force I used was proportionally stronger than was inflicted upon me, but when you're facing physical harm and you're afraid, the last thing you think about is the welfare of the assailant. You just want to live and escape without something horrible happening to you.

Having been there, I have sympathy for Zimmerman, if what he's saying happened is true. I also feel sympathy for Trayvor Martin's family -- no parent should have to face the death of a child.

I feel sorry for everyone involved in this cluster of nuts who isn't NBC. What really gets me about the whole situation is that there are more calls for "justice" (read: vengeance) than changing the idiotic law that caused the situation to begin with.

Bike Bubba said...

Part of me wants to note that Zimmerman is guilty of something that is not a crime--being over-zealous in a neighborhood watch--and then part of me remembers that in certain cities, and in certain businesses, it quite frankly pays to keep an eye on young men wearing hoodies.

I don't know if the deceased is one of the guys they really needed to keep an eye on, but I do remember, as a fishbelly white guy, admonitions from my parents to NOT look like the guy who's going to walk out of the store without paying for something. I listened, and it's been a blessing to me.

Brian said...

By Zimmerman's own account, he initiated contact, when he didn't have to, and against the advice of the 911 operator with whom he was on the line. Neighborhood watch =/= neighborhood pursue. That is evidence of intent to confront Martin.

By the neighbor's 911 call, it is clear someone is yelling for help immediately prior to the gunshot that killed Martin. Preliminary analysis has indicated that it is unlikely Zimmerman's voice. Zimmerman said that it is. That is evidence of possible concealment.

By the surveillance video, there is nothing that corroborates Zimmerman's account of his injuries at the hands of Martin. Further evidence of concealment.

I don't know if that is enough to convict Zimmerman (esp. of murder 2), but it is damn sure enough to press charges. This is going as it should.

The politics are irrelevant. Someone is dead. The police have a duty to investigate (a duty which they seemed for a while to have abdicated) and the prosecutors a duty to pursue a case if the evidence warrants.

but I do remember, as a fishbelly white guy, admonitions from my parents to NOT look like the guy who's going to walk out of the store without paying for something. I listened, and it's been a blessing to me.

Wonderful. But being white certainly helps. I wear hoodies all the damn time and no one looks at me sideways when I walk into a store. Nobody crosses the street to avoid me. Nobody tenses up if I approach them.

K-Rod said...

The special prosecutor prayed first with the parents before she...

WTF does this have to do with it? And how can the prosecutor already claim martin is the victem?

Has Obama decided how long the trial will last?

K-Rod said...

Amanda,Brian:
Are you part of the special prosecutor's team?

Nice torch and pitchfork, you wear it well.