Some news reports about the slaying of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla., suggested Martin was a “thug.” I do not think it matters.
That someone could take another person’s life and think he would not have to face the consequences was the issue. On July 4, a man in Kansas City, Mo., accidently shot and killed a little girl from across a lake. I’m sure it was an accident but the man was still charged in connection with the shooting.
How can Trayvon’s history justify why George Zimmerman killed him? Let’s not turn this into a racial issue because this is clearly an issue of right and wrong.
STEPHANIE HAYES, KANSAS CITY, MO.
Comments (204)
Steph....
Zimmerman is of Hispanic descent. Although, with a name like Zimmerman, I would venture to guess that he is not full Hispanic....and have you seen the photos of the back of Zimm's head? Now they are more than likely arguing that it was photoshopped. But, if I were to see actual stitches or a scar where the blood was located, I would tend to think that it was self defense. But then again, I don't think we'll ever know the truth.
"She's the queen of the bees, that buzz in the bars....fresh as a strawberry, and then she always loved dancing" - Perry Farrell
Perhaps we should wait for the trial.
Don't forget the Duke Lacrosse team.
Thanks for the letter, Stephanie.
You sound like you're level-headed.
When we know what they know, then we'll be able to judge.
In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage.
--John Steinbeck
That's assuming the jury are
That's assuming the jury are allowed to see all the facts lucinda.
Judges have allot of discretion over what evidence is & is not allowed to be put forward.
Consider that combination with a few things.
The media pretty much set up Zimmerman to look like a "White Nazi wanabe thug" as soon as they could (when in fact he is half Latino with a Jewish father & votes democrat) going so far as to alter recordings to reinforce that view (they admitted to that & fired a random peon for it).
The nations AG Eric Holder has been extremely biased against white people & very pro African American, even going so far as to say that He will refuse to let some African American groups to be charged with hate crimes (look up how he handled the black bather party terrorizing voters where the were screaming kill the white people, r@pe the women ^ behead their babies)
Then take into account how corrupt large portions of our government are anymore & how many politicians, judges etc... have been found to be in the pocket of special intrust groups or companies over the last decade.
Knowing all this i would not be surprised at all if they gave Zimmerman a sham of a trial in order to gain politically, money from payoffs or to keep "Certain Parts" of the population from causing worse destruction then they did after the "Rodney King Incident".
"Let’s not turn this into a racial issue..."
Too late.
Grand piano, reed and pipe organ, glockenspiel, bass guitar, double-speed guitar, two slightly distorted guitars, mandolin, Spanish guitar and introducing acoustic guitar...plus TUBULAR BELLS.
STEPHANIE HAYES, and farmer_ted
Yes we know what really happened. It happened just the way the law had intended. Zimmerman was the aggressor and he followed Trayvon and Trayvon turned around and probably did attack him standing his ground. Zimmerman thought had he had an easy target but soon learned that Trayvon was a lot stronger than he thought. He was loosing the battle so he pulled his gun and shot trayvon in the chest. If some body was following us we would probably do the same thing. I will bet my life that the murder Zimmerman would have never approached Trayvon with out a gun. I can not see Zimmerman getting off these charges when he was told to back away by the 911 operator and still followed him. When you look at the photo of the blood on zimmermans head don't you find it kind of strange that it was just leaking blood and was not smeared all over his head because he said trayvon was banging his head all over the place. One more thing who and when was the picture taken the medic are not allowed to do it and he was treated in back of a police car and why no nose picture with all the blood running from a broken nose.
As for a black and white trial it will be one if he gets off because we already know Zimmerman was the aggressor and Trayvon was standing his ground. Also I think the black and white issue has already been introduced when the bond was set at 150,000 and which is only 15,000 to Zimmerman. Do you think if it was the other way around the bail would have been set so low. Hell no.
Trayvon
Trayvon stood his ground and he paid his life for that.
Trayvon did not instigate the altercation. Nowhere and at no time has anyone including the Zman accused Trayvon of starting this incident, the Zman with his gun was the catalyst.
Trayvon was not in the act of committing a crime.
Even if the pics of the Zman's bloody head are real, so what? He instigated the altercation and he should have gotten roughed up for that.
If you would bother to read the Florida Stand Your Ground Law you would realize that it was written for people in situations like what Trayvon was facing and not for a person like the Zman.
So yes the Stand Your Ground Law does and will apply to this case and hopefully put Zimmerman away for years.
The best evidence against Zman are the 911 tapes so who you gonna believe, a lying trying to save his rear-end Zimmerman or your own ears when listening to the real evidence of the 911 tapes?
Remember Trayvon can't testify so in all actuality the 911 tapes have to speak for him and if you want to believe the killer over the victim well then I guess there's no hope for you as far as fairness and justice are concerned.
Without the 99% there would be no 1%.
EastSider
With the Duke Lacrosse team case there were two sides to the story and the jury decided that the accuser was lying.
In this case one side of the story is laying dead and buried in the ground and only has the 911 tapes to speak for him.
The 911 tapes don't lie.
All of the speculation, fabrication and false information that have since been disseminated are irrelevant.
Zimmerman is not an officer of the law in any regards and had absolutely no authority to do anything about or with Trayvon other than make the call to 911 and report what he was seeing....period.
Everything that happened after Zimmerman disobeyed the 911 operator was then, and still remains, illegal acts committed by Zimmerman and one of those illegal acts was murder.
We in America do not condone vigilante acts. You do not have the right or legal authority to take the law into your own hands.
Self-defense does not apply to the person that pursues another person even if the person that is being pursued turns to defend them self.
Without the 99% there would be no 1%.
Amazing
It is amazing the amount of incorrect information spouted as facts.
There is no evidence to date that Zimmerman was the aggressor. In court yesterday, the detective was asked under oath if he knew who started the fight and he answered he did not. The detective on the case doesn't know who started the fight, but posters on here know with certainty who did. Amazing.
Where is the evidence that Zimmerman disobeyed the dispatcher? First, the dispatcher cannot order anyone to do anything. Second, as I recall from the tapes, Zimmerman said, ok when the dispatcher told him he did not need to follow Martin. But again, the posters on here know for a fact that he followed Martin and started the fight.
Finally, the stand your ground real is not in play for Zimmerman's defense. He was on the ground getting pummelled (substantiated by eyewitnesses) so it is an issue of whether he was acting in self defense.
@kansastruthteller
"There is no evidence to date that Zimmerman was the aggressor."
1. Zimmerman was armed
2. Zimmerman was stalking Martin
This is America - we routinely consider people we don't trust having weapons as acts of aggression. Have a look at North Korea and Iran. Stalking is also considered an act of aggression in most states.
"First, the dispatcher cannot order anyone to do anything."
That would depend if the dispatcher was a LEO or a civilian. In either case, dispatch is operating directly with LEOs and may very well be relaying orders.
"Second, as I recall from the tapes, Zimmerman said, ok when the dispatcher told him he did not need to follow Martin."
The word "OK is not what I heard from the tapes...it was something about a coon. Either way, let's think about basic geometry. Martin is walking away and Zimmerman leaves his vehicle to follow. At what point does Martin get between Zimmerman and his vehicle...especially without him knowing it.
Sad news----
Sadly, the narrow minded faction is winning. This case has become about race, rather than about a teenager who was shot to death. Whether or not you "side" with Zimmerman or Trayvon, one fact is clear--Trayvon Martin is dead. George Zimmerman is alive.
I am sick of reading articles about Trayvon's past, and if he was such a bad kid that he "deserved" to die. I am also sad that this is turning into a race war!
Personally, I wonder why Zimmerman had a gun, in the first place. I also wonder why he did not obey the instructions to stay back, from the police. I also think that Florida's "stand your ground" law is a recipe for disaster. If guns are owned, they should only be owned by safe, sane people--not crazy people who feel that someone who just "looks different' is a danger to them.
I hope some sanity can be brought into this tragic story!
Michael Anderson
New York, New York
michael
Your post is exactly the type of post to which I was referring in my post. The "police" never instructed Zimmerman to stop following Martin.
The dispatcher told Zimmerman that he didn't need to follow him and Zimmerman replied OK. So how do you get that he continued following Martin?
Link me to one article that states because of Martin's past he deserved to die. I've not heard any legitimate news source or organization state that he deserved to die.
As far as someone who just looks different, I don't get that from the transcript. It seems to me that Zimmerman focused on Martin's actions not his looks. Paste or quote something from the transcript that suggest that Zimmerman focused on anything but Martin's actions.
Stick to the facts and let the court system sort out if Zimmerman is guilty or not.
@jlutes
The dispatcher was not a LEO so he could not order Zimmerman to do anything.
Here is a link to the transcript. http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/326700-full-transcript-zimmerman....
As far as the coon comment that has been proven to be incorrect.
Read the transcript, listen to the court proceeding and base your opinion on facts and law.
Blacks don't care right or wrong
If he is judged innocent which I believe he might be the blacks will scream injustice and play the race card, they will riot and destroy property and injure whites just like black people always do
Michael
"Personally, I wonder why Zimmerman had a gun, in the first place."
He had a permit.
"I also wonder why he did not obey the instructions to stay back, from the police."
Where is your proof that he didn't stop following.
"If guns are owned, they should only be owned by safe, sane people--not crazy people who feel that someone who just "looks different' is a danger to them."
Again, where is your proof?
"My greatest fear in life is that no-one will remember me after I'm dead." - Some dead guy
kansastruthteller---jerryo
""There is no evidence to date that Zimmerman was the aggressor."" What 8n the hell are you talking about? Zimmerman was told not to follow Trayvon and he did end of story. So don't try your case against a murder. He broke the stand your ground law when he kept following Trayvon. If you can't see that you are a true Racist. You say the dispatcher didn't have the power to tell Zimmerman to stand down, right there tells you that Zimmerman was the aggressor.
Why I even want to address what you wrote makes me about as stupid as you are. You dam idiot white men cause more destruction and crimes per capita than blacks it is just that blacks get convicted more that the whites do. Because of people like you we live in a racist world. You and if your family believe like you do you people are very sick.
kansastruthteller---jerryo
""There is no evidence to date that Zimmerman was the aggressor."" What in the hell are you talking about? Zimmerman was told not to follow Trayvon and he did end of story. So don't try your case against a murder. He broke the stand your ground law when he kept following Trayvon. If you can't see that you are a true Racist. You say the dispatcher didn't have the power to tell Zimmerman to stand down, right there tells you that Zimmerman was the aggressor.
-jerryo---- Why I even want to address what you wrote makes me about as stupid as you are. You dam idiot white men cause more destruction and crimes per capita than blacks it is just that blacks get convicted more that the whites do. Because of people like you we live in a racist world. You and if your family believe like you do you people are very sick.
kansastruthteller---jerryo
""There is no evidence to date that Zimmerman was the aggressor."" What in the hell are you talking about? Zimmerman was told not to follow Trayvon and he did end of story. So don't try your case against a murder. He broke the stand your ground law when he kept following Trayvon. If you can't see that you are a true Racist. You say the dispatcher didn't have the power to tell Zimmerman to stand down, right there tells you that Zimmerman was the aggressor.
-jerryo---- Why I even want to address what you wrote makes me about as stupid as you are. You dam idiot white men cause more destruction and crimes per capita than blacks it is just that blacks get convicted more that the whites do. Because of people like you we live in a racist world. You and if your family believe like you do you people are very sick.
kansastruthteller---jerryo
""There is no evidence to date that Zimmerman was the aggressor."" What in the hell are you talking about? Zimmerman was told not to follow Trayvon and he did end of story. So don't try your case against a murder. He broke the stand your ground law when he kept following Trayvon. If you can't see that you are a true Racist. You say the dispatcher didn't have the power to tell Zimmerman to stand down, right there tells you that Zimmerman was the aggressor.
-jerryo---- Why I even want to address what you wrote makes me about as stupid as you are. You dam idiot white men cause more destruction and crimes per capita than blacks it is just that blacks get convicted more that the whites do. Because of people like you we live in a racist world. You and if your family believe like you do you people are very sick.
kansastruthteller---jerryo
""There is no evidence to date that Zimmerman was the aggressor."" What in the hell are you talking about? Zimmerman was told not to follow Trayvon and he did end of story. So don't try your case against a murder. He broke the stand your ground law when he kept following Trayvon. If you can't see that you are a true Racist. You say the dispatcher didn't have the power to tell Zimmerman to stand down, right there tells you that Zimmerman was the aggressor.
-jerryo---- Why I even want to address what you wrote makes me about as stupid as you are. You dam idiot white men cause more destruction and crimes per capita than blacks it is just that blacks get convicted more that the whites do. Because of people like you we live in a racist world. You and if your family believe like you do you people are very sick.
Ron LaBarge
5 posts? really?
"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."
Chicago...
So in Chicago two black youths beat up and robbed a white man this week, claiming they did so because they were upset about Trayvon Martin.
Can you imagine the race riots that will take place in this country if Zimm is found innocent? They should start prepping the national guard right now.
"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."
@RlB
How do you know who the agressor was when the detective under oath said he did not know who started the fight? If there was evidence that Zimmerman was the aggressor, then when asked who started the fight the detective would have answered Zimmerman did, but he said he didn't know. So what evidence do you have that the detective doesn't?
Please show me the evidence that Zimmerman kept following Martin after being asked not to by the dispatcher? I've not seen it, but obviously you have so I am sure you'll share it with me.
@abe
If you don't have quality go with quantity?
Kansastruthteller, on the 911 call Zimmerman made to the
dispatcher after the dispatcher state's for him not to follow Zimmerman you can
tell that he is still running after saying ok. And that court procedure for the bond yesterday
where the detective spoke was not under oath. Also as I stated earlier on the SYG article that
Zimmerman had 2 flashlight's on him when the police arrived. Why?? Because he was
searching for someone in the dark perhaps??
ottawaway
Glad someone is keeping race out of the situation and using common sense.
you seem
To think that only zippy had a right to stand his ground. Martin had just as much right to stand his ground against a man following him for no reason and had a gun.
Ted Nugent, says there are no repeat offenders just dead ones.
Well ted guess now that you have pleaded guilty does this apply to you too?
what a zero.
Lord loves a workin' man; don't trust whitey; see a doctor and get rid of it.
jerryo....
That was a pretty lame post dude.
"She's the queen of the bees, that buzz in the bars....fresh as a strawberry, and then she always loved dancing" - Perry Farrell
ABETeacher
Ron LaBarge
By ABETeacher | 04/21/12 - 10:53 am
5 posts? really?
Hey ABE if you are so bold and righteous why don't you give us your first name and last or do you hide under mamas skirt. Loser!
Also in the court procedure yesterday Zimmerman's
apology to the parent's he stated he thought Trayvon was a few year's younger than
him & he did not know if he was armed. The age part is a lie because in the 911 call Zimmerman made, when he is giving his address to the dispatcher & stop's stating he
doesn't want to give his full address because he doesn't know where the KID is & doesn't
want him to hear him. As far as him stating he didn't know if Trayvon was armed, why
would you even get out of your vehicle not knowing if this person was armed let alone
look for them in the dark. Still say that the sound between him giving his 1st & last name
on that 911 call is of him engaging his gun. Beside's the point of if Zimmerman would have
quit running when asked by the dispatcher I believe that incident would have happened
closer to his truck. And I do believe that Trayvon fought back. I would of too. I hope the
parent's sue the pant's off of the homeowner's association & the Sanford police department.
For 1 thing they had access to Trayvon's phone & could have called anybody in the contact's
to find out who to notify that their son had been shot. Not to tell them over the phone but
at least get an address where they could come & talk to them instead of leaving Mr.Martin
to wonder where his son was.