Zimmerman Charged

Discussion in 'Off-Topic Discussions' started by Maniac Craniac, Apr 11, 2012.

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  1. Maniac Craniac

    Maniac Craniac Moderator Staff Member

  2. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    Didn't see that coming! :rolleyes:

    I can't wait for the rationale of how looting a store is in honor of Trayvon after the not-guilty verdict comes down.
     
  3. mcjon77

    mcjon77 Member

    Unless, of course, he is found guilty.
     
  4. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    With Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law, it's going to be extremely difficult to convict him, unless the jury just disregards the law.
     
  5. jam937

    jam937 New Member

  6. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    Makes me think back to the 1996 riots in the Tampa Bay area. I had a co-worker that lived in the area (I lived about 2 miles from it) and it was unreal when people burned their own houses down in protest...figure that one out! :aargh4:
     
  7. jam937

    jam937 New Member

    Correction ... they burned their landlords' houses down. I was there in 1996. People didn't burn down their own houses. A grand jury cleared the two officers of all charges.

    Race relations are so much worse today then they were in 1996. If Zimmerman is found not guilty the riots will be massive.
     
  8. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    Are you certain of this? The fires did not effect any of the houses they owned? If you are right I stand correct but I seriously doubt it. They also burnt down businesses (I think Kanes Furniture was the largest of them to be destroyed) and those/that business never came back. I do not understand the logic of burning down employers and then later complain that there are not jobs. As a result of the riot, anyone with a south St Pete address was given a free education at PTEC for the public works academy in hopes to move them into city/county jobs. Do you remember that?
     
  9. jam937

    jam937 New Member

    I was involved in real estate in the Tampa/St Pete area back in the 90's. I thought the riot area (close to Bartlett Park/Midtown?) in St Pete was in an area with a large rental market and I know it has some big public housing complexes.

    I think only about 20 structures were burned down and I can't say with certainty they were not owned by the rioters. BUT ... the police substation and businesses they burned down were not theirs and the "odds" are in my favor that the residential structures were not owned by the rioters as that area was ~60% renter occupied.
     
  10. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    I'm assuming that the District Attorney would not have brought charges unless there was a compelling case. Otherwise, wouldn't it just become a political embarrassment, to bring charges and then not be able to make your case in court? This is not my world, high politics and the law, but I don't think that the DA wants a high profile trial that they can't win. They must have some credible evidence. Considering the political climate I'm guessing that the next thing we see is a motion for a change of venue.
     
  11. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Citation needed, to put it mildly.
     
  12. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    After hearing the speech the DA gave my guess is that this is all about her being able to jump out in front of the media. She is in an elected office after all and certainly not above the politics. She is charging Zimmerman of the most serious charge she can without submitting to a grand jury, which is bypassing a measure of due process in my opinion and if she used a grand jury they could "no bill" her case saying she did not have enough evidence to go forward with the charge. At this point the only person who can toss the case would be the presiding judge who of course will not given the political hot potato this thing has become.

    Will Zimmerman get a fair trial? Honestly I hope so but there is no way that they can get a jury that hasn't heard all the rhetoric on the case. The short of it is there was a loud call for Zimmerman's arrest, the DA has now facilitated that. A 2nd degree murder conviction would be all but impossible to get given the evidence that has been released thus far, plus the stand your ground law, assuming an unbiased jury...and the critical component to all of this is an eye witness who apparently is the only one (so far) who backs up Zimmerman's claims. Will Zimmerman try to plea bargain? I don't know. I wouldn't if I were him but the guy is losing his mind by all recent reports so who knows. Either way this is a no lose situation for the DA, either she "wins" or she "tried her best" to seek justice. She in fact did the only thing a career oriented quasi-politician could do...she pandered.
     
  13. perrymk

    perrymk Member

    One statement gave me pause. The parents said all they wanted was an arrest. Not, we want jsutice or we want to see him in prison. It almost sounded like they were acknowledging Treyvon might not have been 100% innocent. This doesn't make Zimmerman innocent either; I just thought it sounded odd coming from the parents.


    "We simply wanted an arrest; we wanted nothing more, nothing less," said Martin's mother, Sybrina Fulton. "We just wanted an arrest, and we got it and I say thank you, thank you Lord, thank you Jesus."
    George Zimmerman charged, hearing expected Thursday - CNN
     
  14. RBTullo

    RBTullo Member

    I will be the first to admit I am not familiar with the "Stand Your Ground" law, so I am not aware how this law would nullify long standing case law regarding the claiming of self-defense (generally you cannot claim self-defense for a fight you started). Let there be no doubt that Zimmerman is responsible for this incident. He followed Martin from his car, he escalated the situation when he exited his vehicle with a weapon and approached him. He then engaged in a physical exchange with Martin whom he subsequently shot when be began to lose. This may be a lot of things (stalking, aggravated assault and murder) but it wasn't self-defense.
     
  15. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

  16. DLer

    DLer New Member

    As someone who has lived in Seminole county for the past 20+ years, I have a different take on this. There are two significant events that preceded this case. One involved the shooting (in 2005) of a teenager by security guards in an apartment complex Teen Fatally Shot By Security Guards Took Two Bullets | www.wftv.com, the second involved the son of a police lieutenant who knocked out a homeless man Police: Officer's Son Involved In Sanford Bar Brawl - Orlando News Story - WESH Orlando
    In both of these cases there were no immediate arrests. This has led to a questioning by many Central Florida residents as to how the Sanford Police Department handled or handles investigations. Nobody rioted when the security guards were eventually tried and acquitted. People here (including Trayvon's mom) simply want the justice system to work for all residents (regardless of the eventual outcome).

    It's no secret that the SA involved in this case has a reputation for being hard on crime. The attorney for Zimmerman (Mark O'Meara) is one of the most well respected and experienced (25+ years) defense attorneys in Central Florida. His style is refreshingly direct, honest and devoid of the showboating that many attorneys display in high profile cases. We in Central Florida are familiar with his style because he was one of the legal experts used throughout the Casey Anthony trial. Both parties have excellent representation.
     
  17. Maniac Craniac

    Maniac Craniac Moderator Staff Member

    I would trade 4000 posts for one Bachelor's degree :worried:
     
  18. DLer

    DLer New Member

  19. Abner

    Abner Well-Known Member


    Thanks for your input. I think in the end, any parent regardless of color would want justice for their dead child. Mark O'Mara showed some decency and classy decorum in offering his condolences to Trayvon's parents yesterday.

    I do think that if a cop or soldier is investigated in a shooting, a civilian should be ready to face questions, and present his/her side of the story if he/she claims self defense. If you want to play cop or soldier and use deadly force, be ready to answer some tough questions.

    Abner
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 12, 2012
  20. Abner

    Abner Well-Known Member


    Keep plugging away, knowing you, you'll have that Bachelor's in no time.

    Abner :)
     

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