Posted on 03/25/2012 12:30:48 PM PDT by Steelfish
Witness: Zimmerman 'Never ... Tried To Help' Trayvon Martin
By NBC News, msnbc.com staff and news services
A woman who says she and her roommate witnessed the final moments of Trayvon Martin's life told Dateline NBC that George Zimmerman had "his hands pressed on his back" and "never turned him over or tried to help him."
Zimmerman's lawyer, when shown part of the interview being aired Sunday night on Dateline, emphasized that his client would be claiming self-defense.
"I think there were efforts made to render aid to Trayvon," Craig Sonner told NBC's TODAY show.
Mary Cutcher told Dateline that she and her roommate both saw Zimmerman "straddling the body, basically a foot on both sides of Trayvon's body, and his hands pressed on his back."
Cutcher added that Zimmerman told her and her roommate to call the police. "Zimmerman never turned him over or tried to help him or CPR or anything," Cutcher said.
Sonner also reiterated what he had said in recent days, that Zimmerman suffered a broken nose and a gash to the back of his head.
A friend of Zimmerman's who appeared on TODAY with Sonner added that Zimmerman, 28, was distraught over the teen's death.
"Right after the shooting he couldn't stop crying," said Joe Oliver, who is African American and a former TV reporetr and anchor in Orlando.
Zimmerman has not been charged in the Feb. 26 shooting that has ignited racial tensions and raised questions about the Sanford police's handling of the case. Martin was black, and Zimmerman's father is white and his mother is Hispanic.
In a separate interview Sunday, Oliver said that "I'm a black male and all that I know is that George has never given me any reason whatsoever to believe he has anything against people of color.''
(Excerpt) Read more at usnews.msnbc.msn.com ...
This Oliver guy is about to be subjected to the same treatment as Clarence Thomas.
If you have 5-10 witnesses describing a situation, you'll have 5-10 different stories, interpretations, and recollections over events that often happen in a blink of an eye. Sometimes those are mistaken after talking to other people. Mary and John could both be telling what they think is the truth.
I’m gonna fess up front that I’m female so I don’t get accused of sexism.
It appears as an observer and occasional poster that it’s females largely that are coming down on the side of Martin.
I think the cute kiddie pics of him stirred up something maternal.
My alternate theory is the Mars vs Venus thing.
some are proposing the law of the jungle - You look at me funny - I’ll kill you.
Or die trying, I guess.
What law gives him the right to violate the kids civil rights. And you do not know anyone left anywhere. And the girl friend of the kid heard zimmerman before the phone went dead. And keep your childish personal insults to yourself.
Yes they can.
776.05 Law enforcement officers; use of force in making an arrest.-- A law enforcement officer, or any person whom the officer has summoned or directed to assist him or her, need not retreat or desist from efforts to make a lawful arrest because of resistance or threatened resistance to the arrest. The officer is justified in the use of any force:(1) Which he or she reasonably believes to be necessary to defend himself or herself or another from bodily harm while making the arrest;
(2) When necessarily committed in retaking felons who have escaped; or
(3) When necessarily committed in arresting felons fleeing from justice. However, this subsection shall not constitute a defense in any civil action for damages brought for the wrongful use of deadly force unless the use of deadly force was necessary to prevent the arrest from being defeated by such flight and, when feasible, some warning had been given, and:
(a) The officer reasonably believes that the fleeing felon poses a threat of death or serious physical harm to the officer or others; or
(b) The officer reasonably believes that the fleeing felon has committed a crime involving the infliction or threatened infliction of serious physical harm to another person.
What Zimmerman did in his car is none of your damn business...and what you play with in your car is none of HIS damn business...and NEITHER of which has ANYTHING to do with ANYTHING relating to being jumped/mugged/pinned and screaming/pummeled from behind...nowhere to go. WOW. You’re not very bright, are you?
Murder? I wouldn't go that far. It would be awfully tough to prove the mens rea in that situation. Certainly not 1st degree. 2nd degree could be argued, but I think there's certainly reasonable doubt for that.
I'm speculating, but based on the limited information I've seen (nobody here knows all the facts) if there is going to be a case, it would be for manslaughter.
That make any sense to you?
Absolutely.
Now if Zimmerman had pistol whipped Martin or threatened him or shoved him or punched him, that would a different story. But that is not what I’m getting.
I will admit, after doing a bit more looking, I can’t say for certain of that is him. I’ve been told it is, and isn’t. If not, my mistake, if that’s the case.
You are of course correct. Plus - killing someone at short range - emotional on top of physical trauma.
It is the “blood on the back of the head” that seals the confusion. AFTER a shot like that - the tendency is to go on autopilot - fight or flight. I could fight like that - but I could’t do algebra. Probably - fighting is about all I could do like that. It triggers a very specific feeling. A much reduced instruction set running in the brain. It’s been a while since I’ve had one fo those - but I bet there is an adrenaline/endorphine event that occurs. COMPLETELY different from a frontal lobe impact.
The cops would know this - same as you.
There is one aspect you leave off - the confusion of both guys. (It really is just a “two dumb guy” event.) - Martin probably assumed he was being followed by some Hispanic hard case. Zimmerman THOUGHT he was dealing with a career criminal.
NO; Not unless the cops are themselves in danger of life or in danger of serious physical injury.
See Tennessee v. Garner, 471 U.S. 1 (1985) a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that under the Fourth Amendment, when a law enforcement officer is pursuing a fleeing suspect, he or she may use deadly force to prevent escape ONLY if the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer or others.
There’s a lot of things that Zimmerman could of done wrong that might have justified Martin retaliating physically - problem is that there is no available evidence that Zimmerman did any of them.
Tas, you are correct....most are female, and all of those cute little pictures of Martin(before he became a thug) were just too much for them.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.