Posted on 11/20/2012 5:54:32 AM PST by Uncle Chip
MIAMI — The lead detective in the George Zimmerman murder trial hired famed lawyer Jose Baez to represent him as he maneuvers the next steps of the contentious high-profile case, The Miami Herald has learned.
Chris Serino, a former Sanford Police major-crimes investigator, became a controversial figure when evidence revealed that the detective had quietly filed an arrest affidavit a few weeks after the shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin, even as his chief publicly said there wasn't enough evidence to make a case.
A letter was sent last week by Baez to Dean Ringer Morton & Lawton, the law firm that sometimes represents the city of Sanford, advising that he will represent Serino in the upcoming proceedings. It is highly unusual for investigators to approach a murder trial with their own counsel.
Baez, who gained fame with the 2008 Casey Anthony case, declined to comment. A spokesman for Baez confirmed the letter and said Serino felt he needed an attorney to look out for his interests in the next stage of the case, but that he does not plan to file a lawsuit.
(Excerpt) Read more at mcclatchydc.com ...
Holy Carp! I wonder if Hannity knows about this?
The article has been pulled - along with the dead perp’s rap sheet.
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"An FBI report released this summer showed Serino told agents that he was pressured by African-American officers to file charges."
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there were racist cops in sanford, alright. black racist cops THREATENED det serino
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FYI
Did you ever speak to anyone outside of the department about this case during that time???
Despite all the discussion back and forth for all these months, the police report of that night still stands as the most reliable unalterable document pointing to an assault followed by a self-defense shooting. And yet you Serino with all of this evidence of self-defense still file for a Capias???
He's smart to have an attorney. He will need one. He may plead the 5th on several occasions during his deposition.
He's smart to have an attorney. He will need one. He may plead the 5th on several occasions during his deposition.
One would think that if there was a real possibility that a particular cop involved in this did anything "criminal"...or even if said cop did something to seriously jeopardize the case in a *non* criminal way...the DA would take him aside and get to the bottom of it.Although I'm no lawyer and didn't even stay in a Holiday Inn last night I would think that this key witness for the prosecution having hired a criminal defense lawyer would cause the DA some sleepless nights...at the very least.It seems to me that any prosecution witness,particularly a cop,taking the 5th might cause the judge to immediately declare Zimmerman to be not guilty.
If he needs to rely on the 5th during his deposition he should not be working in LE and should be fired.
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