Posted on 04/01/2012 5:18:58 PM PDT by marktwain
Robert Zimmerman Jr. is steadfast in his defense of his brother George, insisting that he shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin to death in self-defense only because the teenager attacked him and attempted to take his gun, putting Zimmerman in mortal danger. Thats called saving your life, Robert Zimmerman Jr. said.
He appeared Thursday on CNNs Piers Morgan Tonight denying that Zimmerman pulled a gun from its holster and fired, instead saying that he stopped someone from disarming him and shooting him, he didnt pull out a gun and shoot him. George showed tremendous restraint.
(MORE: George Zimmermans Gun: A Popular Choice for Concealed Carry)
But according to an initial police report, Zimmerman told officers arriving at the scene of the Sanford, Fla., incident that he shot Trayvon Martin. Police reported that they found Trayvon lying face down on the ground and could not revive him. Zimmermans father, Robert Sr., told Orlandos WOFL-TV in a silhouetted interview that the teen attacked his son, threatening to kill him. At some point, Robert Sr. said, George pulled his pistol and did what he did. His information was based on his own conversations with his son and others, he said.
Zimmerman has claimed that Trayvon pummeled him, broke his nose and smashed his head against the ground, causing severe injuries. But a police surveillance video obtained Wednesday by ABC News, showed Zimmerman handcuffed in police custody and apparently without any of the injuries that would be consistent with a life-or-death struggle. But his brother insists that he actually was hurt and was treated at the scene.
(Excerpt) Read more at newsfeed.time.com ...
If Zimmerman gets a good lawyer who cuts a deal for Man2
>> But then, why do that in front of homes with witnesses and so close to your fathers house?
Pride, self-defense, anger, retribution.
Don’t rule anything out until everything is disclosed.
The very first thing they say is the first time they became aware of anything was the gunshot. I suppose Zimmerman might have been on top after Martin was dead. Which is just what the two of them say. The police say they are contradicting their original statements. At the end one of those loopy chicks says she "heard whining." But the first thing they heard was the shot. Couple of rooty toots. lol lame
...of male witness.
Initially he responds that he doesn't know who was on top. He's not sure of anything. Pop. Pops. Sounded like two "pops." Another rooty toot.
That's what I believe, too. From the beginning, the story has sounded as if Martin and Zimmerman were suspicious of each other.
It has been reported that there is a witness who saw everything from start to finish of the confrontation but they haven't spoken to the press about it or been named.
I don't remember hearing about that witness. But, even if the teen swung first, he still might've been acting in self-defense. That's what I was saying further up in this thread: They probably both believed they were acting in self-defense. If the teen attacked Zimmerman, as Zimmerman claims, what was the reason? Either he planned to attack him, or he didn't plan it. Zimmerman himself told the police that Martin was running away. So, Martin probably thought he was defending himself from the man following him. IMHO, no other scenario makes sense. I have to wake up early tomorrow. Goodnight.
Having had the chance to just go home he couldn’t very credibly claim self defense after doubling back to confront Zimmerman. Especially with a cell phone in his hand and no attempt to call the police.
I think the police are in a 'cover their a$$' mode.
The Sanford Police Department has a racially tinged past . Check out this video where Justin Collison, the son of a Sanford Police Lieutentant, was caught on camera beating a homeless black man.
And in 2005, two parking lot security guards, one the son of a Sanford police department veteran and the other a volunteer for the department, killed a black teen. Travares McGill was shot in the back. The guards asserted self-defense, and the case was dismissed.
It's odd that the Chief of Police and the State Attorney would leave their homes on a rainy Sunday night for the run-of-the-mill killing of a black teenager. Zimmerman and/or his dad must have friends in high places.
Did you listen to the entire tape ... or at least up to the 3:50 mark?
I listened to all of both of them. Which one are you referring to and what is it you want to say about it?
Are you freakin' kidding me? You're going to put blame on the police dept for what the son of an officer did? Sheez!
Not for what he did but for what they didn't do until they were called on it:
"Collison was captured on a YouTube video leaving a Sanford bar Dec. 4, walking up behind an unsuspecting Ware and punching him in the back of the head. That drove Ware's face into a utility pole, and he then hit the pavement.
He was taken to a Sanford hospital, where he was treated for a broken nose.
Sanford police questioned Collison that night and had possession of the video but did not arrest him. He was arrested one month later after news organizations began airing the video.
He was arrested one month later after news organizations began airing the video.
It didn't say that at the link. But it did say this which might be relevant to why the charges were dropped...
It was only on January 3rd of 2011 that Collison voluntarily turned himself in. Oddly enough, Collison agreed to pay for the Wares medical bills and make donations to several non-profits, most notably the NAACP! He plead guilty to a misdemeanor and was placed on a year of probation in October of 2011, the Orlando Sentinel reports.
And this is supposed to indict the whole dept. as racist? LOL
He wasn't on patrol at the time in question, he was running a personal errand...
the infowarrior
I am not quite clear about one thing. You say the police had the video that night but the article says “...the Sanford police officers son who came under fire after a YouTube video showed him beating up a homeless man,...” So, which is it? Did the police have the video that night or was it later when it was posted on Youtube or was it like you said “He was arrested one month later after news organizations began airing the video?”
I’m only just reading up on the case so bear with me. If the incident was reported and Justin was questioned that night, it seems likely that the police viewed the area surveillance tapes. If the person reporting also had access to the tapes, it seems reasonable to conclude that they released the tapes to the media a month later when it seemed that the police were taking no action.
SANFORD Prosecutors today formally filed charges against a Sanford police officer's son who was questioned by police but released the night he was captured in a YouTube video, sucker punching a homeless man.The case prompted Sanford's City Council to prematurely dismiss retiring Chief Brian Tooley. It also prompted the police agency to launch an internal investigation into why the 21-year-old man, Justin Collison, wasn't arrested that night.
I don't see how dismissing a police chief and launching an investigation helps make the case that they are corrupt. Much less racist.
Which they don't have. Unless you consider Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and Barack Obama to be probable cause.
There is no question in my mind that this rises to that level. Apparently, the investigators agreed, but the Sheriff and local prosecutor (who are elected officials) blocked the prosecution.
Link? You eat what the MSM shovels, it appears.
This is not a matter that can be decided by politicians.
Of course not. But that's precisely what the race pimps and libtards want!
I think that Zimmerman might beat it. He only needs to convince one juror that there is reasonable doubt.
Duh!
But I suspect that he will have to face a trial.
The mere fact of that would be a miscarriage of justice.
What bothers me most about all this is that it has reopened the gun control debate about the stand your ground law, and it seems to me that the stand your ground law does not apply. Zimmerman might have been acting in self defense, but I dont think you can say that he was standing his ground.
Jeez, no kidding, you don't say? Zimmerman wasn't standing his ground, he was lying on it. The law the libtards want to use this incident to repeal does not apply to it!
If Zimmerman violated the law, then he should be held accountable.
He didn't.
Im not going to excuse him just because the dead man had gold teeth.
Grillz be playa approved! Got dat?
And I sure hope that a jury doesnt.
Jurors are morons. Ask OJ.
Again, I'm just learning about this case; Alice might have more details - but it would seem that the firing was a CYA measure on the part of the city council after the actions (or inaction) of several members of the police department became public.
Side note: Based on some of the details in the article linked above, it would seem to be a case of old-fashioned nepotism and not necessarily a case of racism.
That is highly doubtful.
- but it would seem that the firing was a CYA measure on the part of the city council after the actions (or inaction) of several members of the police department became public.
I guess they can't win for losing. Fire the chief, investigate the cops and arrest the kid. Still guilty!
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.