Free Republic

The names of the six-member jury panel that acquitted George Zimmerman in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin have been made public for the first time, after a new court order, records show. Circuit Judge Debra Nelson, who had previously ordered the jurors' identifying information be kept confidential, granted access to the names in a ruling March 21.

Injustice: There are biased judges, and then there's Debra Nelson, who's presided over what can only be called a kangaroo court in the George Zimmerman trial. The bias of Nelson, Florida Circuit Court judge and a lifelong Democrat, in favor of the prosecution and its efforts to railroad Zimmerman as a racist murderer has been palpable throughout the case. Her actions, which have actively aided the state, could poison jurors and factor into future litigation. Her shameful rulings and behavior, therefore, are worth cataloging, and include: • Suppressing exculpatory evidence recovered from the (double-password-protected) cell-phone of Trayvon Martin that reveal...

Years before they would endure a televised pummeling in the Florida courtroom of Judge Debra Nelson, the two lawyers representing accused murderer George Zimmerman actually donated money to the prickly jurist’s first election campaign, records show. In 1999, Republican Governor Jeb Bush appointed Nelson, a lifelong Democrat, to fill a vacancy in the 18th Judicial Circuit (covering Seminole and Brevard counties). When Nelson ran the following year for a full six-year term, she donated 85 percent of her campaign’s $151,000 war chest

link only USA Today

(VIDEO-AT-LINK) A hostile exchange took place in the courtroom today where George Zimmerman is on trial for second degree murder as Judge Debra Nelson questioned the defendant about his plans to testify. Nelson reminded Zimmerman that he has the “absolute right to remain silent” if he so desires and proceeded to ask him whether he was prepared to testify. Defense attorney Don West twice objected to the question, but was overruled by Nelson, who explained, “The court is entitled to inquire if Mr. Zimmerman’s determination [sic] as to whether or not he wants to testify.” The judge then began asking...

... The State of Florida v. George Zimmerman, which started jury selection this week in Sanford, Fla., has the makings of another high-profile cliffhanger ... Presiding over the case is Debra S. Nelson, described by defense attorneys and others as a no-nonsense jurist. "She doesn't play games," Orlando criminal defense attorney Luis F. Calderon told Yahoo News. "She doesn't come across as mean, but she’s pretty firm in her rulings." ... Nelson ... has been on the bench for 14 years, having been appointed by then-Gov. Jeb Bush in 1999 ...

With just two weeks remaining before his trial, George Zimmerman's attorneys returned to court this morning for an important pre-trial hearing. Circuit Judge Debra S. Nelson has been be asked to decide a long list of issues, things that will determine how the trial plays out and what jurors will see and hear.