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Florida boy killed by Neighborhood Watch (3 Viewers)

NEWSFLASH: A black kid walking home does not require any action, especially calling 911.

Also this is very suspicious: Police declined to comment on who confronted whom first or what the altercation was about.

Why on earth would they decline comment about this, if Zimmerman is claiming self-defense against an unarmed assailant 9 years his junior?

And

The family’s attorney has asked for the 911 recordings, but police say the case is still under investigation.

"When I asked the police why there’s been no arrest, they told me they respected the guy’s background, that he had a four-year degree; that he was clean," Tracy Martin said. “But did they check my unarmed son’s record? No.”

???

 
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How? There is no question who shot who. Did shooting unarmed people become legal while I was asleep?

Just reverse the races for one second: Armed black man shoots and kills unarmed white teen just steps away from his front door.

Is there any way in hell that black man is not in jail and facing murder charges?

And maybe its me but the level of outrage in this thread is way below where it needs to be.
It can be. Especially if he is kicking your ###.
 
Not sure how the blue highlighted comments are conjecture? From what we know, he was told by the 911 operator to wait for police. The situation did not require any action other than calling 911.
It's conjecture because we don't know what happened. From the article: Soon after the 911 call, Zimmerman and the teen got into an altercation. Police declined to comment on who confronted whom first or what the altercation was about.Again, none of us have any idea how it went down, but isn't it at least possible that the kid attacked Zimmerman after he made the 911 call?
 
Here's what we know from the article:An unarmed boy was attempting to return to his home at night.That home is in a gated community.Zimmerman saw the boy walking down the street and called 911.Zimmerman at some point after calling 911 and before police arrived left his car and confronted the boy.The boy is dead. Zimmerman shot him.Zimmerman had a bloodied nose and grass stain on his shirt.This is not enough, in your opinion, to charge Zimmerman with a crime?
Well let's see. We know he was shot by Zimmerman and apparently there were signs Zimmerman was involved in a scuffle with the boy. We don't how that scuffle started. We don't know what happened once that scuffle started. We don't now how the scuffle may or may not have played a part in that gun going off. Seems to me there are still some questions that need to be answered before pressing charges. I am of course hoping that the police will fully investigate and that real evidence exists to help them answer these questions so that if a crime was committed the person who committed it is charged and punished to the fullest extent possible.
 
OK, all the white-murder apologists listen up:

The guy called 911 because he saw a black kid (aka suspicious person) in his neighborhood

Sanford police received a 911 call reporting a suspicious person.

Although names are blacked out on the police report, Crump and media reports at the time of the shooting identified the caller as George Zimmerman

He (after calling 911 because he saw a black person) took the law into his own hands and confronted the kid (who was in his own neighborhood).

Without waiting for police to arrive, Crump said, Zimmerman confronted Trayvon, who was on the sidewalk near his home. By the time police got there, Trayvon was dead of a single gunshot to the chest.

The kid likely mouthed off, knowing dude was a total racist.

Words are exchanged. Scuffle happens. Armed paranoid white instigator kills unarmed black passer-by.

That does not mean it's no one's fault. It is Zimmerman's fault for approaching someone armed, and then firing that gun at someone and killing them. He deserves to be tried and convicted for murder and should be in jail right now. I can not think of a single justifiable reason this man is currently a free man.

ETA: When did this forum become affiliated with StormFront? Ridiculous what's going on in here.
Even if we take everything you've written as gospel that does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that it was murder. The guy confronts the kid without taking out his weapon. The kid gets scared and takes a poke at the guy. They struggle. The kid gets his hands on the weapon. The both end up with their hands on the gun and it goes off.
He injected himself into a situation that he should not have, obviously was suspicious of the kid for no good reason, and brought a live firearm into a situation where he created a confrontation needlessly, and likely against the advice of the police he spoke to just moments before.So you're going to dream this up into involuntary manslaughter? BULL####. It was a situation that did not require any action whatsoever, the guy assaulted the kid, and the kid ended up dead.

ETA: Did I seriously just read this?

The only question is should there be charges.

Really? An unarmed, innocent kid is dead, and you wonder if there should be charges at all? WTF is going on in here? Am I misreading that as well?

I'm sorry but there is some virulent racism going on in this thread. Or something. I don't know what the hell is wrong with people in here. I have heard at least 1/3 of the posters in here try and find some way to mitigate this guys guilt. He shot and killed an unarmed kid that was his neighbor. How is that not murder?
I took the liberty of underlining every instance of conjecture in your post.
OK, please point to the kid's actions noted in the article that necessitated a 911 call. Seriously, list one.List one thing listed in the article that explained why Zimmerman was suspicious of the kid.

List one thing that states why a confrontation was necessary.

List one crime of which this kid has been convicted.

Again, do none of you feel any empathy towards this kid or his family?
Empathy is not the test in a criminal case. Evidence is. I doubt seriously anyone here doesn't feel bad for the parents of this young man. No greater agony than outliving your child. But we can only go with what we can prove when we talk charges and taking someone's liberty. Not with what we think we know.
Here's what we know from the article:An unarmed boy was attempting to return to his home at night.

That home is in a gated community.

Zimmerman saw the boy walking down the street and called 911.

Zimmerman at some point after calling 911 and before police arrived left his car and confronted the boy.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

The boy is dead. Zimmerman shot him.

Zimmerman had a bloodied nose and grass stain on his shirt.

This is not enough, in your opinion, to charge Zimmerman with a crime?
there's a pretty big gap that needs to be filled before anyone should be charged with a crime
 
How? There is no question who shot who. Did shooting unarmed people become legal while I was asleep?

Just reverse the races for one second: Armed black man shoots and kills unarmed white teen just steps away from his front door.

Is there any way in hell that black man is not in jail and facing murder charges?

And maybe its me but the level of outrage in this thread is way below where it needs to be.
It can be. Especially if he is kicking your ###.
If someone punches me, is it legal to shoot them?
 
He injected himself into a situation that he should not have, obviously was suspicious of the kid for no good reason, and brought a live firearm into a situation where he created a confrontation needlessly, and likely against the advice of the police he spoke to just moments before.So you're going to dream this up into involuntary manslaughter? BULL####. It was a situation that did not require any action whatsoever, the guy assaulted the kid, and the kid ended up dead.ETA: Did I seriously just read this?The only question is should there be charges.Really? An unarmed, innocent kid is dead, and you wonder if there should be charges at all? WTF is going on in here? Am I misreading that as well?
Yeah. Because there may be circumstances of which we are unaware. I pointed out a couple of things that might mitigate the case against the watch captain. Given what we know right now those things seem unlikely, but, unless you were there and saw it all go down filing charges is still an open question.
Agreed- are people really that blinded that they think they know for sure what happened (either way)? Kind of scary actually.
this
 
OK, all the white-murder apologists listen up:

The guy called 911 because he saw a black kid (aka suspicious person) in his neighborhood

Sanford police received a 911 call reporting a suspicious person.

Although names are blacked out on the police report, Crump and media reports at the time of the shooting identified the caller as George Zimmerman

He (after calling 911 because he saw a black person) took the law into his own hands and confronted the kid (who was in his own neighborhood).

Without waiting for police to arrive, Crump said, Zimmerman confronted Trayvon, who was on the sidewalk near his home. By the time police got there, Trayvon was dead of a single gunshot to the chest.

The kid likely mouthed off, knowing dude was a total racist.

Words are exchanged. Scuffle happens. Armed paranoid white instigator kills unarmed black passer-by.

That does not mean it's no one's fault. It is Zimmerman's fault for approaching someone armed, and then firing that gun at someone and killing them. He deserves to be tried and convicted for murder and should be in jail right now. I can not think of a single justifiable reason this man is currently a free man.

ETA: When did this forum become affiliated with StormFront? Ridiculous what's going on in here.
Even if we take everything you've written as gospel that does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that it was murder. The guy confronts the kid without taking out his weapon. The kid gets scared and takes a poke at the guy. They struggle. The kid gets his hands on the weapon. The both end up with their hands on the gun and it goes off.
He injected himself into a situation that he should not have, obviously was suspicious of the kid for no good reason, and brought a live firearm into a situation where he created a confrontation needlessly, and likely against the advice of the police he spoke to just moments before.So you're going to dream this up into involuntary manslaughter? BULL####. It was a situation that did not require any action whatsoever, the guy assaulted the kid, and the kid ended up dead.

ETA: Did I seriously just read this?

The only question is should there be charges.

Really? An unarmed, innocent kid is dead, and you wonder if there should be charges at all? WTF is going on in here? Am I misreading that as well?

I'm sorry but there is some virulent racism going on in this thread. Or something. I don't know what the hell is wrong with people in here. I have heard at least 1/3 of the posters in here try and find some way to mitigate this guys guilt. He shot and killed an unarmed kid that was his neighbor. How is that not murder?
I took the liberty of underlining every instance of conjecture in your post.
OK, please point to the kid's actions noted in the article that necessitated a 911 call. Seriously, list one.List one thing listed in the article that explained why Zimmerman was suspicious of the kid.

List one thing that states why a confrontation was necessary.

List one crime of which this kid has been convicted.

Again, do none of you feel any empathy towards this kid or his family?
Empathy is not the test in a criminal case. Evidence is. I doubt seriously anyone here doesn't feel bad for the parents of this young man. No greater agony than outliving your child. But we can only go with what we can prove when we talk charges and taking someone's liberty. Not with what we think we know.
Here's what we know from the article:An unarmed boy was attempting to return to his home at night.

That home is in a gated community.

Zimmerman saw the boy walking down the street and called 911.

Zimmerman at some point after calling 911 and before police arrived left his car and confronted the boy.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

The boy is dead. Zimmerman shot him.

Zimmerman had a bloodied nose and grass stain on his shirt.

This is not enough, in your opinion, to charge Zimmerman with a crime?
there's a pretty big gap that needs to be filled before anyone should be charged with a crime
What no one is acknowledging is that it was the older, outsized armed man who created a confrontation by calling 911 and then by somehow engaging with the boy. To me, whether or not Zimmerman intended to kill the boy is not information that is needed to make an arrest. You make an arrest because he started #### with someone when he didn't need to and somehow the person he started #### with got killed.Then again, I'm not a lawyer so I'm sure I have that wrong.

 
Since to Clifford this seems to be primarily a racial thing let me just say I would be saying the same if the races were reversed in this scenario.

 
I'm sure the cops would be too. The racial bias of this police station is pretty obvious. I get being cautious about making a conviction without the facts. I support that. I do not support this guy not even being charged with a crime after he took someone's life in a situation in which self-defense is a highly suspect claim. And I don't take the fact that he has a 4-year degree as proof he is above suspicion.

 
I'm sure the cops would be too. The racial bias of this police station is pretty obvious. I get being cautious about making a conviction without the facts. I support that. I do not support this guy not even being charged with a crime after he took someone's life in a situation in which self-defense is a highly suspect claim. And I don't take the fact that he has a 4-year degree as proof he is above suspicion.
Really? Based on what evidence? Have there been civil rights complaints in the past against them? If so please feel free to link to them.
 
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I'm sure the cops would be too. The racial bias of this police station is pretty obvious. I get being cautious about making a conviction without the facts. I support that. I do not support this guy not even being charged with a crime after he took someone's life in a situation in which self-defense is a highly suspect claim. And I don't take the fact that he has a 4-year degree as proof he is above suspicion.
Really? Based on what evidence? Have there been civil rights complaints in the past against them? If so please feel free to link to them.
There was this one time when a white guy shot a black kid because the kid was eating skittles inside a gated community. The police did nothing.
 
I'm sure the cops would be too. The racial bias of this police station is pretty obvious. I get being cautious about making a conviction without the facts. I support that. I do not support this guy not even being charged with a crime after he took someone's life in a situation in which self-defense is a highly suspect claim. And I don't take the fact that he has a 4-year degree as proof he is above suspicion.
Really? Based on what evidence? Have there been civil rights complaints in the past against them? If so please feel free to link to them.
There was this one time when a white guy shot a black kid because the kid was eating skittles inside a gated community. The police did nothing so far.
I made a little edit there to get more accurate.
 
I'm sure the cops would be too. The racial bias of this police station is pretty obvious. I get being cautious about making a conviction without the facts. I support that. I do not support this guy not even being charged with a crime after he took someone's life in a situation in which self-defense is a highly suspect claim. And I don't take the fact that he has a 4-year degree as proof he is above suspicion.
Really? Based on what evidence? Have there been civil rights complaints in the past against them? If so please feel free to link to them.
Seems a bit weak. At least he was fired after department review. Review prompted internally?

Officer Messages 'Embarrass' Sanford PD

Got caught being racist/sexist/pedo (all joking, of course) on IM.

 
I'm sure the cops would be too. The racial bias of this police station is pretty obvious. I get being cautious about making a conviction without the facts. I support that. I do not support this guy not even being charged with a crime after he took someone's life in a situation in which self-defense is a highly suspect claim. And I don't take the fact that he has a 4-year degree as proof he is above suspicion.
Really? Based on what evidence? Have there been civil rights complaints in the past against them? If so please feel free to link to them.
There was this one time when a white guy shot a black kid because the kid was eating skittles inside a gated community during a confrontation. The police did nothing so far are still investigating.
I made a little edit there to get more accurate.
I did a little more editing to get a little more accurate.
 
A lot of good points made in here, also a lot of bad ones and a lot of jumping to conclusions. Our neighborhood watch stresses that we never get involved. If we see something call the police and hang out until they get there. I agree with Roadkill here. If the guy was packing he has a responsibility to try and avoid situations that may put him in a position to have to use the gun. You don't want to have to kill a person because some cross words escalate to a fight and you feel you have to defend yourself with lethal force. I'm not sure how I could live with myself if I killed someone knowing I could have just taken the insult and walked away. But I digress. We just don't know what happened here. Innocent until proven guilty. It's not uncommon for the neighbor hood watch captains to be the old retired guy with time on his hands. What if this guy was in his late 70's and frail? What if he decided to watch the kid just a little too close and this extra attention really annoyed the kid who just may have been the star Defensive end on his football team at 6-6 250? What if the kid got mad and tried to yank him out of his car and teach him a lesson? What if the old dude really feared for his life once the beating started? I doubt this is the way it went down but we just don’t know. Either way it’s a tragedy. A child loses his life a family loses a son and this old guy has to live with the guilt of taking a life over nothing.
Like a black kid?
 
A new nugget on how the altercation started:

Zimmerman told the police that Martin noticed that he was being followed and asked, “what’s your problem?”

That's when a physical confrontation ensued, Lee said. And moments later, Martin was shot.

Lee said that Zimmerman has a legal permit to carry the weapon used in the shooting, and that he told police that he shot Martin in self-defense.

“He felt the need to defend himself,” Lee said. “ I don’t think it was his intent to go and shoot somebody” that night.

The chief said the police have met with Zimmerman on two to three separate occasions, and that their investigation should be wrapped up this week. He said all of the evidence in the case will be delivered to the Seminole County State Attorney’s Office soon after.

“We’re going to present all the information and if they feel that based on all of the evidence that we’re able to produce that Mr. Zimmerman has satisfied the requirement that he shot in self defense, they may, but if not, he would be charged with some type of homicide or manslaughter,” Lee said.

“It is certainly and absolutely a tragedy, especially for the Martin Family,” Lee said. "No one expects their teenage son to go the store and never come back.”
 
A new nugget on how the altercation started:

Zimmerman told the police that Martin noticed that he was being followed and asked, “what’s your problem?”

That's when a physical confrontation ensued, Lee said. And moments later, Martin was shot.

Lee said that Zimmerman has a legal permit to carry the weapon used in the shooting, and that he told police that he shot Martin in self-defense.

“He felt the need to defend himself,” Lee said. “ I don’t think it was his intent to go and shoot somebody” that night.

The chief said the police have met with Zimmerman on two to three separate occasions, and that their investigation should be wrapped up this week. He said all of the evidence in the case will be delivered to the Seminole County State Attorney’s Office soon after.

“We’re going to present all the information and if they feel that based on all of the evidence that we’re able to produce that Mr. Zimmerman has satisfied the requirement that he shot in self defense, they may, but if not, he would be charged with some type of homicide or manslaughter,” Lee said.

“It is certainly and absolutely a tragedy, especially for the Martin Family,” Lee said. "No one expects their teenage son to go the store and never come back.”
His intent to kill someone that day isn't really the question.
 
A new nugget on how the altercation started:

Zimmerman told the police that Martin noticed that he was being followed and asked, “what’s your problem?”

That's when a physical confrontation ensued, Lee said. And moments later, Martin was shot.

Lee said that Zimmerman has a legal permit to carry the weapon used in the shooting, and that he told police that he shot Martin in self-defense.

“He felt the need to defend himself,” Lee said. “ I don’t think it was his intent to go and shoot somebody” that night.

The chief said the police have met with Zimmerman on two to three separate occasions, and that their investigation should be wrapped up this week. He said all of the evidence in the case will be delivered to the Seminole County State Attorney’s Office soon after.

“We’re going to present all the information and if they feel that based on all of the evidence that we’re able to produce that Mr. Zimmerman has satisfied the requirement that he shot in self defense, they may, but if not, he would be charged with some type of homicide or manslaughter,” Lee said.

“It is certainly and absolutely a tragedy, especially for the Martin Family,” Lee said. "No one expects their teenage son to go the store and never come back.”
His intent to kill someone that day isn't really the question.
Yeah, why is the police chief throwing up a straw man to defend the shooter?
 
OK, all the white-murder apologists listen up:

The guy called 911 because he saw a black kid (aka suspicious person) in his neighborhood

Sanford police received a 911 call reporting a suspicious person.

Although names are blacked out on the police report, Crump and media reports at the time of the shooting identified the caller as George Zimmerman

He (after calling 911 because he saw a black person) took the law into his own hands and confronted the kid (who was in his own neighborhood).

Without waiting for police to arrive, Crump said, Zimmerman confronted Trayvon, who was on the sidewalk near his home. By the time police got there, Trayvon was dead of a single gunshot to the chest.

The kid likely mouthed off, knowing dude was a total racist.

Words are exchanged. Scuffle happens. Armed paranoid white instigator kills unarmed black passer-by.

That does not mean it's no one's fault. It is Zimmerman's fault for approaching someone armed, and then firing that gun at someone and killing them. He deserves to be tried and convicted for murder and should be in jail right now. I can not think of a single justifiable reason this man is currently a free man.

ETA: When did this forum become affiliated with StormFront? Ridiculous what's going on in here.
Even if we take everything you've written as gospel that does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that it was murder. The guy confronts the kid without taking out his weapon. The kid gets scared and takes a poke at the guy. They struggle. The kid gets his hands on the weapon. The both end up with their hands on the gun and it goes off.
He injected himself into a situation that he should not have, obviously was suspicious of the kid for no good reason, and brought a live firearm into a situation where he created a confrontation needlessly, and likely against the advice of the police he spoke to just moments before.So you're going to dream this up into involuntary manslaughter? BULL####. It was a situation that did not require any action whatsoever, the guy assaulted the kid, and the kid ended up dead.

ETA: Did I seriously just read this?

The only question is should there be charges.

Really? An unarmed, innocent kid is dead, and you wonder if there should be charges at all? WTF is going on in here? Am I misreading that as well?

I'm sorry but there is some virulent racism going on in this thread. Or something. I don't know what the hell is wrong with people in here. I have heard at least 1/3 of the posters in here try and find some way to mitigate this guys guilt. He shot and killed an unarmed kid that was his neighbor. How is that not murder?
I took the liberty of underlining every instance of conjecture in your post.
OK, please point to the kid's actions noted in the article that necessitated a 911 call. Seriously, list one.List one thing listed in the article that explained why Zimmerman was suspicious of the kid.

List one thing that states why a confrontation was necessary.

List one crime of which this kid has been convicted.

Again, do none of you feel any empathy towards this kid or his family?
Empathy is not the test in a criminal case. Evidence is. I doubt seriously anyone here doesn't feel bad for the parents of this young man. No greater agony than outliving your child. But we can only go with what we can prove when we talk charges and taking someone's liberty. Not with what we think we know.
Here's what we know from the article:An unarmed boy was attempting to return to his home at night.

That home is in a gated community.

Zimmerman saw the boy walking down the street and called 911.

Zimmerman at some point after calling 911 and before police arrived left his car and confronted the boy.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

The boy is dead. Zimmerman shot him.

Zimmerman had a bloodied nose and grass stain on his shirt.

This is not enough, in your opinion, to charge Zimmerman with a crime?
there's a pretty big gap that needs to be filled before anyone should be charged with a crime
What no one is acknowledging is that it was the older, outsized armed man who created a confrontation by calling 911 and then by somehow engaging with the boy. To me, whether or not Zimmerman intended to kill the boy is not information that is needed to make an arrest. You make an arrest because he started #### with someone when he didn't need to and somehow the person he started #### with got killed.Then again, I'm not a lawyer so I'm sure I have that wrong.
He was the "Head Crime Watch Guy". The fuzz always backs their own.
 
Here's what we know from the article:

1. An unarmed boy was attempting to return to his home at night.

2. That home is in a gated community.

3. Zimmerman saw the boy walking down the street and called 911.

4. Zimmerman at some point after calling 911 and before police arrived left his car and confronted the boy.

5. The boy is dead. Zimmerman shot him.

6. Zimmerman had a bloodied nose and grass stain on his shirt.

This is not enough, in your opinion, to charge Zimmerman with a crime?
Fixed, and numbered for convenience. The above might well be enough to charge Zimmerman with a crime. However, it would be far more useful to have a statement from Zimmerman explaining what happened in between numbers 3 through 6, and in which order those four happened. In particular, that statement could be cross-checked against other physical evidence that surely exists but is not reported in the article.Some people have already posted theories about ways in which this might have gone down that would not necessarily require murder charges. No one is saying those theories are likely, only that they are possible. Just because the most likely explanation is that Zimmerman is a racist thug who provoked a fight and shot the boy for no good reason doesn't mean it must be the only explanation. This is why the police should be investigating the case, to determine what course of events led to this outcome.

 
The police have Zimmerman's answers to 3-6 and are withholding them.
From what I've read so far, it appears they have his statement, and are investigating the veracity of it. In the meantime, they are not reporting what they know so far, a practice which I believe is fairly typical in police investigations, especially ones that are potentially racially charged. I'm not sure I see the problem so far. If, however, the investigation concludes, Zimmerman is not charged, and no additional details are released, I would think the public should rightfully be very unsatisfied with the outcome.
 
A new nugget on how the altercation started:

Zimmerman told the police that Martin noticed that he was being followed and asked, “what’s your problem?”

That's when a physical confrontation ensued, Lee said. And moments later, Martin was shot.

Lee said that Zimmerman has a legal permit to carry the weapon used in the shooting, and that he told police that he shot Martin in self-defense.

“He felt the need to defend himself,” Lee said. “ I don’t think it was his intent to go and shoot somebody” that night.

The chief said the police have met with Zimmerman on two to three separate occasions, and that their investigation should be wrapped up this week. He said all of the evidence in the case will be delivered to the Seminole County State Attorney’s Office soon after.

“We’re going to present all the information and if they feel that based on all of the evidence that we’re able to produce that Mr. Zimmerman has satisfied the requirement that he shot in self defense, they may, but if not, he would be charged with some type of homicide or manslaughter,” Lee said.

“It is certainly and absolutely a tragedy, especially for the Martin Family,” Lee said. "No one expects their teenage son to go the store and never come back.”
IANAL. Based on the limited information I've learned and my own imagination, he is going to have a hard time proving self-defense (based on Ohio law). He initiated the engagement (strike 1), a bloody nose and a dirty shirt with an unarmed opponent does not meet the criteria of "threat of death or serious bodily harm" (strike 2), and he made little or no attempt to retreat from the encounter (strike 3). Any one of which would land him in jail for at least voluntary manslaughter.I'm a big gun rights advocate, but it sounds like the shooter guy needs to go to jail for a long time.

 
Hmm. Through the whole thread, I'd pictured the shooting to have happened on or next to a sidewalk.

The thought had occurred to me that there might have been a chase.

The accounts presented suggest that the Volunteer Cop saw the kid walking on a sidewalk from his car.

(What seems to be) an early report on the shooting says the body was found behind a building. It also states there was an arrest, rather than just a questioning.

Sanford Police Investigate Fatal Shooting

Police Arrest Suspect In Attack

POSTED: 8:32 pm EST February 26, 2012

UPDATED: 10:34 pm EST February 26, 2012

SANFORD, Fla. -- Sanford police said they arrested a suspect in a fatal shooting at the Twin Lake Town Homes Sunday evening.

About 7:15 p.m., police said they received a 911 call of shots fired at 1231 Twin Trees Lane. When officers arrived about a minute later, they found a male victim behind a building.

Paramedics pronounced the man dead at the scene.

Sanford Police Department Sgt. Dave Morgenstern said the suspect surrendered without incident. Detectives are interviewing witnesses and the suspect to determine what led to the argument and shooting.

Police had not released names of anyone involved as of Sunday night.
I am not certain this is the same shooting. The only clues that it is are the location and the date. Perhaps there were two shootings in that gated community that night..?

 
How? There is no question who shot who. Did shooting unarmed people become legal while I was asleep?

Just reverse the races for one second: Armed black man shoots and kills unarmed white teen just steps away from his front door.

Is there any way in hell that black man is not in jail and facing murder charges?

And maybe its me but the level of outrage in this thread is way below where it needs to be.
It can be. Especially if he is kicking your ###.
If someone punches me, is it legal to shoot them?
Punch? No. Got you on the ground, beating you to within an inch of your life? Sure. If you feel your life is in danger you have the right to using deadly force. Better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6.Not that this is what happened in this case but until we know all of the facts anything could have happened.

 
Have the cops put a timetable on the investigation?

They've been working on it for 12 days now.

 


Man who shot, killed teen in Sanford neighborhood has previous arrest

Posted: 12:21 p.m. Friday, March 9, 2012

SANFORD, Fla. —

George Zimmerman, the man who shot and killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in a Sanford neighborhood, has had a previous brush with the law.

Martin was walking from a convenience store on Feb. 26, headed to his family's home in a gated community in Sanford, when he was shot and killed.

Martin's family and their attorneys were at the Seminole County courthouse in Sanford on Friday morning, filing a lawsuit against the Sanford Police Department.

They want the police to release the 911 call neighborhood watch leader Zimmerman made minutes before he shot and killed Martin. Police said they're not willing to do that because it's part of an ongoing investigation.

Police Chief Bill Lee said that in the call, the dispatcher tells Zimmerman not to confront Martin. He had called police with a report that he saw a suspicious black man in the gated community.

Before police arrived, Zimmerman shot Martin in the chest.

Zimmerman was arrested in 2005 on suspicion of battery on a law-enforcement officer. He was not prosecuted, and it looks like the case was dismissed for some reason.

Martin's family members said they are shocked by all of this and that this is more proof in their eyes that Zimmerman should have been arrested when he admitted he shot and killed the teenager.


suspicion of battery on a law-enforcement officer could be a lot of things. Coulda been some hothead cop making trouble, for all we know. Or, it could suggest more about Zimmerman's temperament. He'd have been around 21 years old in 2005. Coulda just been getting bounced from a bar. Who knows.

"At that point, Mr. Zimmerman was taken into custody, investigative detention if you will, and got to the station to conduct an interview with him to find out exactly what happened," Sanford police spokesman Sgt. David Zimmerman said.

IF there's a familial relationship there, it'll probably come out before long. I'm surprised that angle hasn't yet been covered by the news medi, even if nothing more than a "not related" mentioned parenthetically in one of the articles.

IF they are related, said relationship could be an explanation of the "some reason" George Zimmerman was not charged in 2005.


 
NEWSFLASH: A black kid walking home does not require any action, especially calling 911.
Walking while black in a gated community in Sanford, Florida is downright suspicious.
Only because I love to take a devil's advocate position, there is nothing to say that the kid was just walking home. Perhaps he was walking by a town house and saw some young lady changing in a window so went closer to take a peak. Anything could have happened to warrant Zimmerman considering it suspicious activity. I don't believe that this was the case, but I don't rule it out either.
 
NEWSFLASH: A black kid walking home does not require any action, especially calling 911.
Walking while black in a gated community in Sanford, Florida is downright suspicious.
Only because I love to take a devil's advocate position, there is nothing to say that the kid was just walking home. Perhaps he was walking by a town house and saw some young lady changing in a window so went closer to take a peak. Anything could have happened to warrant Zimmerman considering it suspicious activity. I don't believe that this was the case, but I don't rule it out either.
:confused: Pretty much every story so far says he was just walking home.
 
Really confused why there would even be a neighborhood watch in a place like this anyways. Isn't the point of the gate to keep people out?

 
OK, all the white-murder apologists listen up:

The guy called 911 because he saw a black kid (aka suspicious person) in his neighborhood

Sanford police received a 911 call reporting a suspicious person.

Although names are blacked out on the police report, Crump and media reports at the time of the shooting identified the caller as George Zimmerman

He (after calling 911 because he saw a black person) took the law into his own hands and confronted the kid (who was in his own neighborhood).

Without waiting for police to arrive, Crump said, Zimmerman confronted Trayvon, who was on the sidewalk near his home. By the time police got there, Trayvon was dead of a single gunshot to the chest.

The kid likely mouthed off, knowing dude was a total racist.

Words are exchanged. Scuffle happens. Armed paranoid white instigator kills unarmed black passer-by.

That does not mean it's no one's fault. It is Zimmerman's fault for approaching someone armed, and then firing that gun at someone and killing them. He deserves to be tried and convicted for murder and should be in jail right now. I can not think of a single justifiable reason this man is currently a free man.

ETA: When did this forum become affiliated with StormFront? Ridiculous what's going on in here.
Even if we take everything you've written as gospel that does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that it was murder. The guy confronts the kid without taking out his weapon. The kid gets scared and takes a poke at the guy. They struggle. The kid gets his hands on the weapon. The both end up with their hands on the gun and it goes off.
He injected himself into a situation that he should not have, obviously was suspicious of the kid for no good reason, and brought a live firearm into a situation where he created a confrontation needlessly, and likely against the advice of the police he spoke to just moments before.So you're going to dream this up into involuntary manslaughter? BULL####. It was a situation that did not require any action whatsoever, the guy assaulted the kid, and the kid ended up dead.

ETA: Did I seriously just read this?

The only question is should there be charges.

Really? An unarmed, innocent kid is dead, and you wonder if there should be charges at all? WTF is going on in here? Am I misreading that as well?

I'm sorry but there is some virulent racism going on in this thread. Or something. I don't know what the hell is wrong with people in here. I have heard at least 1/3 of the posters in here try and find some way to mitigate this guys guilt. He shot and killed an unarmed kid that was his neighbor. How is that not murder?
I took the liberty of underlining every instance of conjecture in your post.
OK, please point to the kid's actions noted in the article that necessitated a 911 call. Seriously, list one.List one thing listed in the article that explained why Zimmerman was suspicious of the kid.

List one thing that states why a confrontation was necessary.

List one crime of which this kid has been convicted.

Again, do none of you feel any empathy towards this kid or his family?
Empathy is not the test in a criminal case. Evidence is. I doubt seriously anyone here doesn't feel bad for the parents of this young man. No greater agony than outliving your child. But we can only go with what we can prove when we talk charges and taking someone's liberty. Not with what we think we know.
Here's what we know from the article:An unarmed boy was attempting to return to his home at night.

That home is in a gated community.

Zimmerman saw the boy walking down the street and called 911.

Zimmerman at some point after calling 911 and before police arrived left his car and confronted the boy.

The boy is dead. Zimmerman shot him.

Zimmerman had a bloodied nose and grass stain on his shirt.

This is not enough, in your opinion, to charge Zimmerman with a crime?
Maybe, maybe not. He's walking right now because he has no record, and has been cooperating. He didn't try to run or hide, and there's no reason to expect him to. I would still expect some sort of charges.
 

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