Neighborhood watch captain shoots unarmed teen in FL

General General Discussion
1

This posted yet? The surface info, looks bad for the neighborhood watch captain, but as always, I’d like to see more facts and less emotions here. There’s also LE bashing here and accusations of LE withholding info on said neighborhood watch captain who shot the kid. As expected, being turned into a racial thing (which it may be of course) but again, seems instant jump to that conclusion.

At the very least, as I read the events, it sounds like Mr Zimmerman made one mistake/bad choice after another here.

Me, I will defend legal use of firearms by a civilian, and I will always give LE the benefit of the doubt, but this one is not passing the smell test so far for me.

George Zimmerman, Neighborhood Watch Captain Who Shot Trayvon Martin, Charged With Violence Before

An attorney for the family of Trayvon Martin, the teenager shot to death last month by a neighborhood watch captain in an Orlando, Fla., suburb, said police withheld the shooter’s violent past from the slain youth’s family.

Police initially told Martin’s family that George Zimmerman, 28, admitted to shooting Martin, 17, on Feb. 26, after he called 911 and reported a suspicious person, said the attorney, Benjamin Crump. Zimmerman said the shooting was in self-defense, police said.

Zimmerman, who is white, has not been charged in the death of Martin, who was black. Police in Sanford, where the shooting occurred, told Martin’s family that Zimmerman had a “squeaky-clean” record and that’s why they had not arrested him, according to Tracy Martin, the teen’s father.

Crump said public records show that Zimmerman was arrested in Orange County in 2005 on charges of resisting arrest with violence and battery on a law enforcement officer.

“They just lied to the family,” Crump said. “They just couldn’t see why [Zimmerman] would do anything wrong or be violent. But not only do you know the guy killed this kid, because he admitted to it, you knew that he has a propensity for violence because of his past record.”

The Orange County Clerk of Courts website shows a man named George Zimmerman, 28, was charged in July 2005 with resisting arrest with violence and battery on an officer. The charges appear to have been dropped.

An email to Sanford Chief Bill Lee was not immediately returned on Friday evening. A phone number for Zimmerman has been disconnected. He could not be reached for comment.

Cont:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/09/george-zimmerman-trayvon-martin_n_1335984.html

2

Apparently some people think being charged with a crime the same as being convicted of a crime. Maybe they should study criminal law 101.

3

And Trayvon Martin’s record???

4

Looking at the dates and the age of Zimmerman, I think they got the wrong “violent” guy.

BTW: you know you are citing the Huffington Post, right? Not the best cite for gun rights and the like.

5

I want to start my own neighborhood watch and appoint myself as Brigadier Admiral. That way I will out rank all the captains.

6

Hence my comment for the need for some actual details before passing judgement, but this case seems to be causing a big stir, so I thought worth discussing.

7

But I betcha if the black teen turns out to have a few arrests we’ll all just use that as justification for the guy to shoot him.

8

Depends totally on who it is that was charged. :rolleyes:

9

Fortunately, it seems that these days intelligent folks are giving less of a shit about the racial make-up of such an incident. At least around the N.J., Philly area anyhow. Crime stats don’t lie and people are getting fed-up, even some dopey dems.

10

Race should not be an issue. It was either a good shoot or not.

11

Sure, however sadly this hasn’t always been the case.

12

One arrest w/o a conviction. On a regular basis I run into guys with 40+ felony arrests…who aren’t even that old. Everyone wants to throw him out there as uber violent, I’ve seen way worse get probation over and over. I take it the area in question is more affluent than some of the places I see day-to-day.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/03/11/2689107/family-of-teen-killed-by-neighborhood.html

With the national media spotlight growing, and crucial details — such as police 911 calls — still a mystery, the family of slain Miami-Dade teenager Trayvon Martin held an emotional press conference Sunday night.

Sybrina Fulton, Martin’s mother, said the family thinks her son was killed because he was black.

“I’m a normal mother. I just want justice for my son,” Fulton said, speaking at the same Miami Gardens church where the teen was previously laid to rest. “My heart is broken. I keep thinking he is going to walk in through the door and the nightmare is going to end.”

Martin, a junior at Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High School in North Miami-Dade, was shot and killed Feb. 26 after an altercation with the head of a neighborhood watch group in Sanford, a suburb of Orlando. Martin had been visiting his father’s fiancée and stepbrother, who live in a gated townhome community, that weekend.

Neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman, who is white, spotted Martin as the teen was heading back from a snack run to a nearby 7-Eleven store. Zimmerman called police to report a “suspicious person in the area” and followed Martin in his SUV. A police dispatcher told Zimmerman to stand down and let police take over, but that is not what happened.

Instead, Zimmerman apparently confronted the Miami teen. They scuffled, and by the time police arrived Zimmerman had a bloody nose, and Martin had been shot fatally in the chest.

Zimmerman, who had a concealed weapons permit and carried a black Kie Tek 9mm semi-automatic pistol, told police he acted in self-defense. Martin was unarmed, with only $22, candy and a can of iced tea in his pockets.

Zimmerman, a 28-year-old criminal justice major at Seminole State College, has stayed silent as the shooting has garnered national headlines.

Attempts by The Miami Herald to reach him have been unsuccessful — a telephone number listed to him has been disconnected — and it was unclear Sunday whether he had retained an attorney.

Martin’s family has grown impatient as weeks have passed and no criminal charges have been filed. The family’s attorneys recently filed suit to force police to turn over the 911 phone recordings and other investigative documents. The family said it remains deeply skeptical that police are handling the investigation properly.

Benjamin Crump, the family’s attorney, said the family would continue to seek the 911 tapes — which include both Zimmerman’s call to police as well as neighbors’ 911 calls as they heard the two men fighting. The Martin family hopes the tapes will shed light on what exactly happened in the crucial moments between Zimmerman stepping out of his car and the gunfire.

“Why did Trayvon Martin look so suspicious to have this 200-pound man confront this boy of 140 pounds?” Crump said. “How could he have claimed self-defense?”

Martin’s parents and legal team were joined by about 100 supporters Sunday night. In addition to speaking with reporters, the family held a candlelight vigil. Some mourners carried signs that said “Justice for Trayvon Martin.”

The Martin family’s frustration with Sanford police extends beyond the 911 tapes — the family also says Sanford police misleadingly told them Zimmerman had a clean criminal history.

In fact, Orange County court records show Zimmerman was arrested in 2005 for resisting an officer with violence and battery on a law enforcement officer. The charges were later dropped.

“I had a detective look at me in the eye; tell me he is a dad, that he is in pain and that he would bring us justice,” said the teen’s father, Tracy Martin. “He started off on the wrong foot. He lied.”

A day earlier, Bill Lee, Sanford’s police chief, said the 911 tapes would not be released because the investigation was still underway.

“There is evidence that George Zimmerman acted in self-defense.” Lee said.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/03/11/2689107/family-of-teen-killed-by-neighborhood.html#storylink=cpy

The story has holes. No where near enough information to form a opinion based on fact.

I would believe a shit head on the street before the media in every situation.

13

Yep…Im my cracka filled hood we’re all gunnin for than black teen who just got arrested a few times but never convicted…:rolleyes:

14

Big missing piece of info about what happened exactly when Zimmerman confronted Martin. Also, what is the police record of Martin?

I would think though that a person carrying concealed (Zimmerman) should not be picking a fight. Perhaps he was cool headed and politely asked questions. But I can also see Martin saying who the heck are you and get away from me! Was he being harassed? Or did he overreact and attack Zimmerman unprovoked?

Sounds fishy to me though that a kid is alone on a snack run for his dad’s fiance and for some reason becomes the attacker. On the other hand I would think if anything hinky happened the police would have held Zimmerman.

Just too many blank areas in the report so far.

15

Nowhere in that article does it say that he was doing it for his dads fiancé. It said he was visiting his fathers fiancé and stepbrother and he decided to go on a snack run.

In my opinion, this is an unjustified shooting regardless of the victims criminal history. This was a matter of racial profiling and the neighborhood watch person was wrong to approach the victim. Especially considering he’d already contacted to authorities. I think this man watched a few too many nutnfancy videos.

16

Agreed, with “Tackleberry like” tendencies…

17

Way to ignore that my quote was part of a discussion.

But yeah, that’s pretty much how I picture you, an angry little white kid playing tough-guy in the 'burbs. Much like the shooter in the above story.

and have we even identified, since people want to make an issue of it (while ignoring it in the case of the shooter), whether the shoot-ee even had a record or are we just assuming it because, you know, he’s black and all? Don’t all of “them” have records?

18

Maybe in your world, but not in mine. I care more about someones’ behavior and manners than I do about their skin color.

19

What I want to know is why Mr. Blockwatch Captain even confronted this person to begin with? Why did he pull a weapon on someone who was unarmed? Why didn’t he stand down when he was told to?

This sounds like someone trying to be a super hero and it backfired. If it he screwed up, I hope he gets nailed.

20

I agree with 8ball as that was my feeling as based on what I read. As a person who has been victim to such profiling in my very own neighborhood this seems very likely to be what happened. Biggest difference is in my case the police showed up right as things were escalating instead of afterwards.

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