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Verdict reached in George Zimmerman case - Not Guilty

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I personally see it as more of a gun than race issue.

Guns are dumb.

Too many people are allowed to carry them that have no business doing so.

So let's say Zimmerman pulled out a knife (which many law enforcement personnel can and do carry) instead and things played out the way they did.

You would get the same outrage for the same reasons.
 
Because the evidence suggested that TM was on top of GZ beating him and slamming his head into a sidewalk while GZ screamed for help. I wouldn't consider that Innocent.

and Defense had an eye witness for this moment, Prosecution had a witness who heard on the phone who ended up being a witness for the Defense because of how incompetent she was
 
Didn't they conclude, forensics, that Trayvon was on top of Zimmerman when he was shot?

Zimmerman could have pulled the kid down in a fight for the skittles slamming his own head in the pavement making him disoriented Trayvon probably fell on his face and gave him a scuff mark and then Zimmerman pulled and shot in a panic.

Or Trayvon was legitimately on top of Zimmerman beating him up. Sucks we'll never know what really happened.
 
Law GAF : can they even file a civil suit?

I know in my state if you are found to be justified in killing a person in self defense you CAN NOT BE SUED in a civil court for wrongful death.
 
I'm not emotional. I'm actually pretty numb to all of this, but thanks for assuming the worst.

What the evidence shows is that he killed the only other witness. Zimmerman also lied about what happened that night...multiple times.

I have examined the evidence. I've followed this case from the very begining.

Please tell me why this isn't manslaughter.

I won't. I completely agree. Why did you think I would? These pages are moving quickly, but I've said multiple times this should have been manslaughter. We cool mang. We cool.
 
All of you are labeling this man as guilty (After being found innocent) with no evidence to support your claims is more sickening than anything.

Just because you're found "Not Guilty," doesn't mean that you're innocent, either.

Plus George admitted to following the boy & killing him. End of discussion.
 
Does anyone have proof that Zimmerman attacked Trayvon first? No.

Doesn't matter, because we have no idea who attacked who first. What we DO know is that Zimmerman actively chased the teen down and confronted him.

I really don't think a lot of gaffers have children. I have a son, and I'm terrified at the thought that he might get killed because some random asshole thinks he's a criminal that needs to be questioned because he fits a profile.

I taught my son to fight off strangers if he can't get away from them. Now what am I supposed to tell him? If they're white men he needs to obey their every command because he's a minority?
 
Honestly, I think there's near complete solidarity with Trayvon Martin and his family regardless of race. I don't honestly believe anyone with common sense genuinely believes Zimmerman didn't murder that kid. It highlights how black people are treated as second class citizens, but I think the people, as a whole, genuinely condemn this this.
I'd agree with this. I have discussed this with plenty of people of all races, genders, religions, etc. and the majority of them are disgusted by this. I don't want to bulk his supporters into any one group either to be fair, but I think you can guess their political views/sociatal views/etc without me saying anything. And I bet almost all of you would guess correctly.
 
anyone who followed this case and saw how ridiculously incompetent ALL. I mean ALL of the Prosecutions witnesses were should NOT be surprised by the verdict.
 
Law GAF : can they even file a civil suit?

I know in my state if you are found to be justified in killing a person in self defense you CAN NOT BE SUED in a civil court for wrongful death.

I'm a first year law student, and IMO, they can rain all over him with negligence charges.
 
I would love it if GZ ends up living under a bridge. It doesn't matter if GZ is rich or not since the family will get a lot of money after they sue the shit out of florida.

I would like to see Zimmerman live the best life he can because after all this publicity, he probably won't be able to live normally for a while without protection.

This was a man found not guilty in the end.

Bed time for me, be easy folks and try not to take each others heads off.
 
It isn't a desire for vengeance to think that Zimmerman should be found guilty of a crime for his actions that night, even if his actions did not technically amount to Murder 2.

If what he did isn't a crime under the law, it should be and that just reveals how egregiously flawed the criminal justice system is.

Not that that's news.

I'm now repeating myself but hey:

What crime did he commit exactly? Were you there that night? Or are you simply basing it off your 'common sense' e.g. OH MY GOD I'M SO ANGRY SO SOMEONE, ANYONE HAS TOPAY NOOOOWWWWWW?

The only thing this this reveals is that in a EVIDENCE based legal system. A lack of evidence impacts the ability of the system to; first, determine what happened and secondly, what the defendant is or is not guilty of.
 
Just because you're found "Not Guilty," doesn't mean that you're innocent, either.

Plus George admitted to following the boy & killing him. End of discussion.

Yep. Perhaps he didn't intend to kill the kid when this whole thing happened, but he sure as shit caused that death. If anything Zimmerman should get sued into oblivion for wrongful death.
 
That isn't recent news. I don't know why it's being passed off like it is. It's over a year old.
It's being used to compare to this case as if all cases are uniform and this has everything to do with race and not the fact that there was no jury on her case.
 
Innocent until proven guilty is fine, until it's been proven that you killed an unarmed kid. At that point you're guilty and need to prove it was in self defense.

The law in this case requiring self defense to be disproved is terrible. With one simple lie by the only surviving witness, it allows you to stalk an unarmed kid walking home at night, start a physical altercation with them and then shoot and kill them when they try to fight back. How would you ever convict someone who does that?
 
I don't know why everyone is so upset that Zimmerman was found not guilty. It is impossible to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he was not acting in self defense. Would you rather live under a legal system where you go to jail based on personal feelings than one based on facts? I know that I wouldn't.
 
So the law is wrong? Gotcha. Like I said, I'm used to that.

I'm done for the night. I'm going to go to bed, snuggle with my wife and take comfort in the fact that the criminal justice system in the United States values the life of a dog over the life of the Black children we are planning to have.

No, your just ignoring anything that challenges your preconceived notions. And trying to cover your failings as a supposedly rational being by relaying an irrelevant emotional story.



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Amuricah. "Land of the free" my ass.

Ja Rule's comment translated for accuracy:


The state of Florida did not have enough evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt so a jury of his peers declared the defendant not guilty....But the state had enough evidence to prove I broke the law and a jury of my peers found me guilty. A judge then sentenced me to a jail term fitting my crime. Woe is me.
 
He said for being convicted of murder. Not punished. I agree with him. Trayvon Martin's death was a tragedy, but it's no more okay for TM to have killed GZ by possibly beating him to death than it is for GZ to shoot him.
No, he said a killer being called a killer was more sickening than the death of the person being killed.
 
Why Zimmerman was not convicted of Manslaughter ? Because of what Florida thinks of Manslaughter. Please everyone read Below

http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2013/07/11/the-manslaughter-option-in-zimmermans-trial-an-explainer/

Yet the option, which was supported by prosecutors but raised the hackles of the defense, is not clearly spelled out in Florida law. And depending on the verdict, it could prove controversial.

Some states, but not Florida, recognize what’s known as “imperfect self-defense.” It applies when someone kills in self-defense but was overreacting and using excessive force.

So a defendant can try to reduce a murder charge to manslaughter by saying that he acted in self-defense even while conceding that he made a mistake. Alternatively, “imperfect self-defense” can offer prosecutors their best chance at a guilty verdict when a jury seems unlikely to convict a defendant of murder.

Florida law works differently. There’s no slicing and dicing of self-defense. The penal code doesn’t recognize “imperfect self defense.” The law forces juries to either believe that someone had a right to act in self-defense or is a murderer.

There is a loophole, however, as illustrated by Mr. Zimmerman’s trial, which entered into closing arguments Thursday.


This is why people are confused over here as Florida law concerning Manslaughter says either you acted in self-defense or you murdered, not the 'imperfect self-defense' we hear in other cases around the country. This is why I believe the Jury acquited him, they did NOT believe beyond a reasonable doubt that it was a murder. Pure and Simple
 
Oh please, read what he called me.

to be honest? satch said what a lot of people were thinking; the post you made that she was responding was really dumb, and really offensive. she kinda took one for the team since no one else wants to catch a ban over that struggle.

but empathy is some ol' emotional shit for people that aint read orwell, or something
 
Yeah, the system worked as it is. I hope this helps lead us to new laws and new systems. Because this is broken. That man may not be guilty under the law, but he set out to get that boy.

If you mean he set out to kill or harm him, I don't see that as the case at all.

He just made a ton of stupid decisions that altered others' and his own life forever.

I definitely think he is guilty of something, there's just no signs that it was "murder" to me.

Him going free certainly doesn't seem fair but would you want to be him???

(still think he should serve some time)
 
I'm a first year law student, and IMO, they can rain all over him with negligence charges.

Can you make sense of this?

Chapter 776: JUSTIFIABLE USE OF FORCE

776.032 Immunity from criminal prosecution and civil action for justifiable use of force.

(1) A person who uses force as permitted in s. 776.012, s. 776.013, or s. 776.031 is justified in using such force and is immune from criminal prosecution and civil action for the use of such force, unless the person against whom force was used is a law enforcement officer, as defined in s. 943.10(14), who was acting in the performance of his or her official duties and the officer identified himself or herself in accordance with any applicable law or the person using force knew or reasonably should have known that the person was a law enforcement officer. As used in this subsection, the term “criminal prosecution” includes arresting, detaining in custody, and charging or prosecuting the defendant.

(2) A law enforcement agency may use standard procedures for investigating the use of force as described in subsection (1), but the agency may not arrest the person for using force unless it determines that there is probable cause that the force that was used was unlawful.

(3) The court shall award reasonable attorney’s fees, court costs, compensation for loss of income, and all expenses incurred by the defendant in defense of any civil action brought by a plaintiff if the court finds that the defendant is immune from prosecution as provided in subsection (1).

I'm not sure if this applies or if the trial means his use of force was actually justified or if it simply means he is not guilty.
 
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