Trayvon Martin case: All female jury picked---Verdict Not Guilty

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**Monster Rain**

Yeah, I'm not seeing an overt threat. It could just as easily be read as simply trying to get a demonstration together.

**d-usa**

I will admit that I wouldn't be surprised of the Black Panthers are gonna try to start some gak down there, don't get me wrong.

**Monster Rain**

Oh of course not.

It's just that the tweet in question wasn't calling for violence or anything overtly illegal.

**Seaward**

d-usa wrote:
Monster Rain wrote:
I mean, they can give it a shot, but it'll be hard to sell the idea that someone was wrong for shooting someone who by practically all accounts was bashing their head into the pavement.

But a civil suit can make an argument like that.

Z shot M, so that is 100% of the blame.

But M attacked Z, so he is 100% to blame for his own death.

But M wouldn't have attacked Z if Z wasn't following him and harrasing a kid for being "black while shopping", so maybe he is 25% to blame for the death.

Not saying that is how it would go, but it's possible.

Sadly, your last point is very true.

You throw enough lawyers against a wall, one of them will be able to drag some dollars with him as he comes dragging down.

We've heard a hell of a lot of testimony from the defense's side of the case that makes it pretty clear Zimmerman wasn't actually following Martin, especially after he spoke with the dispatcher. Prior to that, he was returning from Target. The only thing Martin's side has going for the, "following and harassing" narrative is Jeantel.

Zimmerman's case against NBC, on the other hand, is going to be pretty epic.

**Monster Rain**

I would love for some precedent to be set for huge monetary damages for irresponsible and sensationalistic "journalism".

**KalashnikovMarine**

Amen Monster Rain.... and if I dare to dream, Nancy Grace being forced off the air!

**Monster Rain**

I mean, I guess that's all contingent on Z being found not guilty, but by all appearance that seems rather likely.

**Seaward**

If Duke lacrosse didn't force Grace off for more than a day, this certainly won't.

I'm sure NBC's ultimately going to settle, though. It's hard to win a case when you've admitted to wrongdoing.

Interesting note: the defense finally got to depose Benjamin Crump, the Martin family attorney and chief race-baiter in all of this, over the weekend. When they had Tracey Martin on the stand, they asked some pointed and I thought fairly irrelevant questions about Crump. I'm thinking they might have gotten him to say something stupid under oath.

**hotsauceman1**

whembly wrote:
Frazzled wrote:
Judge ruled defense can show TM had weed in his system?

Oh yea, this case is over.

Erm... how so?

Wouldn't weed be like... calming, non-aggressive... dude?

Depending on the amount it may not be enough to calm him, but enough to impair his judgment.

**Monster Rain**

I hear that it increases feelings of paranoia as well. That could certainly have been a factor in the events, hypothetically speaking.

**djones520**

Monster Rain wrote:
I hear that it increases feelings of paranoia as well. That could certainly have been a factor in the events, hypothetically speaking.

That may be the point they are going to target.

**MrDwhitey**

Nancy Grace is pure scum, and her being thrown off the air in disgrace would leave me happy.

**boyd**

Seaward wrote:
d-usa wrote:
Monster Rain wrote:
I mean, they can give it a shot, but it'll be hard to sell the idea that someone was wrong for shooting someone who by practically all accounts was bashing their head into the pavement.

But a civil suit can make an argument like that.

Z shot M, so that is 100% of the blame.

But M attacked Z, so he is 100% to blame for his own death.

But M wouldn't have attacked Z if Z wasn't following him and harrasing a kid for being "black while shopping", so maybe he is 25% to blame for the death.

Not saying that is how it would go, but it's possible.

Sadly, your last point is very true.

You throw enough lawyers against a wall, one of them will be able to drag some dollars with him as he comes dragging down.

We've heard a hell of a lot of testimony from the defense's side of the case that makes it pretty clear Zimmerman wasn't actually following Martin, especially after he spoke with the dispatcher. Prior to that, he was returning from Target. The only thing Martin's side has going for the, "following and harassing" narrative is Jeantel.

Zimmerman's case against NBC, on the other hand, is going to be pretty epic.

I didn't think the prosecution rested yet. These were witnesses for the prosecution. I just can't wait for this crap to die down so I can go to work in piece.

**Seaward**

The prosecution has in fact rested, and the defense is well into its case.

**whembly**

djones520 wrote:
Monster Rain wrote:
I hear that it increases feelings of paranoia as well. That could certainly have been a factor in the events, hypothetically speaking.

That may be the point they are going to target.

Good point... I can now see where they're going with that.

**hotsauceman1**

KalashnikovMarine wrote:
Amen Monster Rain.... and if I dare to dream, Nancy Grace being forced out an airlock!

Fixed that for ya.

**kronk**

If we took Piers Morgan from Britain, why can't they take Nance Grace from us? It's only fair, after all!

**Dreadclaw69**

Seaward wrote:
Zimmerman's case against NBC, on the other hand, is going to be pretty epic.

I can see them settling out of court, I think they've pretty much admitted liability. It's just a question of how much they're going to have to pay.

Automatically Appended Next Post:

kronk wrote:
If we took Piers Morgan from Britain, why can't they take Nance Grace from us? It's only fair, after all!

I agree!!

Oh, and you can take Russel Brand back and keep him on your side of the pond too

**Frazzled**

d-usa wrote:
But a civil case has a much lower burden of proof and a lower threshold for "did Zimmerman cause the situation that caused a death".

It will be much easier to get a majority of a jury to agree that Zimmerman "snooping around and being all shady and stuff while playing vigilante against a black kid" contributed to the situation that caused the death of Martin.

Remember that in a civil suit you are not trying to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Zimmerman commited murder. You simply try to convince a group of people that he is X% to blame for the situation and the death.

We are talking about the justice system where people who get hurt while robbing other people can win judicial damages.

Won't work. An acquittal is excellent support that for Z.

**d-usa**

Frazzled wrote:
d-usa wrote:
But a civil case has a much lower burden of proof and a lower threshold for "did Zimmerman cause the situation that caused a death".

It will be much easier to get a majority of a jury to agree that Zimmerman "snooping around and being all shady and stuff while playing vigilante against a black kid" contributed to the situation that caused the death of Martin.

Remember that in a civil suit you are not trying to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Zimmerman commited murder. You simply try to convince a group of people that he is X% to blame for the situation and the death.

We are talking about the justice system where people who get hurt while robbing other people can win judicial damages.

Won't work. An acquittal is excellent support that for Z.

Yeah, getting acquitted really helped OJ too!

Again though, big difference between not-guilty beyond reasonable doubt of 100% murder, and guilty of x% liability of a death.

**Frazzled**

KalashnikovMarine wrote:

This is a tweet from Ali BlackPower Muhammad-Shakur of the St. Pete/Tampa New Black Panthers Party:
"ALL I KNOW IS I BETTER HEAR GUILTY... WE NEED TO BE MOBILIZING TOWARDS ‎#SANFORDFL WEDNESDAY HOW DOWN TO TRAVEL TALKING 30-40 CARS!!! ‎#JUSTICETM ‎#TRAYVONMARTIN"

This is 18 USCS § 2102:
(a) Whoever travels in interstate or foreign commerce or uses any facility of interstate or foreign commerce, including, but not limited to, the mail, telegraph, telephone, radio, or television, with intent -
(1) to incite a riot; or
(2) to organize, promote, encourage, participate in, or carry
on a riot; or
(3) to commit any act of violence in furtherance of a riot; or
(4) to aid or abet any person in inciting or participating in
or carrying on a riot or committing any act of violence in
furtherance of a riot;
Shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.

We'll put a teenager in jail because a Canadian woman cyber-stalks him for making a snarky comment while playing a video game, but we won't arrest someone for making overt threats of inciting a riot in a national public forum?

A RICO case using the internet would be awesome.

**KalashnikovMarine**

As much of a tosser as Piers Morgan is, I really don't think he's worth inflicting Nancy Grace on actual allies...

**Dreadclaw69**

KalashnikovMarine wrote:
As much of a tosser as Piers Morgan is, I really don't think he's worth inflicting Nancy Grace on actual allies...

Then we tell Russia that they get her unless we get Snowden

**KalashnikovMarine**

Ooooh.... that's a hard bargain, but Putin could just have her thrown in the gu... hey! Idea!

**Dreadclaw69**

I hear that Siberia can be nice this time of year

Automatically Appended Next Post:
http://news.yahoo.com/expert-says-evidence-jibes-zimmermans-story-155634620.html

SANFORD, Fla. (AP) — An expert on gunshot wounds hired by the defense testified Tuesday that George Zimmerman's account of how he fatally shot Trayvon Martin is consistent with the forensic evidence.

Dr. Vincent Di Maio said that the trajectory of the bullet and gun powder on Martin's body support Zimmerman's version that Martin was on top of him when Zimmerman fired his gun into Martin's chest. The gun's muzzle was against Martin's clothing and it was anywhere from two to four inches from Martin's skin, he said.

"This is consistent with Mr. Zimmerman's account that Mr. Martin was over him, leaning forward at the time he was shot," said Di Maio, the former chief medical examiner in San Antonio.

The pathologist also said it was likely Martin was conscious for 10 to 15 seconds after the shooting as a reserve supply of oxygen ran out of his body, and during that time it was possible for him to have moved his arms. Zimmerman's account that he had placed Martin's arms out to his sides after the shooting contradicts a photo taken after the shooting that shows Martin's arms under his body. Defense attorneys contend Martin moved his arms.

Di Maio also explained that if clothes taken into evidence are wet and packaged in plastic bags, and not paper bags, it can ruin the samples since "bacteria multiplies and you get mold and it stinks to high heaven." Defense attorneys believe DNA evidence found on Martin's hooded sweatshirt and undershirt was degraded since the clothing wasn't packaged properly.

Earlier in the morning, Judge Debra Nelson considered prosecutors' request to bar the defense from showing animation depicting the fight between Martin and Zimmerman. Nelson held an evidence hearing with jurors out of the courtroom, but ultimately postponed her decision and more arguments on the matter until later in the afternoon.

Prosecutors object to the animation, saying it isn't an accurate depiction.

Defense attorneys called the man who created the animation to testify. To recreate the fight, Daniel Schumaker went to the crime scene and had employees in motion-capture suits re-enact what happened based on coroner photographs, police reports, the coroner's report, witness depositions and photos taken by responding police officers, he said.

The fight took place on a dark, rainy night in February 2012 and there were no eyewitnesses who saw the entire fight. Several witnesses saw and heard parts of the struggle that left Martin dead with a bullet in his heart.

Testimony in previous days has focused on a 911 call that captures screams from the struggle between Martin and Zimmerman.

Sondra Osterman, a friend of George Zimmerman, listens to the 911 tape while while on the witness st …
Convincing the jury of who was screaming for help on the tape has become the primary goal of prosecutors and defense attorneys because it would help jurors evaluate Zimmerman's self-defense claim. Relatives of Martin's and Zimmerman's have offered conflicting opinions about who is heard screaming.

Zimmerman's mother and uncle testified last Friday it was Zimmerman screaming, while Martin's mother and brother also took the witness stand last Friday to say the voice belongs to Martin. Martin's father testified Monday that he initially couldn't tell if the screams came from his son, but later decided they did.

Zimmerman himself once said during a police interview that the screams didn't sound like him, though he and his family later said the screams were his.

Zimmerman has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and says he shot Martin in self-defense during a scuffle in the townhome complex where he lived. Martin was there visiting his father and his father's fiancee.

**Gentleman_Jellyfish**

hotsauceman1 wrote:
whembly wrote:
Frazzled wrote:
Judge ruled defense can show TM had weed in his system?

Oh yea, this case is over.

Erm... how so?

Wouldn't weed be like... calming, non-aggressive... dude?

Depending on the amount it may not be enough to calm him, but enough to impair his judgment.

Although I had read somewhere that the items he had were for making cough syrup taste better, and robo-trippin can give PCP like effects.

**Alfndrate**

Gentleman_Jellyfish wrote:
hotsauceman1 wrote:
whembly wrote:
Frazzled wrote:
Judge ruled defense can show TM had weed in his system?

Oh yea, this case is over.

Erm... how so?

Wouldn't weed be like... calming, non-aggressive... dude?

Depending on the amount it may not be enough to calm him, but enough to impair his judgment.

Although I had read somewhere that the items he had were for making cough syrup taste better, and robo-trippin can give PCP like effects.

But did they find cough syrup in his system? PCP like effects probably mean nothing when he doesn't have any in his system.

**Gentleman_Jellyfish**

Alfndrate wrote:
Gentleman_Jellyfish wrote:
hotsauceman1 wrote:
whembly wrote:
Frazzled wrote:
Judge ruled defense can show TM had weed in his system?

Oh yea, this case is over.

Erm... how so?

Wouldn't weed be like... calming, non-aggressive... dude?

Depending on the amount it may not be enough to calm him, but enough to impair his judgment.

Although I had read somewhere that the items he had were for making cough syrup taste better, and robo-trippin can give PCP like effects.

But did they find cough syrup in his system? PCP like effects probably mean nothing when he doesn't have any in his system.

Not sure, just putting it out there

**Frazzled**

Well, by showing weed:
1. It supports Z's statements on the 911 that he's sees someone suspicious and he thinks the suspicious person is on drugs.

2. It can be used to show TM as being more paranoid then normal

3. Most importantly. It severaly impacts the image of TM as "a sweet little child, " and more like a thug. If the victim is less likeable, the less likely they will convict.

**Alfndrate**

That's fine G_J, it's an interesting thing to point out, but if that were the case... Shrike would also be suspect for possible Robo-trippin due to fact he's always buying skittles.