George Zimmerman found Not Guilty.

[Captain Kremmen]

Next thing he will be writing a book entitled
"If I did it II"

Remember OJ's original?

OJ was rich enough to be legally classed as white.
Is there any chance of the boy's family bring a private suit, so that any money Zimmerman makes from the killing is forfeited?

 

[iceaura]

And anyone seeing that person going to apprehend Zimmerman, had a right to apprehend them.

No, actually, although if honestly mistaken they would be let off probably - that would be instigating violence.

It's not an infinite regression. Zimmerman was attacking someone. People have a right to prevent that, and no one has a right to prevent them from doing so.

 

[billvon]

I just know that the scenario painted and most of us originally heard was that GZ had stalked and murdered his prey for simply racial reasons. When people actually look at the situation it is at least plausible Trayvon was planning a crime(from SMS extractions, and school/police reports). It is also plausible he threw the first punch based on his reputation as a fighter (from SMS extractions). If either are true then GZ is not the monster he is painted to be.

Looks like subsequent events have demonstrated that "painting" is closer to correct:

=============================================
George Zimmerman In Custody: Threatened Wife And Father-In-Law With Gun
12:01 PM - 9 Sep 2013
George Zimmerman was apparently arrested on Monday by Lake Mary Police and is currently being held in custody. Clickorlando.com broke the news of his arrest in the last hour reporting that Lake Mary police said they were called to an address on Spucewood Road, Florida. When they arrived at the property they took George Zimmerman into custody after a reported altercation involving a gun. The Associated Press reported via Twitter that the incident actually involved Zimmerman pulling his weapon on his wife, Shellie Zimmerman, who filed for divorce only yesterday. Her father was also allegedly present.
=============================================

Fortunately, this time he was stopped before he "stood his ground."

 

[p-brane]

This is not a world event but a purely domestic drama that should have been moved to the politics forum a long time ago.

 

[GeoffP]

Seconded.

 

[Bells]

Update..

Well, the pleb is back in the media spotlight again. And not in a positive light.

Zimmerman's wife filed for divorce last week.

If it could not get uglier, well it just did:

Shellie Zimmerman called authorities on Monday afternoon, after an alleged confrontation between George Zimmerman and her father. George Zimmerman was reportedly detained by Lake Mary police following the incident.

During the 5-minute phone call, Shellie Zimmerman tells the dispatcher that George Zimmerman punched her father in the nose, and she said he threatened her family with his hand on his gun. She also said he took her iPad out of her hand and smashed it and cut it with a pocket knife.

Throughout the call, Shellie Zimmerman sounds shaken, telling the dispatcher that she is scared and unsure what her estranged husband is capable of. At one point, she breaks down in tears while the dispatcher attempts to calm her down.

During the call, the police arrived at the scene, and Shellie Zimmerman asked for medical assistance, saying her father was visibly shaken and felt like he was "going to have a heart attack."​

At the time of this post, Zimmerman had been detained while the police investigate his alleged domestic battery on her father and his estranged wife, Shellie. The police suspect that his estranged wife may not file charges, as is often the case in domestic disputes, sadly.

In her 911 call, Ms Zimmerman tells the 911 operator that he was threatening all of them "with his firearm", after describing how George Zimmerman had punched her father in the face, and then describing how he smashed her ipad, then told the operator that she didn't know what he is capable of and that she was really scared.

At one point in the call, she tells her father to get inside the house, in case he started shooting at them, after telling the operator that the police were demanding that George Zimmerman's bodyguard got out of the way.. The rest of the call consisted of his ex wife sobbing into the phone, while the operator told them to remain inside until the area was secure. She then puts the phone down and you can hear her and who one can guess is her father saying "oh my god, there's a woman in there".. The call ends shortly after.

Well well.. Seems the leopard hasn't changed his spots after all.

 

[Tiassa]

Thank the Georges

Well well.. Seems the leopard hasn't changed his spots after all.

Given that he got away with murder, how many people will decide that domestic violence just isn't that big a deal?

We have to remember that George Zimmerman is exactly the kind of person Florida passed its SYG law for.

Well, them and the NRA suits.

I think what's really disturbing, though, is what Zimmerman and his family and his lawyer have done to the value of human life. When some idiot finally gets sick of it all and puts a round through him, a lot of people will celebrate.

By the way, have you heard the latest?

That is, did you ever wonder what it sounds like when someone stands his ground?

In Titusville, Florida, the question now is whether sneaking onto a neighbor's property, killing two, and failing to kill a third person that you shot eleven times, counts as standing one's ground. The video footage isn't gory or explicit, but listen to that barrage of "self-defense". As attorney Robert Berry explained, standing one's ground really depends on changing definitions of imminent: "It's things that could become, you know, an immediate threat". His client, William T. Woodward, has cited the Bush Doctrine and Stand Your Ground in his explanation of why he sneaked onto a neighbor's property and shot the hell out of three people.
____________________

Notes:

Edwards, David. "Florida man cites 'Bush doctrine' after pre-emptive killing of neighbors at Labor Day cookout". The Raw Story. September 4, 2013. RawStory.com. September 10, 2013. http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/09/...ve-killing-of-neighbors-at-labor-day-cookout/

 

[Bells]

By the way, have you heard the latest?

That is, did you ever wonder what it sounds like when someone stands his ground?

In Titusville, Florida, the question now is whether sneaking onto a neighbor's property, killing two, and failing to kill a third person that you shot eleven times, counts as standing one's ground. The video footage isn't gory or explicit, but listen to that barrage of "self-defense". As attorney Robert Berry explained, standing one's ground really depends on changing definitions of imminent: "It's things that could become, you know, an immediate threat". His client, William T. Woodward, has cited the Bush Doctrine and Stand Your Ground in his explanation of why he sneaked onto a neighbor's property and shot the hell out of three people.
____________________

Notes:

Edwards, David. "Florida man cites 'Bush doctrine' after pre-emptive killing of neighbors at Labor Day cookout". The Raw Story. September 4, 2013. RawStory.com. September 10, 2013. http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/09/...ve-killing-of-neighbors-at-labor-day-cookout/

He snuck onto their property and shot them, while they were having a BBQ and is actually and seriously depending on stand your ground and the Bush Doctrine as a defense?

I would love to see how the stand your ground supporters explain this one. Because their comments of 'we're going to get you' and then go and have a BBQ, where he then snuck onto their property and shot them is not an immediate or imminent threat. Unless one could classify BBQ tongs as a deadly weapon? He also sought out the danger, by trespassing onto their property with a gun and opening fire. I would be interested to see if he gets off. Because this is such a disturbing case.

 

[Tiassa]

Not a Wangster

I would be interested to see if he gets off. Because this is such a disturbing case.

All eyes, then, to the Michael Dunn case, I guess. If Dunn gets away with it, the only question in Woodward's case is one I don't have the answer to at present, which is what color were the dead.

But, yes, also notice the quote from his lawyer. Changing definitions of what "imminent" means.

The problem is that it's too early in the day, here, for me to think of a proper joke on that one.

I remember one time, my former partner came home at whatever hour, drunk, during our infamous downward spiral, and started shouting about all sorts of things; the one that finally got me to really engage was when she called our daughter "nothing" and "retarded" in order to tell me what a horrible person and father I was. I pointed out to her that maybe, if she was so worried about our daughter's cognitive and social development, she should probably get the hell out of the bars and start acting like a mother.

You know, typical exurbian bullshit relationship arguments. But that's also when she pulled her famous punch-line: Maybe I always drink so I don't shoot you! Now, as I've told when recounting this story, I didn't take it as a threat, but as I chuckled over the point the next day, it started something of a panic in my family.

But imagine, then: I had a key to the lock box. I very easily could have opened the box, gotten the gun, taken a round out of the ammo box in its unsecured but separate location, and then shot her in the head as she slept.

I mean, sure, I don't go in for that sort of thing, but you get the grim picture, eh?

Under the laws that govern my state, I would be up for Murder One, possibly with special circumstances, and therefore facing the death penalty.

Under the laws that govern Mr. Woodward's case? Well, if his lawyer is right, it's not really clear, is it?

Would I have been standing my ground to put a bullet through my drunken-unconscious domestic partner's head in response to drunken, empty rhetoric? Not by my definition, but then again, I'm not a gun owner, and I don't live in Florida.

 

[ElectricFetus]

Oh this is to hilarious, the 'Stand your ground BBQ' if he gets off it will be open season on people in florida!

 

[quinnsong]

Oh this is to hilarious, the 'Stand your ground BBQ' if he gets off it will be open season on people in florida!

Haha! Gun dealers will be marketing a new gun the BBQ Blaster, you know when you like your meat well done.

 

[Russ_Watters]

Looks like subsequent events have demonstrated that "painting" is closer to correct:

Yup, having an argument with his wife definitely makes him a murderer!

George Zimmerman was apparently arrested on Monday by Lake Mary Police and is currently being held in custody.

He was not arrested:

Officers detained George Zimmerman but never arrested him, police said.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/09/us/george-zimmerman-detained/index.html

Fortunately, this time he was stopped before he "stood his ground."

Since he made no attempt to take out, much less use a gun, there was nothing to "stop".

 

[iceaura]

Since he made no attempt to take out, much less use a gun, there was nothing to "stop"

Putting a hand on your gun while in a fight with people is "using" that gun.

BTW: This guy carries his gun with him everywhere, apparently.

 

[Russ_Watters]

Putting a hand on your gun while in a fight with people is "using" that gun.

I'm not sure you understand what guns are for.

 

[joepistole]

I'm not sure you understand what guns are for.

Well Ice was a little ambiguous in his post. But the family fight as reported by the media did not justify the use of a handgun. The use of handguns is only justified when someone’s life is in jeopardy. The kind of fight reported by the media in this instance did not rise to that level. If Zimmerman threatened to use his famous handgun during this fight and the reporting was complete and accurate, then in my mind and in states without the Stand Your Ground law it was clearly across the line for Zimmerman to threaten to use his weapon against unarmed individuals. If Zimmerman had shot his in-laws and his ex during this verbal exchange and claimed the Stand Your Gun Defense he might have gotten off yet again, after all, all he needs to do is to claim he felt threatened and the killings would be justified under Florida law.

As I said before, I don’t see the Zimmerman story ending until he winds up killing or seriously hurting someone and imprisoned. And that might be a long time coming in Florida with their Stand Your Ground Law. Zimmerman has been very lucky thus far. At some point, I think Zimmerman’s luck isn’t going to be there for him. And I fear the courts and the legal system in Florida are sending the wrong message to Zimmerman…that killing and unprovoked physical violence is ok. The question is how many people will he hurt before his luck runs out?

 

[Tiassa]

Would You Like To Embarrass Yourself More?

I'm not sure you understand what guns are for.

Okay, I call bullshit:

Given the things you can "stand your ground" for, how the hell is reminding people that you're packing heat not using one's gun?​

One uses his gun when he walks up, makes a "suggestion", and raises his shirt to show you he has a gun in his waistband.

How the hell is it any different just because this is George bloody Zimmerman? He made a point of putting his hand on his gun. He made a point of reminding everyone that he was lethally armed.

Reminding somebody that you are lethally armed is using one's weapon.

And since one can stand one's ground against the kid one went out of one's way to threaten if one is in Florida, your post is especially disingenuous and stupid.

I mean, holy crap, man, I can't believe you just tried that.

 

[birch]

he threatened to use his gun. thats imminent threat and act of aggression and while he has it on his person. besides punching the father in law, this is y they were so afraid bcuz he threatened to kill with firearm, which is much more of a serious direct fatal threat. zimmerman is a sneak good at niching unethical gray areas. u know its wrong but is there a law against threatening others with death and being a bully to keep others in control over and fear? even if there isnt, there should be for at least his irresponsibility and his amoral abuse of it. he has demonstrated he should not be allowed to own a gun and abuse that priviledge against others terrorizing them whenever he wants

 

[Russ_Watters]

Well Ice was a little ambiguous in his post. But the family fight as reported by the media did not justify the use of a handgun. The use of handguns is only justified when someone’s life is in jeopardy.

Agreed.

Good thing he didn't use a handgun.

I'm not sure you understand what guns are for either.

If Zimmerman threatened to use his famous handgun during this fight and the reporting was complete and accurate, then in my mind and in states without the Stand Your Ground law it was clearly across the line for Zimmerman to threaten to use his weapon against unarmed individuals.

What line? What law do you think it violates? What does stand your ground have to do with anything? (Hint: None, none, nothing.)

If Zimmerman had shot his in-laws and his ex during this verbal exchange and claimed the Stand Your Gun Defense he might have gotten off yet again, after all, all he needs to do is to claim he felt threatened and the killings would be justified under Florida law.

No, that's not all he needs. The claim also needs to be reasonable. You know, like lying on your back with a broken nose and bleeding on the ground due to a headwound, with the guy who inflicted the wounds still on top of you is a reasonable indication that you are in danger.

 

[Russ_Watters]

Okay, I call bullshit:

Given the things you can "stand your ground" for, how the hell is reminding people that you're packing heat not using one's gun?​

Ok, I guess no one here understands what guns are/are for. Let me explain:

Guns, also known as firearms, are projectile weapons that when activated launch projectiles using a pyrotechnic charge. That projectile is intended to hit a person and cause serious injury or death. So "using a gun" means firing a gun.

Announcing that you have a gun, on the other hand, is announcing you have a gun.

If these explanations seem tautological, they are. These are words humans learn when they are 3, so it is tough to break them down more simply than they already are. Analogy: Pointing at a car or announcing you have a car (I have a car!) is not the same as using a car. Driving a car is using a car. Confused? Ask any 3 year-old. Once he stops laughing at you, I'm sure he'll explain it to you.

One uses his gun when he walks up, makes a "suggestion", and raises his shirt to show you he has a gun in his waistband.

How the hell is it any different just because this is George bloody Zimmerman?

Um.... you have the shoe on the wrong foot here. It is you guys who are suggesting that pointing to a gun is consistent with murder. I'm the one who says there is nothing unusual or terribly bad - nothing "different" - about this. Nothing happened. That's why no one got arrested.

I shouldn't be surprised. People here have been conflagurating the words "follow" and "chase" for months.

 

[Russ_Watters]

he threatened to use his gun. thats imminent threat and act of aggression....

I'm not seeing it. Please, specifically cite the threat. What did he say or do exactly that was the threat? Examples:
"I'm going to kill you."
"I'm going to shoot you."
"See my gun? I'm going to use it on you."

Did he say any of those things or did he just announce that he had a gun? Announcing you have a gun is announcing you have a gun. Again, absurdly basic but I still sense the need to make it clear. An announcement of possession of a gun is not a threat to use a gun, much less an actual use of a gun.

...he threatened to kill with firearm

If I missed it I apologize: please post and cite the quote where he said such a thing.