Justice System Broken

[OutofDate1980]

Whatever, dude. If so, that means that representative government is the problem. Concentrate on finding a better system if you're convinced of this.

Mike

The problem is a lack representative government.

 

[IOWA]

Without taking sides, I'm going to add a few things. If anything this particular case adds to fuel my personal fire about people doing their research.

There is A LOT of media spin from the media on the case, and if you notice they almost always mention Florida's stand your ground law whenever they talk about this case. Coincidence? I think not.

Here are some questions all of you should be asking when deciding which side to take here.

Why did they use 5 year old photo's of both Zimmerman and Martin?

Why did NBC alter the 911 tapes before broadcasting them? (and then other MSM outlets recycled those same altered tapes, ugh)

Why is the main stream media calling Florida's Stand your ground law 'controversial' when 20+ other states have the same law, and most (if not all) have castle doctine?

Why did the media label Zimmerman as a White male, then later it is discovered he is Hispanic, they switched to 'White Hispanic'?

Why aren't other murders just like this one given this kind of attention that happen on a more than daily basis?

These are just some of the questions everybody should be asking. Don't take the media's word for it. They've outright lied to everyone already on just this particular case numerous times already.

I have not formed a personal opinion on this case, as I am waiting for all of the evidence and facts to be presented before I jump to any conclusions. But guilty or not, Zimmerman may never be afforded a fair trial promised to us by our constitution, which is something we all should be upset about.

Discuss.

 

[TxGoat]

Locally, I've seen how the justice system treats people differently based on their skin color. I know some people don't want to hear it and have no problem turning a blind eye, but I'm only reporting what I've seen.

The summers are notoriously hot in Texas and just about every summer you'll hear about a parent that leaves a child in the car and the child subsequently dies. Generally, (not always the case, but quite often) you'll see a white family struck by this type of tragedy and you'll hear the officer in charge of the investigation say, "Well, we really feel for the family, they've suffered enough already. We're not going to charge them. This loss is devastating." If the parent of the child is of any color but white, then they are more often than not, arrested and charged with child endangerment. We even had a case locally where the parents had a special needs child and were investigated a couple of times by Child Protective Services prior to their child dying in a hot car. The family was Caucasian and didn't face charges.

There is a double standard in this country whether you choose to believe it or not. It may or may not fall along socioeconomic lines, but IIRC when Michael Vick was charged the authorities had no problem jailing him and processing him. I don't necessarily recall him taking another person's life. I can definitely understand why some black people have no trust in our system and choose not to cooperate with the authorities. I won't say I think it's right, but I know I'd be a little reticent to have any contact with the authorities.

 

[saptech]

I think alot of this with Martin & Zimmerman was more about zimmerman not being arrested since it didn't look like Martin commited any crime other than kicking his ass. Which I still doubt. The media took it out of porportion and it escalated into a race type issue.

Yes there are double standards in the US, that's why to some, you are 'innocent until proven guilty' or 'guilty until proven innocent'. I've seen it with my own eyes also.

 

[OutofDate1980]

Frontline had a show that cast doubt on forensic science used in trials. This type of evidence is used mostly in direct violent crimes largely perpetuated by those of lower socio-economic status.

Briefly it's junk science that many individuals in higher socio-economic status are highly paid to provide causing wrongful convictions.

The Real CSI | FRONTLINE | PBS

 

[A.Nonymous]

Without taking sides, I'm going to add a few things. If anything this particular case adds to fuel my personal fire about people doing their research.

There is A LOT of media spin from the media on the case, and if you notice they almost always mention Florida's stand your ground law whenever they talk about this case. Coincidence? I think not.

Here are some questions all of you should be asking when deciding which side to take here.

Why did they use 5 year old photo's of both Zimmerman and Martin?

Why did NBC alter the 911 tapes before broadcasting them? (and then other MSM outlets recycled those same altered tapes, ugh)

Why is the main stream media calling Florida's Stand your ground law 'controversial' when 20+ other states have the same law, and most (if not all) have castle doctine?

Why did the media label Zimmerman as a White male, then later it is discovered he is Hispanic, they switched to 'White Hispanic'?

Why aren't other murders just like this one given this kind of attention that happen on a more than daily basis?

These are just some of the questions everybody should be asking. Don't take the media's word for it. They've outright lied to everyone already on just this particular case numerous times already.

I have not formed a personal opinion on this case, as I am waiting for all of the evidence and facts to be presented before I jump to any conclusions. But guilty or not, Zimmerman may never be afforded a fair trial promised to us by our constitution, which is something we all should be upset about.

Discuss.

I was thinking about this post today after the latest news on the case broke. Zimmerman took the stand in a bail hearing today and said, "I wanted to say I am sorry for the loss of your son. I did not know how old he was. I thought he was a little bit younger than I am. I did not know if he was armed or not."

All of the headlines imply that he apologized for shooting Martin when nothing of the sort happened. If you read what he said, he didn't even say that he was responsible for Martin's death. A lot of what he said is what you or I might say to Martin's family if we passed them on the street.

 

[A.Nonymous]

I hate when people top old posts, but this news seems interesting. Apparently the autopsy on Trayvon Martin is out and showed that he had marijuana in his system at the time of death. It also shows that he was shot from a distance of 1-18 inches which is consistent with Zimmerman's story. Couple that with the news that came out earlier this week about Zimmerman having a broken nose and facial injuries on the scene and it is looking more and more like his story is legit. At the very least, nothing has come out yet to contradict it. Makes it more puzzling as to why he was charged with second degree murder in the first place.

 

[Coronach]

Also, apparently Martin had no injuries besides the GSW, except for split knuckles. That is consistent with him punching Zimmerman multiple times. Martin's lack of facial injuries and Zimmerman's lack of injuries to his knuckles is consistent with Zimmerman being the recipient of a beating.

None of this is conclusive, but as you add pieces to the puzzle, the picture begins to emerge. Audio of one interview states that Martin had Zimmerman on the ground and was "raining down blows" and described it as an MMA "ground and pound". IF that is true, if I were in Zimmerman's shoes I would have shot Martin as well. It is exactly what we are trained to do.

Mike

 

[A.Nonymous]

Yeah, the evidence coming out is definitely backing Zimmerman. At the very least, nothing has come out yet to cast doubt on his story. It is interesting to see the people across various social media platforms who are still arguing that a first degree murder charge is justifiable and that second degree murder is a slam dunk. I'm still seeing people saying that Zimmerman "stalked and killed him in cold blood." It's ridiculous.

 

[Coronach]

Unless they're still holding something back, I don't see how they're going to climb that hill. The question of who started the confrontation is still a valid one, but even if you stipulate that Zimmerman did, the description given by the witness I cited goes beyond merely finishing a fight that someone else started. Now that's not the only witness, but it is a seemingly credible one. Add in the twin facts that, apparently, there is no physical evidence to support the idea that Zimmerman assaulted Martin and that merely approaching someone and confronting them verbally does not justify a beating, and you're starting to look at the PD's original choice not to charge being a good one.

Mike

ETA: If they are holding something back, they can't do it for much longer. Discovery has to be soon, if it's not already underway.

 

[A.Nonymous]

Even if you say that Zimmerman started it and that Martin didn't carry it too far (both seem sketchy based on what's come out), I still don't see how you've got second degree murder there. You've got two guys struggling over a gun and one guy gets shot. That's manslaughter at worse and there's a strong self-defense argument in there since they were fighting over a gun. I can see why the original investigator didn't want to press charges.

 

[saptech]

Here is another similar case to the Martin case...

Man shot in road rage incident wants charges filed

 

[OutofDate1980]

Here is another similar case to the Martin case...

Man shot in road rage incident wants charges filed

I guess I'm old school, even though a 65-year old spit in my face I wouldn't slap or punch him. I can agree with the prosecution view in this event.

 

[saptech]

From what I've heard, the biker guy spit in the 65 yr. old's face first, then he spit back and that's when the biker punched him. I guess the biker didn't see the gun in grandpa's lap!

 

[A.Nonymous]

From what I've heard, the biker guy spit in the 65 yr. old's face first, then he spit back and that's when the biker punched him. I guess the biker didn't see the gun in grandpa's lap!

A law that lets you respond with deadly force to unlawful force is a bad law.