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Martin first notices Zimmerman following him while Zimmerman is still in his vehicle.
Martin approaches Zimmerman's vehicle and Zimmerman does nothing to identify himself or his reason for following Martin.
Martin's reaction to Zimmerman is fear and anxiety, enough so that according to both Zimmerman and Martin's girlfriend, Martin decides to run away from a possible confrontation.
Zimmerman, after having fulfilled his responsibility as a citizen and a member of the community watch by apprising police of "suspicious" activity by Martin, refuses the police request to meet them at a designated and instead gives chase after Martin who in fear is trying to run away. In giving chase, Zimmerman makes it quite clear that he is both hostile and in a confrontational state of mind to police dispatchers in stating, "These *******s always get away".
While running after Martin, Zimmerman is told to stop pursuing Martin. Whether he did or didn't is a point of contention but either way seconds after that exchange. Martin VERBALLY confronts Zimmerman to which Zimmerman instead of trying to alleviate Martins obvious fear, instead replies in a confrontational manner.
That is not indicative of a person "merely" following someone, Zimmerman's actions were those of someone looking for a fight and got one. Under the Florida statute which I have posted more times than I care to recount, if you go looking for a fight and find one, you cannot claim defense under "stand your ground" unless you do everything including kissing the ass of the person beating yours.
While not addressed to me, I would respond by saying that I have no doubt that Zimmerman's account that Martin threw the first punch is true. I am more than happy to stipulate to that point. Because it is irrelevant.
Irrelevant! No wonder Trayvon did not know the parameters of acceptable behavior. This kid never had a chance because his mentors told him to attack a man for perceived injustice was the norm. How can you act responsibly when your influences tell you that knocking someone to the ground and pounding their head into the cement is "irrelevant". This is the definition of civility within his socialization it is an acceptable way to solve problems. Imagine a situation wherein your heroes truly are thugs. Where it is acceptable to take what you need when you need it to support you gangsta lifestyle, buy your gangsta music and be a cool gangsta buy and sell your drugs. Hey cat daddy the whole world doesn't operate that way. There truly are civil people in civil neighborhoods that intend on protecting that civility. Irrelevant!
I can't do this anymore I'm outa here. Even if you are in a sanitarium blindfolded eventually you need to find the door and run like hell. Goodbye! Adios! I'll check in after the trial. Come on in jump on me pound my head into the ruthless concrete of myopic pore pore me rationalization. Be the victim, you don't have to be responsible that's for them upscale neighborhoods where people hold down jobs. Hell them people never heard of a mailbox food stamps and a crow bar. Pass the tweed and pour me some purple drank. By the way it's drink. Pour me some purple drink.
I guess you're unaware that a person is innocent until proven guilty.
That's Chapter One in Criminal Law for Dummies.
It seems that you do not apply this standard to Trayvon Martin.
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Regarding the little meeting outside the 7-11, maybe he was selling, not buying. I have no clue how much a blunt goes for, but didn't he have something like $40 on him?
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I believe you've nailed it. He was about to get caught with illegal substance and ran, then changed his mind and attacked.
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He was injured and afraid of the thug on top of him trying to beat his brains out. That's good enough for me.
Irrelevant! No wonder Trayvon did not know the parameters of acceptable behavior. This kid never had a chance because his mentors told him to attack a man for perceived injustice was the norm.
I swear the fracking world has been turned upside down.
I see acceptable behavior is to be a gun toting vigilante with a chip on your shoulder and anger management issues to chase a kid, NOT follow CHASE a kid through his neighborhood, but it is unacceptable behavior for a kid clearly frightened of the person CHASING after him to "stand his ground" after failing to determine if the person chasing them was doing so with benign intent.
What is going on here? Have we returned to the days of one set of acceptable behaviors for some folks with another set of acceptable behaviors for another? Or worse, perhaps some folks have never abandoned that mentality.
You are also twisting words. They are not saying that getting your head beaten against the ground is not sufficient for SYG. They are saying that because Zimmerman provoked the situation, he cannot stand his ground because he is technically the offender, whether he attacked first or not, and whether or not the attack was physical.
That is taking a piece of the situation out of context. Of course if you are getting your head beaten then you should be able to defend yourself. That is only one part out of several details on the case. If that was the only that happened, I would be supporting Zimmerman. As of now, I do not trust Zimmerman simply because of the lies that he told in court. That said, I have not condemned him.
Would you say that a woman who feels she is being followed at night does not have the right to defend herself from a potential attacker? If she is walking alone and sees an unknown person following her, and then the person approaches her, does she have the right to feel threatened?
If she's too stupid to just go home when home is just a few steps away, and if she has a cell phone and is too stupid to call for help (9-1-1 isn't that hard), well...................I'll leave it at that.
question--- do you happen to know of court rulings that at all define 'provocation' in the self defense statute, or are you using what is exclusively your interpretation ?
It is you that can't grasp it pal. Put your grimy hands on this white girl because you think you have some special race or age privelidge to do so and given the opportunity it won't be the NRA you have to worry about.
what don't you understand about this? I can walk up to you get two inches from your face and look you in the eyebal. And ask you what the hell you are doing in my neighborhood and you can't do legally a damn thing about it? What don't you get about that pal/gal? I say to you, you are an Asian, Asian gangs have been robbing this neighborhood. I saw you looking around in the rain and peering in windows. Do you live here? I am a neighborhood watch. Look see me, I have a cell phone I am calling the police. Look see me, I have a right to protect my neighborhood and this is a public street I have the right to walk as close as I please behind you so long as I don't step on your heels. You have the right pal/gal to call the police, here take my cell phone call the police pal/gal and tell them there is a maniac stalking you and walking so close she is nearly stepping on my heals. If she touches me I am going to punch her in the nose, knock her to the ground and bang her head on the sidewalk until she nearly passes out. What don't you getvaboutbthat scenario pal/gal? I have a fundamental constitutional right to secure my neighborhood. According to Z if he turned out believed by a jury of his peers the confrontation took place when Trayvon closed ground on him. No walking on heels, no eyeball to eyeball why are you in my neighborhood. Just a young kid that someone had taught that brute force was an acceptable societal norm for dealing with problems. Don't like someone following you, just beat the hell out of them. Yea that's the way to run a life, but sooner or later that method will fail. That method failed.
I am wondering if black folks in this society have become so accustomed to crime in their streets that they believe it is acceptable to export that crime. My street doesn't want it. I would gladly have Zimmerman move onto my street.
If there were more vigilant neighbors like gz there would be less crime...
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