These 6 white woman lived in Sanford. I suspect social pressure to acquit.

[johnnyrocket]

They had to go back to their white conservative pro-gun community. It's a sad testament to our social ills.

[Travis_0004]

1. I disagree.

I would have to assume there is more social pressure to find him guilty.

Either way, they looked at the facts, and came to a desicion, and bitching about it isn't going to change a thing.

[Pelican]

2. Agreed....

[bluedeathray]

3. I suspect the defense made enough gray area

To convince those ladies that there was "reasonable doubt". Between that, and the vague manner in which the law was written, gray area does in fact exist.

Even though it's obvious that Zimmerman hunted that kid down.

[Nye Bevan]

4. It wasn't "6 white women". Please try to get your facts right. (nt)

[handmade34]

5. ???

who were the jury then?

[Nye Bevan]

10. "UPDATE: After a report on the trial proceedings, Williams issued a brief correction, clarifying..."

The jury is indeed all female, but five of the jurors are white. One of them, labeled on NBCNews.com as Juror B-29, is referred to as “either black or Hispanic.”

UPDATE: After a report on the trial proceedings, Williams issued a brief correction, clarifying that it’s a “jury of six, five of them white.”

http://www.mediaite.com/tv/nbcs-brian-williams-incorrectly-claims-george-zimmerman-jury-is-all-white/

[handmade34]

12. my understanding is

one women is Hispanic... but still white... white is race, Hispanic is ethnicity

[Egalitariat]

6. I think it was 6 white women. One was Hispanic.

[handmade34]

11. most Hispanics are White n/t

[Egalitariat]

7. None of them lived in Sanford

[quinnox]

8. these 6 women blew it

let's face it, a mostly male jury would have sent Zimmy to prison. Maybe these women were charmed by Zimmy, and thought he was a "nice boy", or he reminded them of their sons. Men would likely have seen through that, put the hammer down, and sent this creep to prison.

[Lizzie Poppet]

9. Sexist bullshit.

You already had a post hidden over this crap. Trying for two?

[femmocrat]

18. Why didn't they see Trayvon in the same way?

He was so much younger and more vulnerable. I didn't find anything about Zimmy "charming". He is just plain creepy IMO. His mother wasn't even a sympathetic figure.

And I disagree that (white) men would have convicted him. If anything, they would have identified with gun-slinger George. I don't know about black men, but think their perspectives would be far different. But then, how likely was it that a black man would serve on THAT jury?

[quinnox]

20. maybe they fell for the defense ploy of seeing him as a "scary black man", a hood and thug

and also along with that image, maybe they brought their own prejudices to the table.

[JaneyVee]

22. Oh jeez, the stuff I read on here sometimes. Mind-boggling.

[Yo_Mama]

24. I'm a woman

and I've gotta tell you, Zimmerman ain't charming. Not by a long shot.

The dead Martin boy, on the other hand, was a beautiful kid.

I would have expected a harsher judgment from a jury with women than of men, to be honest. Not based on looks, but based on the way women react to dead kids, being followed at night and shootings.

Men would have been more likely to concentrate on whatever happened during the tussle. Women would be more likely to think of the broader picture.

[dairydog91]

25. Well, it's nice to hear that women are flighty and emotional fools.

Clearly, what we needed were 6 strong, rational men rather than all those silly women.

[YarnAddict]

27. Women

are just as smart, rational, and reasonable as men. They took their duties seriously, and came up with the verdict they thought the law required. If you think women are incapable of making a smart, and reasoned decision, then I think I hear the 1950's calling you.

Do you also believe women shouldn't be able to vote????

[noamnety]

28. Well, shit. I just googled who's more likely to convict, men or women.

And what I got was a bunch of links to a study saying male jurors are more likely to find women guilty if they are overweight.

WTF.

[KharmaTrain]

14. A High Burden Of Proof...

...and a poor job by the prosecution allowed Zimmerman to walk. The defense was able to turn the trial and make it about Martin and thus create the "reasonable doubt" that the jurors agreed with. The bar was high to start out with and the prosecution did a poor job in bringing the case and then in letting the defense "out lawyer" them. The fact these women were selected as jurors can also be placed at the prosecution's feet as they were the ones who agreed to empaneling them.

As a juror, your job is to interpret the law and leave as much of your "outside prejudice" outside the courtroom. This jury took its time in deliberating and ruled according to a very narrowly worded indictment and even more opaque laws. You're right...this is a sad testament to our society...

[avebury]

15. I actually wonder if they were lazy in the long run.

They asked about manslaughter. The judge sent a message that she needed a more specific question.


CRICKETS!


Was it easier, at that point, to just go on and pass by seriously considering manslaughter>

[bettyellen]

16. I think that was a ploy to get the media thinking a verdict wouldn't happen...

so they could better slink off into the darkness. Not that I blame them, from the way they chase these people down.

[Horse with no Name]

17. I hope that they have the opportunity to have Zimmerman as their close and personal

neighbor.

[Honeycombe8]

19. You just can't accept that the jurors based their verdict on the evidence?

They didn't find GZ innocent. They found that the state did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that GZ was not defending himself when he shot TM.

From the question they asked the judge, they considered manslaughter.

They were not finding that GZ shouldn't have gotten out of the car, that he was following TM, that TM was irritated at being followed.....none of that was in the list of questions the jury had to answer.

Their questions were pretty narrow, tailored to the elements of the charges.

1. Was TM killed? yes
2. Did GZ kill TM? yes
3. Did GZ have reason to believe that he was in a threat of great bodily harm at the time of the shooting?
Answer:_____.

Apparently they believed that the state did NOT prove that #3 was not true. The prosecutor had the burden to prove the elements of the crime.

Had GZ struck the first blow, this trial would've ended up very different.

[rucky]

21. "Reason to believe"

is the subjective part of this.

What passes for "reasonable" in Florida is massively fucked up.

[Honeycombe8]

26. I'm not sure I would've arrived at that same conclusion. But there you go. That's the system.

Six jurors decided that way.

It's tough when the prosecutor has the burden to prove. Remember that GZ is presumed innocent. The jurors are instructed they have to view the evidence in a light most favorable to the defendant. The state has to prove otherwise.

So I can see how the jurors arrived at their conclusion.

I would have preferred a lesser charge that would've resulted in some prison time (less than 10 years) or a long probation for GZ...some punishment for reckless behavior. That would've been almost a slam dunk to prove. But that wasn't on the table.

[backscatter712]

23. Six Paula Deens, making a jury straight out of To Kill A Mockingbird.

Even if Atticus Finch himself prosecuted the case, they'd still have voted to let Zim skate.