Zimmerman believed that he had every right to detain a black person walking through his neighborhood

[npk]

On the 911 call that Zimmerman made to the police he clearly states that Trayvon is approaching the back entrance gate to the neighborhood and he doesn't want Trayvon to get away. What was Trayvon getting away from. Did Zimmerman observe Trayvon commit any crime. Did he observe Trayvon carrying a television through the neighborhood as if he had just burglarized a home. No and No. Zimmerman didn't observe Trayvon do anything that would have even warranted calling the police to begin with. No the only reason Zimmerman followed Trayvon or called the police to start with was because Zimmerman felt that he had THE RIGHT to detain Trayvon simply because he was walking through his neighborhood. This mindset right there disproves everything that Zimmerman's family members have been saying about him. They keep saying that Zimmerman wasn't an angry person, yet two prior arrests for physical violence, one against a woman, disproves that. They keep saying that he wasn't the kind of person to stereotype or discriminate on the basis of race. But if that were true then why would he believe, as almost a part of his very persona, that he had a right as a white man to detain a black man for no other reason than because he could.

This to me is the biggest issue of the entire case. I wonder how many other black teenagers Zimmerman has followed or accosted during his time as supposed neighborhood watchman. It seems unlikely to me that this would be the first time.

[DonCoquixote]

1. Hey George

One people found out you were half Hispanic, people started wishing you got shot too. As a fellow Hispanic in Florida, I hate to tell you this, but now matter how well you speak English, there will also be a faction in Florida that will hate you, because they see you as you saw Tray Martin.

[TorchTheWitch]

2. it wasn't the first time

Several neighbors had complained about Zimmerman following them and/or confronting them and were angry about it. I don't think they were only black people either. I think Zimmerman believed he was the neighborhood official wild west sheriff with the right to follow, confront or even detain anyone he wanted and that this power position went to his head. I also believe that the home owner's association allowed and even encouraged him to behave in this way which could very well have gone a long way in his believing he had this power and right to do as he liked concerning other people in the neighborhood and without any rules of procedure or constraints. For a long time he made an astonishing amount of 911 calls about ridiculous things like children playing outside or potholes in the street, yet he was never advised to behave differently, and each time he followed someone or confronted someone or made yet another ridiculous 911 call without any blow back further enhanced his belief that his outrageous methods were appropriate.

One of the very first interviews with his friend and previous neighborhood watch captain, Taffe, he says that Zimmerman had gotten no training whatsoever and it is likely that Taffe encouraged and advised him to behave in the manner that he did which he probably did himself when he was the neighborhood watch captain.

It's been my impression and has from the beginning that the home owner's association board WANTED him to behave this badly and LIKED his outrageous methods in order to "encourage" the "riff-raff" (read: minority renters) to move out of the neighborhood as they had the desire for it to revert back to white well-heeled owners only.

[DCBob]

6. The gun made him feel like he was the authority.

He thought he was the sheriff.

[Daalalou]

14. Interesting

From all the interviews with Taffe, that man is a clear-cut racist. So I think there is something to your theory about the home owner's association's goals.

I'll note this about Zimm's 911 calls: calls made earlier (before the last year) were usually nonsense, but at least they were about something: e.g., loud parties, neighbors arguing, potholes. His more recent calls, made in late 2011 or 2012, were almost all about "black man who looks suspicious." In the recent calls, there's never any action being described; just their presence alone "seems suspicious."

[Scuba]

3. ...

<a href="http://imgur.com/YonkT"><img src="" title="Hosted by imgur.com" alt="" /></a>

[Boabab]

4. Everything about this case makes me ill

The message that its perfectly legal to aggressively pursue and then kill black youths in "self defense" has been delivered, loud and clear.

I seriously doubt if GZ will ever stand trial, thus solidifying this hideous miscarriage of "justice".

[DLevine]

5. Exactly right.

What kind of person calls 911 to report a "suspicious person", when that person is doing absolutely nothing wrong? And then, Zimmerman takes it upon himself to follow Trayvon, who again, is doing nothing wrong. Zimmerman was the aggressor here. If anybody had a right to stand his ground, it was Trayvon, who was being stalked by a stranger carrying a gun.

[SaltyBro]

7. Racists are the most despicable folks walking this planet.

They make it suck for the rest of us.

[MineralMan]

8. Mall Cop Syndrome.

It's an epidemic these days.

[dmkinsey]

26. Yeah, and the folks in the gated communities are hung-up on keeping unauthorized people out

Visited my in-laws in Port Orange, FL and I was surprised how strict the gate people are.

[treestar]

9. Yes.

And when he did approach the black kid, the black kid was supposed to meet a test in Zimmerman's mind - be "respectful." Racists saying that really tick me off.

[The Magistrate]

10. Exactly, Sir

This fact is the basis for the 'depraved mind' element of the second degree murder charge. It is what will, and what ought to, put the fizzing little goon in jail for a long time.

[CatWoman]

11. this has got to be

one of the best Zimmerman threads posted.

Thanks

[Baitball Blogger]

12. You're on the right track.

At the peak of the Afghanistan-Iraq situation, I couldn't walk my dog without having someone trail me, because they were convinced I stole the dog. Once a year it would happen. These are a synopsis of the events:

(1) I was walking the dog around a retention pond and someone was yelling on the other end. Took me a while to realize they were calling for their dog, but there was no other dog in the park, besides mine. A police car was not far behind them. I called my dog to my side and I leashed her because it all looked suspicious. When I did, the people waved off the police.

(2) On another walk, closer to home, A young man followed me home while his girlfriend or wife manned the car from a distance.

(3) The scariest was when I walked along a fairway with the dog, which I had done every day for more than eight years. I looked up and saw a middle aged to old man coming down the sidewalk, and another one was coming up from behind. I knew it was suspicious because, at the time, you didn't see this age group exercising much during the day (It was in the 'get a job,' era) (Not like they have been doing since Tim Russert died) I thought it was weird and was thankful that this was the part where I usually drift from the sidewalk to take a shortcut home. Well, one of the men aggressively followed me up the knoll. "What a pretty dog," he said. "Is it a ---." I said, "No, it's a mix." "You don't mind if I take a picture," he said, whipping out a cellphone. I stopped being nice at this point and said, "Why would you want to take a picture of my dog." "No, problem" he said, I just took a picture off a Chiwawa down the road." I really felt like this man was lying through his teeth and just took my dog by the leash and walked away, annoyed.

(4) Another disingenuous encounter occurred at the 7 11. I had left the dog in the backseat with the car window open and couldn't have been gone more than a minute. When I got back, a man, about in his forties, approached the car and started saying, "Oh, what a beautiful dog." He seemed very nice. Thank you," I said. "I have a friend that has a dog like that," he replied. I don't know how we started talking about water, but I said, "My dog doesn't like water." He then said in a more serious tone. "His dog didn't either. It also had spots inside his gums." And then he took the dog by the mouth and inspected the inside of the mouth! He didn't find any spots, but that didn't stop him from giving me a look like I was guilty of something. I was slow to understand that I was just profiled. But I started getting angry soon after that.

All these people were Anglo-Americans and I am dark skinned. So, yes, they do have boundary issues around here. It happens to me in various different ways. They don't care what you own, they don't care what your rights are. It's like they made a judgment call and they feel it's their right to commandeer anything that you have and whatever they want.

If you push back, well, you saw what they did to Trayvon.

[eilen]

15. My MIL lives in Port St. Lucie in one of those gated communities

and it is filled with old people on golf carts who are absolute Nazi's.

Anyway, one of them drives an expensive sports car. (Lots of people do down there) and he went to the supermarket. He comes out and there are some kids standing by his car admiring it. One of them asks him about it-- He is like-- "sure, I want to show you something even better-- he whips out a gun from his glove compartment and waves it at them and says "how do you like this!" Batshit crazy old white people in Florida--one good reason to never go there.

My MIL, who actually works for a living in that community was trying to get home from work and all those golfcart driving imbeciles won't get out of the way so she beeps thinking maybe they aren't wearing their hearing aides or something. Anyway, they report that she was "speeding"-- which she wasn't and took away her gate card "privileges" --(honestly, who ever thought of buying a house behind a gate with a HOA should really get their head examined). She still has to pay monthly fees but has to get the idiot gatekeeper guy to open the gate everytime for a month. They tried to take away her husband's as well but he made a big bitchfit, threated lawyers so they backed off. What is ever grosser about this place is that there is a gate within the gate-- homes too exclusive for the first gate. I have fantasies of a Mexican groundskeeper rebellion because you know, no one there can cut their own grass or take care of their own pool.

[Baitball Blogger]

17. It's like my life flashed before my eyes.

[eilen]

21. LOL, Sorry!

If you ever get tired of unrelenting sunshine and Prick Scott, come on up to Central NY. We have higher taxes, still have rednecks and haven't solved racism but usually the cops arrest the guy who pulled the trigger and there are very strict rules regarding handgun permits. Our Governor is a bit of a DINO-- however he is not a raging teabagging thief. Oh, and Limbaugh moved out in a huff. But I don't think anyone will think you stole your dog (they might give you the stink eye if you don't, you know... pick up after him) and we have dog parks with a fenced off section for little dogs (so the big dogs don't bully them or vice versa).

Word to the wise--We do usually get Winter.

Two co-workers have left my workplace for relocation to Florida so there is plenty of room!

[EmeraldCityGrl]

13. I was surprised the prosecutor or Judge

did not stop him as soon as he started to address Trayvon's family.
We can all see where they are going with this. Watching GZ present
himself as a reserved, apologetic victim of an unfortunate "accident"
made me sick. I believe he lied on the stand and when they review the
taped interviews there will be no words of apology. At the time he
reached the police station nothing had been established about Trayvon's
age, identity, place of residence, reason for being in the complex. So,
why would he be apologizing? Fucking liar.

[Rex]

16. Of course he does...most racists would think that.

nt.

[earth trine]

18. He was in a gated community with a bunch of break-ins

and Trayon (with hoodie up) looked like another one. Cigar=cigar. It's tragic but change that shooting law, don't continuously condemn this man.

[Blue_Roses]

19. Changing a law

won't change a mindset.

In fact, what GZ did was against the law. There was no SYG since he clearly stalked Trayvon.

[Rex]

20. I hope you never are in charge of anything important

you sound like the type that would do something stupid...oh wait...troll.

[eilen]

22. looked like another what?

Just so you know, thieves don't come color-coded, they look like everyone else.

[BumRushDaShow]

23. Walking while Black is not a crime except to some. n/t

[The Magistrate]

24. No Surprise To See 'Earth Trine' Has Been Expelled

The post, of course, provides substantial support for the accuracy of the O.P.'s observation.

[coalition_unwilling]

27. "Another one"??? - Welcome to my Ignore list - n/t

[noiretextatique]

28. i will condemn any murderer

and zimmerman is a murderer and a coward trying to cower behind a stupid law.

[MintyFresh]

25. So do

many others in this country. example: the neighbors of newton county ga who held the new buyers of the house next door at gun point.
They asked for their mortgage papers as if to imply the couple with the keys were lying.
http://www.ajc.com/news/newton-county-neighbors-charged-1424231.html

[Quixote1818]

29. Exactly right. If he did prevent Martin from going home that is kidnapping and Martin would then

be allowed to use force.

[cigsandcoffee]

30. There's that Zimmerman/Trayvon thing again. Makes me nuts.

In the same paragraph, should it not be Zimmerman/Martin or Jorge/Trayvon?