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Originally Posted by Coexist.
This case stresses me out. To me, it came down to manslaughter or self-defense. Although, in my personal opinion, second degree could be an option, there was not enough evidence to prove it. Now, for self-defense, they had to prove that Trayvone was a thread to Zimmerman's life, and they defense did so by saying that the concrete was the weapon. I see their point, but I disagree. First, I don't think he had the right to be following him in the first place. Neighborhood watch? That's not how it works, you call the police if you do something suspicious, not go after him. And why did he have a gun to do "neighborhood watch" in the first place? Second, I definitely think something was left out of the story. The defense basically said that Zimmerman followed Trayvone, Trayvone saw that he was being followed and he turned around and randomly decided to beat Zimmerman up. This does not sound realistic to me and that something is being left out. If you are being followed, you don't normally decide to just bust out in violence, but instead, run or yell or something. I feel that something must have triggered Trayvone to do what he did, from Zimmerman flashing the gun, saying a threat, etc. That doesn't say he should have beat up Zimmerman, but it would validate both sides' story, because it me, it sounds incredibly foggy.
I think, by evidence, it should have been manslaughter. However, the prosecution did a terrible job, and it doesn't help that my country is full of racist bigots anyway. I'm so done with this case and listening to people in my life spew racism. (Family. Oh boy.)
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This case stresses me out too, especially since I lived in Sanford for 6 years. And I'm not gonna lie, it wasn't a good neighborhood, there was a crack house with hookers across the street. I wasn't allowed to go trick or treating door to door (my parents took me to the mall and the stores gave out candy) and we didn't open the door at all during Halloween. That being said when a neighbors house caught on fire my parents let the woman in our house when no one else would, I don't know if no one else did because she was black or just because people were paranoid about everyone in the neighborhood regardless of skin color.
You are right that Zimmerman had no right to follow Trayvon, but as far as having a gun goes, you are allowed to carry a gun here if you have a license, and a lot of people keep their guns in their car. Now I could be wrong but I don't think that Zimmerman was actually out patrolling at that time, he was just out and probably just had his gun in his car. I mean if you lived in a neighborhood that had a lot of break-ins and you had a gun would you not bring it with you when you go out?
According to the phone calls both Zimmerman's to the police and Trayvon's to his girlfriend, Zimmerman never talked to Trayvon until Trayvon approached him. And honestly I don't find it all that odd that Trayvon would go to confront Zimmerman. A lot of teenagers now, especially boys think they are invincible, and tough guys, he was probably trying to show that he was someone not to be messed with. That being said I don't think Trayvon went to Zimmerman intending for the confrontation to become physical. That's the one part we will never know, is why the physical confrontation started, and who started it.