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Originally Posted by Dr.Bobby
Well, who really knows what actually happened. The point is, Zimmerman took on a responsibility he didn't need to, one that he wasn't trained for, and one that he had no authority for. And carried a gun in order to protect himself. If he felt safer or more entitled to confront someone as a result is something we can't know for sure, but we have to assume Zimmerman was out there looking for trouble..that's what these 'Neighborhood watches' are about, and lacking in any real authority, he approached someone with the intent to do something..that he wasn't authorized or entitled to do.
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Zimmerman was actually on his way home from the grocery store if I can remember correctly. "Looking for trouble" is a pretty farfetched accusation. Everyone hates the fake cop attitude, but the fact that you hold contempt for someone doesn't mean they're guilty. No, Zimmerman approached someone with the intent to find out if they were one of the burglars in the area, as specified in his call to police. Which he wouldn't have made if he was "looking for trouble". And last time I checked you don't need 'authorization' to speak to someone on the street.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr.Bobby
I cannot accept your premise that you (or he) actually believed his actions could not conceivably lead to a violent confrontation, c'mon. If that was the case, why did he carry a gun? Why didn't he just call 911 and let the police take care of it, especially since Zimmerman had not witnessed a crime involving Trayvon? How he approached Trayvon is another unknown, but we have to also assume given human nature and the scattered details we do have that it probably was provocative..if only b/c we now suspect Trayvon assaulted him. From that point in the story it might have been self defense, but as I previously stated, you cannot provoke a situation and then use self defense as a justification for shooting someone dead, even in Florida. That's why context matters.
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I don't know about you, but talking to someone and asking them who they are in an authoritative tone doesn't seem like it would inevitably lead to them smashing my skull into the sidewalk. He was carrying a gun because he was a concealed carry permit holder and it was after dark. We don't "suspect Trayvon assaulted him", we know he did because Zimmerman was bleeding from the face and head and Trayvon wasn't. We know he did because witnesses have confirmed he was on top of him. Zimmerman could have been assaulted simply because Trayvon was a thug: there is
no reason (and zero evidence) to think he "provoked a fight" besides the "dickhead" mindset you've painted on the guy who ended up screaming like a girl when he was attacked.
And yet provoking a situation which leads to a death, without malice afterthought, and then calling self defense is still not murder.