Jacob Sullum
Reason Magazine
3/29/2012
Many people suspect that George Zimmerman, in seeking to justify shooting Trayvon Martin, exaggerated the threat posed by the unarmed teenager. But the attorneys hired by Martin’s family have a history of exaggeration as well. One of them, Natalie Jackson, declared, based on the recording of a 911 call made during the fight between Zimmerman and Martin, “It is so clear that this was a 17-year-old boy pleading for his life, and someone shot him in cold blood.” Zimmerman claimed the cries cited by Jackson were his own, not Martin’s, and a witness backed him up. The same witness confirmed that the fatal shot was fired in the midst of a violent struggle, apparently when Martin was on top of Zimmerman—i.e., in the heat of the moment, not in cold blood. Another lawyer for the family, Benjamin Crump, said the testimony of Martin’s girlfriend, who was talking to him on his cellphone right before the fight, “completely blows Zimmerman’s absurd self-defense claim out of the water.” It doesn’t. Most crucially, her account does not resolve the question of who started the fight, let alone the question of whether Zimmerman (who claimed Martin tried to grab his gun) reasonably feared for his life and had no feasible means of escape. This pattern of hyperbole continues with the lawyers’ tendentious interpretation of security footage (below) showing cops bringing a handcuffed Zimmerman into the police station, which ABC News aired last night (and Mike Riggs noted this morning)…
The article continues, with video, at Reason.com
Also, Sheila Jackson Lee posits Zimmerman broke his own nose Watch the video at the link!
George Zimmerman’s Dad: ‘So much hate coming from the President’
Allen West on Trayvon Martin case: No one should us this to ‘push an ideological agenda’
The Daily Caller asked Florida Republican Rep. Allen West on Capitol Hill if it’s appropriate for Rev. Jesse Jackson and Rep. Al Sharpton to publicly protest the Trayvon Martin case.
“I don’t think anyone should be using this tragedy to push an ideological agenda, to include the anti-gun lobby,” West told TheDC.
Some civil rights leaders, such as Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, have been criticized by conservatives for politicizing the case.
“His family should be outraged at the fact that they’re using this child as the bait to inflame racial passions,” Rev. C.L. Bryant, a former NAACP leader told TheDC on Monday…
The video of Congressman West is at The Daily Caller.
Second Trayvon Martin Twitter feed identified
This image is the photograph the late Trayvon Martin used to represent his Twitter identity in late 2011, under the screen name "T33ZY_TAUGHT_M3." Although the Twitter account was deleted, The Daily Caller retrieved it from the social analytics website PeopleBrowsr. The upper-arm tattoo in the image matches one in a close-up photograph on Martin's MySpace page. (Image: Twitter)
The Daily Caller has identified a second Twitter handlethat was used by the late Trayvon Martin during the last weeks of 2011. Tweeting in December under the name “T33ZY TAUGHT M3,” Martin sent a message that read, “Plzz shoot da #mf dat lied 2 u!”
It’s unclear who Martin intended the message for, or whether he intended it to be taken literally.The photo Martin chose to represent himself on Twitter as “T33ZY TAUGHT M3″ depicts him in a black Polo cap, looking into the camera and extending his middle finger. The photo’s file name on Twitter’s server indicates that it was taken on the afternoon of June 17, 2010.
At least one website issued a retraction this week after mistakenly linking Martin to a middle-finger-salute image on a Facebook account corresponding to a Georgia teenager who shares Martin’s name. This image, however, was uploaded to Twitter by the teen himself…
The article continues at The Daily Caller.
Update: Meanwhile, Obama’s DOJ intends to indict NC Gov. Nikki Haley? The governor has been mentioned as a potential running mate with Mitt Romney, should he win the Republican nomination. What diversion will they think of next?
Also, Dan Riehl reacts to the ABC News video:
- Enhanced Image Proves ABC Blew It On Zimmerman Video
- Shame On ABC For Irresponsible Hyping Of Zimmerman Video
- Florida Couple Fled Home, Hires Attorney After Spike Lee Tweeted Address
Update 2: Did ABC Superimpose Chyron To Block View of Zimmerman’s Goose Egg?
Update 3: Dear Mr Obama, I didn’t hear from you when our recruiters were gunned down at their recruiting station right here in this country. A justifiably angry message written by Beverly Perlson, The Band of Mothers
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