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Some thoughts on Zimmerman
Jul. 14th, 2013 10:09 amI'm not shocked by the Zimmerman verdict. If there's one thing that decades of televised criminal trials have taught us, it's that juries make bad decisions. But I am disappointed.
For whatever reason, the jury decided that he had a bona fide claim of self-defense. I'm not a lawyer, and my only training in these matters is from classes I took to get my concealed carry licenses. Based on that training, I would have assumed that his claim to self defense could not be bona fide.
If we assume that Zimmerman was telling the truth, then he was reckless and stupid. His job was to observe and report; he decided to escalate and confront. He took it upon himself to enforce the law. By doing so, he effectively escalated the encounter. There's nothing to indicate that he tried to de-escalate once Martin responded in kind. So, if we take Zimmerman at his word, he started a chain of events that led to Martin's death. That's not justifiable homicide, as I understand it.
Again, the above paragraph all assumes Zimmerman is telling the truth. At worst, he decided that Martin was trouble because he was a male black teenager in the wrong neighborhood, and took it upon himself to hunt Martin down. If so, he's little better than a racist redneck or a Nazi skinhead, and he murdered that kid.
That said, four things bear commenting upon.
One: the Stand Your Ground law was never invoked in Zimmerman's criminal defense. It probably will be, later, if and when Martin's parents sue Zimmerman for wrongful death.
Two: The right-wing media - think Fox News, Breitbart, Drudge, RedState, not to mention a shitload of gun rights FaceBook groups - all did a great job of promulgating fears of race riots in the wake of a Not Guilty verdict. Thus far, we've seen one fight between anarchists and the Oakland PD. You'll forgive me if I and every other reasonable person go right back to assuming they're the racist assholes they've shown themselves to be.
Three: Those same media are now upset over rumors that the DOJ is going to file civil rights charges against Zimmerman. Boo fucking hoo. I hope the Obama administration does exactly that, because violate Martin's civil rights is exactly what Zimmerman did.
Four: If you're going to assume that owning a gun for self-defense is about acting out racist fantasies of vengeance, then you're a presumptuous idiot. Yes. Seriously. And I hope you never get to find out how useless a restraining order is against, for example, your white friend's white drug addict ex-boyfriend.
For whatever reason, the jury decided that he had a bona fide claim of self-defense. I'm not a lawyer, and my only training in these matters is from classes I took to get my concealed carry licenses. Based on that training, I would have assumed that his claim to self defense could not be bona fide.
If we assume that Zimmerman was telling the truth, then he was reckless and stupid. His job was to observe and report; he decided to escalate and confront. He took it upon himself to enforce the law. By doing so, he effectively escalated the encounter. There's nothing to indicate that he tried to de-escalate once Martin responded in kind. So, if we take Zimmerman at his word, he started a chain of events that led to Martin's death. That's not justifiable homicide, as I understand it.
Again, the above paragraph all assumes Zimmerman is telling the truth. At worst, he decided that Martin was trouble because he was a male black teenager in the wrong neighborhood, and took it upon himself to hunt Martin down. If so, he's little better than a racist redneck or a Nazi skinhead, and he murdered that kid.
That said, four things bear commenting upon.
One: the Stand Your Ground law was never invoked in Zimmerman's criminal defense. It probably will be, later, if and when Martin's parents sue Zimmerman for wrongful death.
Two: The right-wing media - think Fox News, Breitbart, Drudge, RedState, not to mention a shitload of gun rights FaceBook groups - all did a great job of promulgating fears of race riots in the wake of a Not Guilty verdict. Thus far, we've seen one fight between anarchists and the Oakland PD. You'll forgive me if I and every other reasonable person go right back to assuming they're the racist assholes they've shown themselves to be.
Three: Those same media are now upset over rumors that the DOJ is going to file civil rights charges against Zimmerman. Boo fucking hoo. I hope the Obama administration does exactly that, because violate Martin's civil rights is exactly what Zimmerman did.
Four: If you're going to assume that owning a gun for self-defense is about acting out racist fantasies of vengeance, then you're a presumptuous idiot. Yes. Seriously. And I hope you never get to find out how useless a restraining order is against, for example, your white friend's white drug addict ex-boyfriend.
