William Jacobson: What Is Left of the “Zimmerman as Racist” Narrative?
A very good post that breaks down the accusations point by point.
I think this is a fair description of the racial narrative of the shooting of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman:
George Zimmerman (1) shot Trayvon Martin (2) because a black teenager in a hoodie is frightening (3) to whites, as proven by (4) Zimmerman’s description of Martin as suspicious because he was black, and (5) Zimmerman’s use of the phrase “f-ing coons”, (6) in a classic case of racial profiling, (7) inspired by a climate of hate stoked by Republican “right-wing” rhetoric.
What is left of this narrative based upon what currently is publicly known?
You should read the whole thing, and follow the links, but I’ll give you a snippet:
(4) Zimmerman did not describe Martin’s race in the initial 911 phone call until the dispatcher asked the race of the suspicious person, at which point Zimmerman said he “looks black.” The audio broadcast by NBC News omitted this intervening question to make it appear as if Zimmerman stated that Martin was suspicious because he was black.
(5) The assertion that Martin used the racial epithet “coons” is subject to serious doubt. CNN hired three audio experts, only one of whom believed the word was used. In the Affidavit of Probable Cause, two state investigators swore under oath that Zimmerman said “f-ing punks.”
More analysis and supporting links at Prof. Jacobson’s post.
One of the links, highlighted by commenter Random (who passed along Prof. Jacobson’s post), was something I had missed in the initial coverage. (As I have said, I have not followed the story closely.) Namely, evidence that Zimmerman agitated against police officers who had beaten a poor black man:
In late 2010 and early 2011 George Zimmerman, the Hispanic Sanford, Fla., man who shot and killed 17-year-old black teen Trayvon Martin, publicly demanded discipline in a race-related beating case for at least two of the police officers who cleared him after the Feb. 26 altercation, according to records obtained by The Daily Caller.
In a letter to Seminole County NAACP president Turner Clayton, a member of the Zimmerman family wrote that George was one of “very few” in Sanford who publicly condemned the “beating of the black homeless man Sherman Ware on Dec. 4, 2010, by the son of a Sanford police officer,” who is white.
Racist.
By the way, it looks like a couple of these cops were among those who cleared him.
I think the idea that Zimmerman hunted down Martin and killed him in cold blood is not very plausible given that he called the police first. The remaining scenarios depend on a lot of variables: did Zimmerman pursue Martin after the dispatcher’s “we don’t need you to do that” comment; who initiated the final confrontation; who initiated the physical confrontation; who was getting the better of that confrontation; and so on. It’s all a matter of evidence.
But the idea that this was a racially motivated hunt? Yeah, that’s pretty hard to buy at this point.
Racists
Patterico (feda6b) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:05 am“We don’t need you to do that” is ambiguous.
AZ Bob (1c9631) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:07 amMaybe for you, but not for others, the actual targets of those making the incendiary charges. They’ll go to their graves believing Martin was murdered in cold blood.
It is a shame that so many people are receptive to the race-baiting language, willing to condemn and march on the basis of almost nothing more than their sense that they just know that Zimmerman killed Martin because of racism.
And of course, like with any vacuum, in rush those willing to exploit these feelings.
Sad.
steve (369bc6) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:08 amObama pulled the trigger on the whole racially-charged hate-fest thing way too soon in the campaign I think.
Shoulda kept that powder dry for when he needed it.
happyfeet (3c92a1) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:14 amRacisty racists.
Why must you racist racists always be so racist?
d. in c. (ac417f) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:14 amThe morons marching in their hoods and holding up their signs of Trayon’s 12-year-old face are saying this: “We don’t know exactly what happened but we indict Zimmerman based on the skin colors involved.” How is that not racist?
CrustyB (69f730) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:15 amThe police acted stupidly.
AZ Bob (1c9631) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:16 amAs I mentioned before, the leaflet that Z was distributing regarding this previous incident included the quote attributed to Burke, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing”. How ironic.
The more one looks into Z, he seems like a stand-up “do-the-right-thing” guy that we need more of, in all colors for all colors.
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:28 amThe case certainly validates Derbyshire’s advice to his kids in men opinion. Stay away from trouble. Volunteering for neighborhood watch is an invitation to trouble.
Mike K (326cba) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:54 amMy opinion
Mike K (326cba) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:55 am“We don’t need you to do that” is neither order nor instruction. At most it’s an admonition, one that carried no force or authority.
Moreover, he didn’t resist it verbally, and remained in that spot giving the operator information for another 93 seconds at least.
And “pursuit” might be a loaded term. There is a difference between chasing a person down to detain them in some fashion, or to used force or threat of force to do it, and trying to spot where someone has run so police can deal with him.
The very massaged message from the Trayvon Martin family lawyer included an account of an interview with the girlfriend. In that account, Martin addresses Zimmerman first. A “struggle ensued” and yet even in the girlfriend’s account there is no indication that Zimmerman made first physical contact.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/16/2012 @ 9:12 amIf the police had arrested Zimmerman in the first place we probably never woulda heard of this story. It had been more about the police than Zimmerman. The media came in and tried to paint Zimmerman as a klan member, and embarassed the heck out of themselves in the process. Even Martin’s mother basically said it was an accident, Zimmerman thus not being a klan member!
Everyone has got the story twisted and assigned it political status etc… But none of that changes or effects what happened that night.
Alex (31c567) — 4/16/2012 @ 9:30 amAnyone else think that the police — who had been strongly criticized by Zimmerman, no less — were nonetheless arm-twisted to go along with this prosecution?
Random (97f484) — 4/16/2012 @ 9:50 amSurely they more than anyone must have thought the Zimmerman = racist angle was just stupid (even if, perhaps,they would have loved something to smear Zimmerman with).
Random (97f484) — 4/16/2012 @ 9:52 amWhy won’t you racily racist race-car drivers stop racistly racing your race vehicles? What a bunch of racey race-enheimer race-obsessed race-oids. Racey racy racy racists!
Race.
d. in c. (17012e) — 4/16/2012 @ 10:02 amRandom – I have the impression police are not that eager to play ball with the prosecution (in the sense of “sweetening” their accounts of the situation to benefit the prosecution.)
The geneneral uproar is the result of two things – a dolled up case put forward by an attorney with a track record of wrongful death shakedowns using the same gut-catching tricks (baby pics, mischaracterization of events and perpetrator) and the media being very ready to hop on a story with racial animus (I am convinced the press releases from the attorney had them thinking Zimmerman was white and jewish) with a useful narrative to gin up opposition to “stand your ground” laws favored by opponents of Obama.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/16/2012 @ 10:05 am“We don’t need you to do that” is neither order nor instruction. At most it’s an admonition, one that carried no force or authority.
Comment by SarahW
I very much agree with that.
Colonel Haiku (bcc59f) — 4/16/2012 @ 10:35 amWhy won’t you racily racist race-car drivers stop racistly racing your race vehicles? What a bunch of racey race-enheimer race-obsessed race-oids. Racey racy racy racists!
Race.
Comment by d. in c.
meh speedracer… meh speedracer… meh speedracer me-ehhh.
Colonel Haiku (bcc59f) — 4/16/2012 @ 10:37 am“It is a capital mistake to theorize in the absence of the facts.”
mojo (8096f2) — 4/16/2012 @ 10:48 amSmall point: It’s William Jacobson, not Jacobsen.
Rich B. (c3f2e5) — 4/16/2012 @ 11:04 amAlex, why on earth would the Sanford PD arrest him? They had absolutely NO evidence (and to date still don’t) that he had done anything remotely wrong, much less illegal. Under Florida law, he had every right to end the attack any way he could up to and including deadly force if he felt his life was in danger. and a 17 year old defensive back pounding your head on the concrete and trying to take your (holstered) gun away while saying “you are going to die tonight” certainly qualifies in just about anyone’s mind that his life was in mortal danger. To my mind, the only reason he was arrested was the racist public outcry, not because the evidence supported it. And for those who say that we don’t know what the prosecution knows, well you need to remember that the prosecution is REQUIRED to show it’s case to the defense in totality. the defense doesn’t have to say squat to the DA. I have yet to hear of a single shred of evidence that indicates Zimmerman did anything wrong, much less illegal.
Rorschach (c5574d) — 4/16/2012 @ 11:33 amWho wants to put money on the prosecutor pulling a Johnny Cochran and saying something like, “and we don’t need another ’92 LA, do we?”
Ghost (d74e11) — 4/16/2012 @ 11:42 am21: you’re stating as facts assertions that are in question. The police certainly could have arrested him, and at least held him for the night, if for nothing else public safety.
22: I doubt it. And if she did I doubt it would swing the jury. Wouldnt work on me.
Alex (31c567) — 4/16/2012 @ 11:46 amAh, Alex, that’s so sweet that you’re joining the rational evidence-based ones on the Zimmerman situation, so you can save up your Mobying power for future use on more winnable left-wing issues.
Awwww, precious Moby darling.
(I have to admit you’re stepping up your game; we’ll get you trained yet.)
Random (fba0b1) — 4/16/2012 @ 11:58 amRandom, did I make you angry pointing out you lack of logic, or were you one of the ones I upset by calling you an Obama supporter since you refuse to vote for the GOP candidate?
Anyway, let’s stay on topic.
Alex (31c567) — 4/16/2012 @ 12:04 pmNow you’re back to being obvious. You got to work on that.
Random (fba0b1) — 4/16/2012 @ 12:06 pmIf wrong, I may owe an apology but isn’t the police officer(s) who “cleared” Georgie the very ones who wanted him charged with manslaughter???? Ex NY Cop, etc…. I understood it was the local DA who said no charges.
Can someone please clarify?
Is it the Cops who said no issue or the DA?
Bill (af584e) — 4/16/2012 @ 12:07 pm______________________________________________
But the idea that this was a racially motivated hunt? Yeah, that’s pretty hard to buy at this point.
Are you sure about that?! After all, I understand the students in the lacrosse team at Duke University wore Klu Klux Klan robes in their spare time, and that the students who hung small nooses on the tree at Jena High School in Jena, Louisiana were outfitted in Nazi uniforms.
BTW, the disproportionate percentage of black students who are suspended or expelled from school districts in cities like LA, DC, Chicago, New York. etc, are due to such communities being full of racist, rightwing teachers and faculty. I’ve heard many of those school employees are even known to run around in Klu Klux Klan or neo-Nazi garb, just like those students did at Duke University or Jena High School.
Mark (31bbb6) — 4/16/2012 @ 12:14 pmthis is all just a huge misunderstanding
happyfeet (a55ba0) — 4/16/2012 @ 12:15 pmIf hate crimes are a real thing, why is Al Sharpton still free?
Ghost (d74e11) — 4/16/2012 @ 12:47 pmDoesn’t anyone remember Bernie Goetz?
Volunteering for neighborhood watch is an invitation to trouble.
cowardly dimbulb Pam Bondi has pretty much guaranteed that in the future the policy will be to charge everybody and let a jury sort it out I think
carrying a gun in Florida is an invitation to trouble cause if you ever have to use it dollars to doughnuts your ass is landing in jail
happyfeet (a55ba0) — 4/16/2012 @ 1:02 pmBill –
http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2012-04-02/news/os-trayvon-martin-federal-review-justice-letter-20120402_1_chief-bill-lee-federal-review-federal-agency
The DA also denied (vehemently) any such intervention. “Lies” was his characterization.
Thanks to Daleyrocks for pointing me to the link.
sarahw (33ef3a) — 4/16/2012 @ 1:11 pmThis has the 911 calls made from the scene of the shooting. It gives the logged starting times,.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=9BI03-MRKnI.
The shooting was just before about 7:17:06. (3rd call)
Police arrived by 7:20 AM.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/16/2012 @ 1:36 pmThe previous link is to only the calls that were placed after the gunshot
George Zimmerman call with timestamp:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BI03-MRKnI&feature=relmfu
The time may not be exactly matched to the fraction of a second as there seems to be some lag in the video, but not more than a second.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/16/2012 @ 1:45 pmTrayvon Martin Case 911 Calls Time Stamped part 1 (placed before gunshot)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-a58plIcrdo
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/16/2012 @ 1:49 pmhi 911 it’s George. Hi. I have a possible miscreant in my neighborhood I think. He’s wearing a hoodie and he has a very sardonic demeanor. I’m a follow him. He’s sort of just meandering in a menacing fashion. He’s stopped now. He’s turned around. He’s coming this way! Hey you there in the hoodie – whatcha dooooin? Oh hey I LOVE skittles! They’re very tasty my mom used to buy me skittles before she married my stepdad. omg I forgot I was on 911 – you there? Ok bye it’s just a kid getting some skittles. TTYL you guys.
happyfeet (a55ba0) — 4/16/2012 @ 1:52 pmWas going around on another blog about this. They NEED white on black racism. They NEED it. Duke didn’t work out, nor did Brawley.
Richard Aubrey (a75643) — 4/16/2012 @ 2:05 pmJust about the time this was starting to fade, the murder of an Iraqi woman on the West Coast looked like a good deal. But that fell apart with additonal info about the family. Nevertheless, one of them ran a piece with the theme, “If it isn’t hate and racism, still….it’s hate and racism.
The Tulsa shooting featured a guy getting revenge for the murder of his father by a black guy.
It is so tough to get a clean case of white on black violence.
This will have to do.
One of the 911 callers after the shooting thought Zimmerman was black! It was not so easy to tell in the rain and the dark.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/16/2012 @ 2:10 pmnewt bitten by penguin
happyfeet (a55ba0) — 4/16/2012 @ 2:20 pmIf this was a “Gated Community,” how could Martin walk out and back in with no one seeing him except Zimmerman? Wouldn’t there have been a “gate” Martin would have gone through to go to the 7-11 store? Wouldn’t Martin have come back through this “gate” when re-entering the community? Isn’t there a guard of some kind on duty at the gate of such a community?
Further, if this was a Gated Community, why did they have a problem with burglaries?
It’s looking more and more like a Nifong-like prosecution.
DN (7fc565) — 4/16/2012 @ 2:27 pmVia the Wall Street Journal’s Best of the Web by James Taranto April 13, via Lee Stranahan:
http://newsone.com/2002143/note-to-trayvons-mother-its-time-for-you-to-step-to-the-side/
I haven’t spoken with Rev. Al Sharpton in a few months. But if we were still speaking and he were to ask me what to do with the mother of Trayvon Martin, my answer would be very simple:
Get her off the stage right now.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is a Professor at Syracuse University and founder of the Your Black World Coalition. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.
She later said she meant that their encounter was an accident.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/16/2012 @ 2:34 pmSorry that’s today’s Best of the Web (April 16)
E-Mailed out at April 16, 2012 — 4:49 p.m. EDT
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/16/2012 @ 2:35 pmI think Martin started within the gate. Also, maybe gated communuties are not all they are cracked up to be.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/16/2012 @ 2:44 pmWinston Churchill famously defended his wartime coziness with Joseph Stalin — a monster whom Churchill staunchly opposed before and after the war — by saying that “If Hitler invaded Hell, I would make at least a favorable reference to the Devil in the House of Commons.” Similarly, from General F.W. von Mellenthin’s “Panzer Battles” (at 179-80):
Nevertheless, David Carr is no Winston Churchill, and from the context here, I don’t think Carr intended his statement as a good-faith but back-handed compliment of Breitbart. I agree with Kristol’s analysis.
Beldar (4aa491) — 4/16/2012 @ 2:53 pmACK! Posted that on the wrong post; apologies.
Beldar (4aa491) — 4/16/2012 @ 2:54 pm#32, so he said, she said is what I surmise. No one really knows what the opinion of the Police is. Only that the State Prosecutor said NO which we already knew already.
Not a cop so I can’t read between the lines but if the Police wrote the only thing it thought he could be charged with was manslaughter does that mean anything?
Wondering … speculating … time will tell obviously.
Bill (af584e) — 4/16/2012 @ 2:59 pm0bama… the Racialist…
“We now have a Republican nominee who said that the Arizona laws are a model for the country, that — and these are laws that potentially would allow someone to be stopped and picked up and asked where their citizenship papers are based on an assumption,” President Obama said in an interview with Univision that aired over the weekend.
“Racial profiling?” Univision reporter Enrique Acevedo asked.
“Very troublesome. And this is something that the Republican nominee has said should be a model for the country,” Obama said.
“So what we need is a change, either of Congress or we need Republicans to change their mind. And I think that this has to be an important debate throughout the country,” he said.
Colonel Haiku (bcc59f) — 4/16/2012 @ 3:55 pmThe race-baiters are ready to buy it at any price.
How much for just one rib?
IGotBupkis, Legally Defined Cyberbully in All 57 States (8e2a3d) — 4/16/2012 @ 4:08 pmAfter all, you should know:
Whitey is very tricky.
IGotBupkis, Legally Defined Cyberbully in All 57 States (8e2a3d) — 4/16/2012 @ 4:10 pmBill, that was not my take-away. The city of Sanford says its not the case, that it was only listed as the possible crime investigates – as part of police procedure paperwork routine.
IOW, the press trumped it up to be an “affidavit” of the detective
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/16/2012 @ 4:23 pmSo what are people going to think if Zimmerman is convicted by a jury of his peers after a trial?
Leviticus (870be5) — 4/16/2012 @ 4:28 pmKinda depends on what’s revealed at trial, don’t you think?
Random (fba0b1) — 4/16/2012 @ 4:43 pmLeviticus #51 – “So who knew that that Zimmerman wasn’t white and Jewish, with having such a name on him, already ?” is likely to be thought after Zimmerman is *tried* …
IF he is convicted, it will hopefully be after convincing, even compelling, evidence has been presented …
I should add that I would hope that if convicted, it would have been by a jury of his peers *during* a trial … doing so after a trial seems like a little pointless (and possibly vindictive if he was acquitted during that trial), would you not think ?
Alasdair (e7cb73) — 4/16/2012 @ 4:43 pmHave you finally figured that Nadia was just full of it, Leviticus.
narciso (8d0f34) — 4/16/2012 @ 4:51 pmLeviticus, there are circumstances where I’d not criticize a legitimate conviction of Zimmerman but at the moment, what has been reported makes that dubious.
Now, that’s with the caveat that reporting is always unreliable.
But the crappy affidavit of probable cause in the charging document does not make me think that there is anything really convincing to rebut Zimmerman’s self-defense claim.
SPQR (26be8b) — 4/16/2012 @ 5:03 pmThe trick about the memory hole is ignoring inconvenient details;
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/16/business/media/george-zimmerman-trial-could-start-a-news-swarm.html?_r=2&ref=media
narciso (8d0f34) — 4/16/2012 @ 5:09 pmObama pulled the trigger on the whole racially-charged hate-fest thing way too soon in the campaign I think.
This is the most frustrating part: If the president had not stepped in it from the get-go, where would this case be at this point in time? As POTUS, by default his comment showed the direction he wanted this to take, and the media to the politicians to the prosecutor’s office, followed suit.
After the Henry Gates incident, it’s clear Obama learned nothing about discretion, tempering his public comments, and not using his esteemed office to sway what is supposed to be process for justice.
Dana (4eca6e) — 4/16/2012 @ 6:21 pmDoggerel for the carpenter’s son
Don’t panic, Zimmerman’s Hispanic,
So to fit the narrative the Journolisters had to make him an honorary White.
Angela Nifong just couldn’t take a chance the Cracker grand jury wouldn’t indict.
So, she’s out to railroad the neighborhood watchman, overcharge, and force him to his knees.
NBC and ABC falsified the tapes to portray the White Hispanic as a racist stalker out at night on a profiled killing spree.
But, the local DA let Zimmerman go free. So, here comes Uncle Al and Cousin Jessie talkin’ racist trash.
Then the New Black Panthers put a bounty on Zimmerman’s head, he’s wanted Dead or Alive.
Justice in Florida isn’t blind, Angela reads the NY Times,
ropelight (af1f62) — 4/16/2012 @ 6:40 pmShe panders to the nation’s noisiest racist rabble rousers.
Fairness just isn’t her concern,
It’s politics and the prospect of a popular conviction which drives her prosecutorial discretion,
Unerringly it seems only in the direction of her reelection.
In her affidavit Angela Niforg lied and lied,
Better watch out George, keep your eyes open, even your own lawyer may not be on your side.
#50 Fair enough but I think the question is still unanswered. I am not a cop so I still wonder if the police implying manslaughter “might be a possible charge” is normal in these type of reports and if not normal dos it mean anything.
Professional note taking is notorious not only for what is written but for what is not or for what is unusual in presence.
But you seem correct in your basic premise.
Bill (af584e) — 4/16/2012 @ 6:50 pm#57 That is b/c our President is closet bigot with little-to-no self control on matters dear to his heart. He has spent his entire youth and adulthood obsessed with skin color and as nail is to a hammer — black/white is to Obama.
Bill (af584e) — 4/16/2012 @ 6:52 pm.
.
.
.
White being the nail of course.
WTF does this have to do with NEWS. Why is this something a news organization should consider right and proper to do?
“Here, let’s give y’all a place to gossip and insult and be generally both untruthful and rude to one another about something you have no real knowledge of.”??
Forget the lawyers, first thing we do, let’s kill all the newspaper editors.
IGotBupkis, Legally Defined Cyberbully in All 57 States (8e2a3d) — 4/16/2012 @ 7:16 pmWell objective notes like this, I forgot Vanderbilt
had a show
http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2012/04/trayvon-martin-mom-says-god-will-hold-george-zimmerman-accountable.html
narciso (8d0f34) — 4/16/2012 @ 7:22 pmSee we have just been looking in the wrong direction, facepalm;
http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2012-04-14/news/os-trayvon-martin-lessons-beth-kassab-41512-20120414_1_chief-bill-lee-alec-answer-questions
narciso (8d0f34) — 4/16/2012 @ 7:25 pm#61 — it isn’t even necessary to kill the newspaper editors (though I suspect it would be pleasant), they are doing a fine job of eliminating themselves on their own time.
I mean, really. What educated, well-informed person actually reads an American newspaper any more? Who still watches TV news, or CNN or what-not? I haven’t been anywhere near those detestible creatures for over ten years, and I always know more about the news than they do. And it’s supposed to be their freakin _job_.
d. in c. (cae88c) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:08 pmWell there is some unintentional insights, Kassab believes Martin’s family came forward of their own
narciso (8d0f34) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:11 pmvolition, Sharpton was being sincere, and believes
lies are more important than the truth,
911 hi it’s me again George I see a potential hazard in my neighborhood. Well, see, there’s a car what’s been just sitting there and, thing is, I never seen this car before. And it’s just sitting there all suspicious-like. OMG a coon! Those little rascals’ll tump over your trash lickety-split you don’t close the lid real tight. So hey you wanna run the plates on this car or something? This car is giving me the wiggins.
happyfeet (3c92a1) — 4/16/2012 @ 8:53 pm__________________________________________
Further, if this was a Gated Community, why did they have a problem with burglaries?
I used to live in a gated townhouse area, in which the security gates that swung open to allow autos to enter and exit remained passable long enough for anyone on foot to walk through the entry a bit after any arriving or departing vehicle.
I recall the homeowners association once considered making it a manned gateway, but the annual cost for a security guard would have been too high. You figure such a person will make at least $15,000 to $20,000 per year, and since the area didn’t have too many units, the resulting increase in each homeowner’s monthly fee would have rocketed.
I do remember one afternoon hearing the front-door handle of my condo being juggled, like someone was testing to see if it was locked or not. I was upstairs at the time and peered out the front window to see who it was. I saw a young teenager walking away towards the other side of the street. I shrugged it off and thought maybe he had just attached one of those plastic advertising bags or a flyer onto the door handle. But I checked the door and nothing was on it. BTW, the person in question did happen to be black.
I’ve often wondered what would have happened if my front door had been unlocked and get creeped out at the possibilities.
Mark (31bbb6) — 4/16/2012 @ 10:56 pmMy house was built in 1929. No restrictive covenants restricting free simple under the statute of limitations. “Gated communities, your alternative to concentration camps.”
nk (875f57) — 4/16/2012 @ 11:08 pm*fee simple*
nk (875f57) — 4/16/2012 @ 11:08 pmConsider the fact, that they are giving Pulitzers to those that got the NYPD surveilance story wrong, and you see how they will reward Alvarez and Robles, next spring,
narciso (8d0f34) — 4/17/2012 @ 6:33 amThe source is the Daily caller Monday April 2:
http://dailycaller.com/2012/04/02/zimmerman-family-member-calls-naacp-racists-says-there-will-be-blood-on-your-hands-if-george-is-hurt/
There ought to be more confirmation of this. All I know so far is some mention in Wikipedia.
In a letter obtained exclusively by The Daily Caller on Monday, APRIL 2 a family member of George Zimmerman ripped Seminole County, Fla. NAACP president Turner Clayton for a rush to judgment in the Trayvon Martin case.
“It’s time for you to end the race issue in this matter and call for cooler heads to prevail,” the letter reads. “If something happens to George as a result of the race furor stirred up by this mischaracterization of George there will be blood on your hands as well as the rest of the racists that have rushed to judgment. You need to call off the dogs. Period. Publicly and swiftly.”
George, the letter adds, “has been called a racist and a bigot and there have been very few that have stood up for him.” The letter was addressed to Clayton at the NAACP’s national headquarters in Baltimore.
The family member, whose identity TheDC has confirmed but is withholding out of concern for the Zimmerman family’s safety, said George Zimmerman “has been found guilty” in the court of public opinion “until proven innocent,” adding that the details of what happened on Feb. 26 — the night Zimmerman shot Martin in what he claims was self-defense — “will not be disclosed until the police report is made public.”
“Regardless of this fact, George Zimmerman has been hiding for his life because of the death threats made against him by the black community … all of our family is in hiding and frankly scared by the threats,” the family member wrote in the letter dated March 26, but shared with TheDC on Monday. [March 26 was a Monday]
“There has been an unprecedented rush to judge George regardless of the facts. The black community as a whole has turned their backs and blindly followed the furor stirred up by self-proclaimed leaders of your community. These leaders have rallies and chant horrible things of a person they know nothing about.” (RELATED: Full coverage of the Trayvon Martin shooting)
The letter also described how Zimmerman was one of “very few” in Sanford, Fla., who spoke out publicly to condemn the “beating of the black homeless man Sherman Ware on December 4, 2010 by the son of a Sanford police officer.”
The date the black homeless man was sucker punched was December 4, 2010. According to the Wikipedia article on this case on March 28 the video of this punch went viral on You Tube.
This is Wikipedia March 28:
issues News reports noted that the police department of the city of Sanford has faced previous allegations of racial prejudice.[90] In 2011, chief of police Brian Tooley was forced from office after declining to prosecute a police lieutenant’s son for beating up a homeless black man, in an incident caught on video. After the footage went viral on YouTube, the perpetrator, Justin Collison, was arrested.[90][91][92] The officer in charge of that case was also in charge of the Trayvon Martin shooting scene
Here is the video referenced in the pamphlet George Zimmerman is supposed to have printed up ands distributed:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=BHGEam82GME#!
Hard to search if GZ left a comment.
ABC news story: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/cops-son-turns-shocking-videos-release/story?id=12529580
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/17/2012 @ 1:28 pmThis is supposed to be the full text of what the March 26 2012 letter to the NAACP said:
The letter states that one of the people who helped organize the City Hall meeting on January 8, 2011 was George Zimmerman.
http://www.craigboyce.com/w/2012/04/zimmerman-letter-to-naacp/
What we don’t know is if any of this is true. Is the person who wrote the letter even a member of geiorge Zimmerman’s family? The Daily Caller gets a letter. There must be some way of checking this out. You have to be careful not to suck up wrong information. But there could be whole angles to this that we don’t know, that’s not breaking through.
What’s highly likely to be true is that the Sanford, Florida, chief of police, Brian Tooley, was forced from office, as a result of this incident.
That would mean that Sanford, Florida, is now on its third chief of police in little over a year.
That I could verify (by finding other refernces)
He was relieved of duties about one month before his scheduled retirement.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DokNK77KpI
http://www.wesh.com/r/26351400/detail.html
Sanford Police Chief Brian Tooley was relieved of his duties on Monday, less than one month before his scheduled retirement.
A recent video posted on YouTube led to criticism of the Sanford Police Department. Officials said the video showed Justin Collison, 21, hitting a man on a sidewalk outside a Sanford bar.
Collison is the son of a police lieutenant in Sanford, and even though police were notified, Collison was not arrested on the night of the incident.
“It seemed like it was a cover-up by the department,” NAACP spokesman Turner Clayton said.
“It brought into question the honesty and transparency of our Police Department,” Interim City Manager Tom George said.
Even while the Police Department conducts an investigation, Tooley abruptly was out of a job even though he was set to retire in four weeks.
“He will not function on a day-to-day basis as the police chief after today,” George said on Monday.
At an emergency meeting of city government, Seminole County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Steve Harriett, who is a former Sanford police chief, was given temporary control.
“I think it’s good for the city and the Police Department and all those involved,” Sanford Police Department Capt. Jerry Hargrett said.
“The citizens of the community and the employees deserve good leadership,” Sanford Mayor Linda Kuhn said. “I don’t believe they’re getting it.”
Investigators said an arrest was not made because of inconsistencies in statements made by witnesses. Collison was charged later with aggravated battery and turned himself in to authorities on Monday.
http://www.wftv.com/news/news/sanford-police-chief-brian-tooley-retires/nFCrK/
The Sanford City Manager released a statement Monday that read: “In light of the recent developments and under my authority as city manager, I will accelerate the date previously set for the retirement of the Chief of Police from January 31, 2011 to Monday, January 3, 2011. The Chief will no longer have the day-to-day duties of administering the City’s Police Department and the retirement and transition agreement entered into during September, 2010, will be fully implemented in accordance with its terms. The Police Chief fully endorses this course of action.”
The city manager said, effective Tuesday, Seminole County Chief Deputy Sheriff Steve Harriett will assume day-to-day oversight of the Sanford Police Department on an interim basis for an unspecified period of time.
It sounds like people were pressing to get him out for some time.
It also sounds like, by the way, some people were trying to get rid of all chiefs of police.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/17/2012 @ 2:05 pmIt’s “interesting” that as facts were (actually) coming out about the Z and M story indicating that maybe M wasn’t “The Emmit Till of today”, there was the shooting spree in Tulsa, that was first reported to my hearing as “all of the victims were black, the suspect police are looking for is white”.
As terrible as this is, and as unjustified as the revenge motive is, apparently once it looked like the “white” suspect was getting revenge for “blacks” killing his father, it dropped out of the national news. At least I haven’t heard anymore abut it.
Did Ben Franklin report things in this manner when he started the first newspaper?
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/17/2012 @ 2:55 pmYou forgot the exclamation points. I added some for you. Glad to help. 😀
Smock Puppet, 10th Dan Snark Master (8e2a3d) — 4/17/2012 @ 3:18 pmIsn’t that kind of an obviously inherent contradiction in terms, though?
Y’know, the “well-informed” and “reads a newspaper” part….? 😀
Happyfeet, demonstrating that Cranio-Rectal Insertion Syndrome will NOT be eradicated in our lifetimes, if he has ANYTHING to say about it…
We know this because it’s quite clear he just shoved it up there another two inches further before making this trolling comment.
IGotBupkis, Legally Defined Cyberbully in All 57 States (8e2a3d) — 4/17/2012 @ 3:29 pmHope you never have a flat late at night, in Pico, pikachu;
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Journalism/2012/04/17/Obama-on-Univision-Politicizes-Trayvon-Again
narciso (8d0f34) — 4/17/2012 @ 3:39 pmScribd upload (which seems to contain only part of the material George Zimmerman is supposed to have printed at the beginning of 2011)
http://www.scribd.com/doc/87840105/Zimmerman-Letter-to-Sanford-Churches
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”- Edmund Burke
We live in an era where, a simple grass roots movement propelled by the discontented constituents of leaders, whom were entrusted with our safety, can and shall make a significant impact.Chief of Police Tooley blatantly lied. He attempted to appease the masses by stating that he was “blindsided” by the medias release of this monsters attack on an innocent, homeless and peacekeeping bystander.It has already been revealed that Chief Tooley not only received an email petitioning his attention to the matter on behalf of the Seminole County Sheriffs Office, yet he was also provided with the video taped evidence of the attack and chose to do nothing but pass the buck in hope that the problem would simply go away. Mr. Hargrett’s feeble attempt to patronize the public by stating that Lieutenant Collison’s son did not receive any preferential treatment is nothing short of irritating and belittles our intelligence. There are only two possible explanations, either Lieutenant Collison’s son received preferential treatment, or Sanford PD always neglects to handcuffs and does not arrest assailants of innocent victims, neither of the two are acceptable, so clearly you are a liar Mr. Hargrett.
On February 26, 2012, George Zimmerman was not technically arrested, but he was handcuffed.
Sammy Finkelman (f7c361) — 4/17/2012 @ 4:11 pmThe last line should not be bold, and the paragraph before should have three dots at the end,indicating there is more.
Sammy Finkelman (f7c361) — 4/17/2012 @ 4:13 pmMeanwhile real indications of intentional dangerous
activity, ‘these aren’t the droids you’re looking for’
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/editorials/score_one_for_nypd_bashing_E5S8LLPTfkZ739vLuEShTL#ixzz1sJ9NcNge
narciso (8d0f34) — 4/17/2012 @ 4:16 pmThe Oklahoma case was solved right away. Sharpton and company are only interested in cases where they can demand something that won’t or shouldn’t be done, either because it is not justified or it is not legally possible..
Sammy Finkelman (f7c361) — 4/17/2012 @ 4:17 pm‘It’s a wonderful organization, shame that something should happen to it;
http://legalinsurrection.com/2012/04/today-was-a-great-day-for-voter-fraud-and-criminals/
narciso (8d0f34) — 4/17/2012 @ 4:43 pmSammy, rather than bold everything you cite, why not put it in blockquote
and save bolding for drawing emphasis to key points?
Random (de9896) — 4/17/2012 @ 5:45 pm“The remaining scenarios depend on a lot of variables: did Zimmerman pursue Martin after the dispatcher’s “we don’t need you to do that” comment; who initiated the final confrontation; who initiated the physical confrontation; who was getting the better of that confrontation; and so on. It’s all a matter of evidence.”
This is a the crux of the issue and, to indulge in an overused expression, “both sides” have been doing their best to distract from this. It’s almost as if there just “has” to be a “bad guy” whom we can blame.
libarbarian (90bd00) — 4/18/2012 @ 11:43 amAnd with that, libarbarian’s pointy little head assploded.
JD (3fc54b) — 4/18/2012 @ 12:19 pmOn March 28 ABC gave the name of the girl as dee Dee and said it lasted 5 minutes till moments before he was shot.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/trayvon-martin-case-exclusive-surveillance-video-george-zimmerman/story?id=16022897
The 16-year-old girl, who is only being identified as DeeDee, recounted the final moments of her conversation with Martin before the line went dead.
“When he saw the man behind him again he said this man is going to do something to him. And then he said this man is still behind him and I said run,” she said.
Which would imply he hadn’t run before.
Phone records obtained by ABC News show that the girl called Martin at 7:12 p.m., five minutes before police arrived, and remained on the phone with Martin until moments before he was shot.
Problems with this:
1) 7:12 is in the middle of the Zimmerman call.
And it’s after Martin started running, according to what Zimmerman said. In fact the dispatcher typed that he was running at 7:11:59. George Zimmerman had already gotten out of his car, startted running and stopped.
At around 7:13:04, Zimemrman had the feeling that Martin might still be around nearby. There are noises heard on the recording.
2) Five whole minutes past 7:12:00 takes you past the time Trayvon Martin was shot and yet she says it ended before.
3) The DA’s affidavit does not give a time for the call but doesn’t seem to put it right near the end. Nor does it recount anything she overhear Zimmerman saying. It does use this girl, or some girl, for some information, though. It doesn’t have to be in the affidavit, but I think the omission is significant.
(It does seems to place at least part of the call during the time of the Zimmerman call, but isn’t precise about it. It claims Martin was telling her what was happening)
DeeDee said Martin turned around and asked Zimmerman why he was following him.
“The man said what are you doing around here?” DeeDee recalled Zimmerman saying.
She said she heard someone pushed into the grass before the call was dropped.
Completely missing from the affidavit.
I think we have to wonder about the authenticity of that call, or the records. Something is wrong with what was shown to ABC.
And we have from someone here at Patterico that all phones, because they use GPS, are on the same time.
But 7:1
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/18/2012 @ 2:27 pmZimmerman was granted bail today – $150,000 which he may make in a few days.
He testified and answered those questions Trayvon’s mother had. Unfortunaley, it looks like he was helped by his lawyer and his answers don’t sound like they’re truem or fit with the events.
To the first question: Did he know Trayvon was under 18, he said he thought he was a little younger than his own age. Now it may be true that when was fighting him, he treated him as a peer, but earlier he had thought he was in his late teens. I am sure all thoughts about age flkew out of his mind and the question was anyway irrelevant. If he had thought deeply then he would have still had to admit he was probably under 20. But he wasn’t thinking deeply. He took him as a peer. But probably he didn’t think – “Hmmm, I guess I was wrong about his age. He’s probably more in his mid-20s”
To the question about whether he thought Trayvon had a gun he said he thought he could have or something like that. The whole way he acted it is pretty clear Zimmerman discounted that idea.
Furthermore a physical assault tends to rule it out. He might have feared he had a knife more, anyway.
There is something from Zimmerman’s brother that he was afraid Trayvon might take his gun from him and shoot him with that and he should have left it at that.
Sammy Finkelman (9fe80b) — 4/20/2012 @ 4:07 pm