The George Zimmerman jury spoke first on July 13, 2013 and now the lone minority juror, B-29, speaks out for the first time in a July 25, interview with Robin Roberts and blames the law as the sole reason for the not guilty verdict, in what perhaps, appears to be an effort to assuage and appease her guilty conscience. Many African Americans waited to hear, if B-29 would speak, and now that she has given an interview, she only adds insult and fuel to the fiery feelings in the black community about the injustice of the verdict. Juror B 29, a mother of 8 children, was new to Florida and lived in Chicago at the time of the killing of Trayvon Martin. In an effort to explain the verdict, she tells Robin Roberts that her first vote was for guilty for 2nd degree murder but as the deliberations wore on, she could not find anything in the law to support her verdict. She says there was a lack of evidence. And that’s where her story strays and leaves out some important details. First, the … [Read more...] about Why Zimmerman Juror B-29 Should Have Remained Silent
Archives for July 2013
Zimmerman Jurors Allowed Unsupervised Family Time During Trial
From strict Stand Your Ground laws to a strict judge overseeing the Zimmerman trial working long hours and weekends and nights, the Zimmerman trial jury sequestration rules were anything but strict and allowed for unsupervised visits of up to two hours with family and friends during the weekends. According to an agreement obtained by WFTV and their reporter, Kathy Belich, after the trial concluded, Judge Nelson entered into an agreement allowing for unsupervised visits meaning alone time with family for up to two hours. Unsupervised means that potentially anything could be said or read without a sheriff or court personnel present during the visits. More disturbing is the fact that the media and public were not made aware of the arrangement during the trial. All that was known during the trial was the jurors would be away from their family during the trial. The secrecy and undisclosed agreement during the trial is but one more insult to what many believe is an unjust verdict. If … [Read more...] about Zimmerman Jurors Allowed Unsupervised Family Time During Trial
Pres. Obama Delivers the Right Touch on Trayvon Martin
Since last week’s verdict in the Zimmerman trial for the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, many African Americans have waited to hear President Obama deliver a more definitive statement to express, explain and engage conversation about the sad, stunning and shocking verdict for many persons who supported justice for Trayvon Martin. And on Friday, July 19, President Obama delivered a heartfelt expression with the right touch for what many blacks feel about the verdict. It was not a statement coming from a former law professor but one coming from a black man who has felt his own racial sting of being a black man and being profiled like Trayvon Martin. His speech was said without a teleprompter, advance notice and mostly done without notes. President Obama began by saying... "when Trayvon Martin was first shot I said that this could have been my son. Another way of saying that is Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago. And when you think about why, in the African American … [Read more...] about Pres. Obama Delivers the Right Touch on Trayvon Martin
Trayvon was not a Suspect but Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is One
Rolling Stone's, soon to be released August 1, front cover depicting 19 year old bomb suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev represents a falsehood, that many people accept as true in that someone with a face like Tsarnaev could not be a killer, bomber or terrorist. But, in viewing the face of 17 year old Trayvon Martin, an African American teenager, just two years younger than Tsarnaev, many persons see the worst and suspect him of looking suspicious or doing something wrong to cause his own death. Tsarnaev’s image represents, for many persons, the all American innocent college boy image. And Rolling Stone intends to reveal how a “popular, promising student” turned into a terrorist. Many Americans fail to believe that terrorists could live next door to us, attend college with us, play sports with us, have dinner and drinks with us and look like Tsarnaev. Yet, in viewing the face of Trayvon Martin, many persons failed to accept the truth that Trayvon was not a suspect, as George … [Read more...] about Trayvon was not a Suspect but Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is One
Trayvon Martins are Everywhere
African Americans who are perceived to look suspicious and be “up to no good”, like George Zimmerman accused Trayvon Martin, come in all forms from Oscar Award winning 51 year old actor, Forest Whitaker, who was detained, frisked and wrongfully accused of stealing from Morningside Heights, a New York City gourmet deli in February, 2013 to renowned Harvard Professor Louis “Skip Gates, Jr. who was arrested at his own home in Cambridge, Ma on July 16, 2009 for suspicious activity of men breaking and entering a residence. Regardless of whether you wear a hoodie or not, come from the hood or are a renowned black actor or Harvard Professor, most African Americans have had some “crash” moment where they realize they are being negatively judged by the color of their skin for appearing suspicious. Regardless of one’s degrees, awards or cultural status, if a white person suspects a black man of suspicious activity, he could be charged, arrested, convicted or even killed for doing … [Read more...] about Trayvon Martins are Everywhere
What Went Wrong with the Zimmerman Trial
The not guilty verdict in the Zimmerman trial shocked, stunned and saddened me on some many levels. Many people have criticized the prosecutors in how the Zimmerman case was tried. As a former prosecutor, there were tactics used that I did not agree with. But there is no one way to try a circumstantial murder case where no one witness can identify exactly what happened. But with all the conflicting different stories and lies that George Zimmerman told depending on who was the listener, there was ample evidence to find him guilty of manslaughter, beyond a reasonable doubt. Second degree murder was going to be an uphill battle due to the intent of ill will, malice or a depraved mind under the Florida statute, which was not present in manslaughter. So everyone asks what went wrong in this case. And you would have to go back to the beginning on the night of February 26, 2012 to answer that question. The Sanford police put the case at jeopardy when they refused to charge George … [Read more...] about What Went Wrong with the Zimmerman Trial