Monday, July 08, 2013

Zimmerman/Martin

George Zimmerman's trial is ongoing and I'm wondering how there can be any doubt as to who was at fault in the death of his victim, 17 year old Trayvon Martin.  Zimmerman was armed and on security patrol at a housing complex when he spotted young Trayvon walking along minding his own business.  Zimmerman, who had no authority to accost or arrest Martin called the police with concerns that maybe the boy was in intruder and he was told to keep his distance and not approach the boy.  Ignoring police, Zimmerman did approach the boy and a scuffle broke out.  In the scuffle, Zimmerman shot and killed Martin who was unarmed and who had every right to be walking through the complex while visiting family.

To me, this is an open and shut case where Zimmerman disregarded the police and tried to subdue the boy, shooting and killing him in the process.  I believe he tried to physically stop the boy who resisted and then shot him because he resisted.

To put any blame on the victim is abhorrent but I'm sure that's what Zimmerman's lawyers will attempt to do.  Zimmerman is not necessarily an evil person but he made a big mistake by going against police orders when he accosted Martin.  He had no right to even touch the boy let alone draw his gun on him.  Was it racially motivated?  Probably not.  Zimmerman simply abused his very limited authority and it resulted in the death of a young man.  I'd have more respect for Zimmerman if he'd accepted responsibility for his poor judgement instead of blaming his victim.

Nothing will ever bring back the young man who had his whole life ahead of him but Zimmerman was an armed vigilante who did wrong and should receive a severe penalty as consequences for his unwarranted actions.             

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