Shooting of Trayvon Martin - Page 82

On December 07 2012 03:58 stevarius wrote:
Can people seriously stop debating a legal matter in which they have little to no expertise in dealing with.

I can't believe this shit is still on the news or even being debated. Your opinions don't matter.

MIAMI (Reuters) - A Florida man sued NBC on Thursday, saying the network intentionally edited and repeatedly aired a non-emergency phone call he made to police before shooting and killing unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin "to create the myth" that he was a racist.

Attorneys for George Zimmerman, who maintains he shot Martin in self-defense in February during a struggle, said the lawsuit seeking an undisclosed amount in damages was filed in the same central Florida court where he will stand trial in June for murder.

"NBC saw the death of Trayvon Martin not as a tragedy but as an opportunity to increase ratings, so it set about to create the myth that George Zimmerman was a racist and predatory villain," the defamation lawsuit says.

"NBC created this false and defamatory misimpression using the oldest form of yellow journalism: manipulating Zimmerman's owns words, splicing together disparate parts of the (police) recording to create the illusion of statements that Zimmerman never actually made."

But NBC denied any wrongdoing in a statement issued late on Thursday.

"We strongly disagree with accusations made in the complaint. There was no intent to portray Mr. Zimmerman unfairly. We intend to vigorously defend our position in court," the statement said.

The edit in question, which aired on the network's flagship "Today" morning show in April, made it appear that Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer, told police that Martin was black without being asked.

In fact, the full tape reveals that Zimmerman only did so when responding to a question posed by a dispatcher.

NBC News president Steve Capus told Reuters in April that the edit was a "mistake, not deliberate" misrepresentation.
Capus said at the time that a producer made the editing error, and that the network's editorial controls - including senior broadcast producer oversight, script editors and often legal and standards department reviews of sensitive material to be broadcast - simply missed the selective editing of the phone call.

The network apologized to its viewers in a statement, and two NBC news staffers named as defendants in the lawsuit were fired.

But the complaint says the network never apologized to Zimmerman "for deliberately portraying him as a hostile racist who targeted Martin due to his race."

The misleading audio edit of the call led to significant pressure on the network from critics who claimed it had exacerbated already inflamed racial tension surrounding the case.

"You cannot look at the way that tape was crafted and aired, and not believe that there was intent there," Zimmerman's lawyer Mark O'Mara said on Thursday.

"I think what they were trying to do was beat everyone to the punch in calling him (Zimmerman) a racist," O'Mara said.
"In today's media environment you have to act immediately, and you have to act sensationally if you're going to get attention," he added.

On December 07 2012 15:12 theaxis12 wrote:
I don't care if there was a fight because he was a grown man being attacked by a kid and shooting him is ridiculous. I can't believe how many people are defending him. I can see punching some asshole who thought you were a criminal walking in your own neighborhood, but shooting a kid that popped you in the nose? That is not something that a stable, rational person does, and he should be locked up. All he had to do was stay in his car after he called the cops, but no he confronted the kid. Why? Because he was looking for some vigilante action.

On December 07 2012 15:43 RebirthOfLeGenD wrote:

Get out.

Seriously this was said almost verbatim like 2 pages ago and rebuffed. Regardless of how you look at the case, make sure you are talking about facts.

1. He didn't just get "popped in the nose". He was on the ground and had his head slammed into it and suffered a broken nose.
2. He didn't get out of his car to find an confront the kid. Based off what is known he lost Trayvon got out of his car and Trayvon approached him. Exactly what happened when he was approached and words that were exchanged can only be known by zimmerman so speculating that he started anything is stupid. If it can't be proven one way or the other then you have to side with the person who is innocent until proven guilty. Not to mention the autopsy showed Trayvon with knuckle wounds and a gunshot wound. IE: He was hitting, not being hit. Then was shot.
3. "Grown man" Zimmerman was definitely older, but Trayvon was 17. Not just a kid. Trayvon was also 6' 3", and martin was something like 5'7".

On December 07 2012 16:31 RebirthOfLeGenD wrote:
His reason was a string of robberies and a suspicious looking person. I will not argue that he was overzealous and probably shouldn't of followed Trayvon. But there was nothing illegal in what he did. Nor was there anything illegal in not listening to the dispatcher on the phone who told him not to (Just to cut that argument off before it arises). I doubt anyone will argue what he did was smart, it was definitely strange/controversial. However it wasn't illegal.

His word is the only word we have. That and the physical evidence. The autopsy showed that Trayvon had damage to his knuckles and a GSW. We can probably safely assume Zimmerman didn't initiate since he should have some other type of injury, like a black and blue or welt from getting hit or blocked. As a note, I am only fairly sure welts/BB's show up on a dead person.

And sorry for leaving out weight. I think Zimmerman was like 220 and Trayvon was around 150? In an MMA fight I would agree, weight plays a bigger deal but in a street situation like this I doubt it would matter that much. I weigh 220 right now and I am 5'10". I would easily say I am fat and out of shape. If you deducted 3 inches from my height that would be more true, although 150-160 and 6'3" is quite skinny too.

Someone correct me if I am wrong I am remembering this from March, but initially I believe Trayvon's girlfriend gave a statement that Trayvon said he was going to approach Zimmerman as well. On top of that Zimmerman lost track of Trayvon for 2 minutes when they were like 30 yards from the house Trayvon was staying at. If he had just went back to the house he could of easily been there in 2 minutes if this is true. Since he didn't go back, you can conclude that he must of waited and approached Zimmerman.

On December 07 2012 15:57 natrus wrote:


You mentioned height and not the weight. Which I would debate weight is more important. With that being said. I dont think a fight should prompt gunplay ever. I know his head was slammed into the concrete or whatever. But that is still in the realm of a fight. Also we dont know for sure who approached who. Zimmerman's word is not good enough for me. Another thing that bothers me is that Trayvon was not breaking any laws and did not deserve to be followed. I am still not sure which side I am on because we dont know the details. But if you follow someone unlawfully you should expect a negative reaction.

On December 07 2012 17:07 PanN wrote:


Wait, so you're telling me you wouldn't use a gun if some guy was slamming your skull into the concrete and hitting you because "its still in the realm of a fight?"

Uh, at that point i think you can uh... die? So i don't think your choice is that bright.

On December 07 2012 17:07 dAPhREAk wrote:
its not like he went home, got a gun and then started following him. he already had the gun on him because apparently he carries it everywhere. just following someone with a loaded weapon isnt reckless.

On December 07 2012 17:21 natrus wrote:


I would disagree with you. My opinion of course. Not sure about the legality side of it.

On December 07 2012 17:19 natrus wrote:


I would probably just get knocked out. Like almost all other fights end. So if someone knocks down your friend with one punch and jumps on top of him and is beating him, you would shoot him?

On December 07 2012 15:57 natrus wrote:


You mentioned height and not the weight. Which I would debate weight is more important. With that being said. I dont think a fight should prompt gunplay ever. I know his head was slammed into the concrete or whatever. But that is still in the realm of a fight. Also we dont know for sure who approached who. Zimmerman's word is not good enough for me. Another thing that bothers me is that Trayvon was not breaking any laws and did not deserve to be followed. I am still not sure which side I am on because we dont know the details. But if you follow someone unlawfully you should expect a negative reaction.

On December 07 2012 17:36 I_Love_Bacon wrote:


Those two situations aren't remotely comparable. On the whole, you're speculating your balls off right now though. We have no idea as to the exact events unfolded once the scuffle began. Simply outright declaring you wouldn't use the weapon you had on you is either intellectually dishonest or silly, because you're possibly accepting death when you have another alternative.