By now, you’ve probably heard about the case of 17-year old Trayvon Martin, who was shot dead in Sanford, Florida by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman. The case itself has garnered national attention because Zimmerman, who claims he shot Martin on February 28 out of self-defense, was allowed to go free after being questioned by police. According to Florida law, a person is within their rights to use deadly force if they are threatened with bodily harm or death in the event that someone is attempting to force their way into the person’s home or car or if there is reason to suspect that an illegal act has been committed.
Florida police released Zimmerman because they supposedly did not have enough evidence to charge him with anything. I have no doubt this is a true statement, but the reason there was a lack of evidence was from a lack of investigation. In an interview with MSNBC, former Chief of Police for Oak Hill, Florida, Walt Zalisko, points out several failings in Martin’s case. ”There have been a lot of missteps in the investigation. For instance, it was the family’s attorney who discovered the phone calls to [Martin's] girlfriend. The police had that cell phone at the time, they could have checked to see the cell phone log sheets to see who he was talking to….based on the reports, they didn’t contact her.” In addition, while a toxicology report was done for Martin, no such test was performed on Zimmerman, who has a history of aggressive behavior (although his drug habits, if any, seem to be unknown). Zimmerman was also allowed to leave the police department with the clothes he was wearing at the time, leaving to chance for the garments to be tested for gun powder residue, which would help to determine his distance from Martin at the time of the shooting.
In light of this entire investigation, the Florida law that Zimmerman is hiding under, the “Stand Your Ground” law, has come under heavy scrutiny; many are calling for its repeal. Former Sen. Durell Peaden, who sponsored the law in 2005, told the Miami Herald, “They need to prosecute whoever shot the kid…[Zimmerman] has no protection under my law.” The major reason why many say Zimmerman forfeited his self defense rights is because he disregarded the instructions of a 911 operator who explicitly told Zimmerman not to chase after Martin and instead wait for police to arrive. ”When he said ‘I’m following him,’” says Peaden, “he lost his defense.” Peaden and the co-author of the law, Republican Rep. Dennis Baxley, say their law protects law-abiding people but nowhere does it say that a person has a right to confront another.
Florida police released Zimmerman because they supposedly did not have enough evidence to charge him with anything. I have no doubt this is a true statement, but the reason there was a lack of evidence was from a lack of investigation. In an interview with MSNBC, former Chief of Police for Oak Hill, Florida, Walt Zalisko, points out several failings in Martin’s case. ”There have been a lot of missteps in the investigation. For instance, it was the family’s attorney who discovered the phone calls to [Martin's] girlfriend. The police had that cell phone at the time, they could have checked to see the cell phone log sheets to see who he was talking to….based on the reports, they didn’t contact her.” In addition, while a toxicology report was done for Martin, no such test was performed on Zimmerman, who has a history of aggressive behavior (although his drug habits, if any, seem to be unknown). Zimmerman was also allowed to leave the police department with the clothes he was wearing at the time, leaving to chance for the garments to be tested for gun powder residue, which would help to determine his distance from Martin at the time of the shooting.
In light of this entire investigation, the Florida law that Zimmerman is hiding under, the “Stand Your Ground” law, has come under heavy scrutiny; many are calling for its repeal. Former Sen. Durell Peaden, who sponsored the law in 2005, told the Miami Herald, “They need to prosecute whoever shot the kid…[Zimmerman] has no protection under my law.” The major reason why many say Zimmerman forfeited his self defense rights is because he disregarded the instructions of a 911 operator who explicitly told Zimmerman not to chase after Martin and instead wait for police to arrive. ”When he said ‘I’m following him,’” says Peaden, “he lost his defense.” Peaden and the co-author of the law, Republican Rep. Dennis Baxley, say their law protects law-abiding people but nowhere does it say that a person has a right to confront another.