if GZ refuses to take the stand, just IMO...he is guilty of manslaughter. There is no excuse for him not to testify if he was the good guy & was just defending himself. His defense would be strongest if he testifies. & the state is accusing him of murder! how would he not want to testify? His life is on the line.

credibility is most important as to guilt or innocence when facts are murky & the dead guy cant tell his story. Zims facts are already bad (nonexistent bushes, no recollection of street names in a subdivision he patrols), & it is worse if he refuses to tell the jury directly that he was defending himself.

no excuse not to testify...the truth shall set you free! (or send you to jail :winkwink:)

Thanks for NOT answering lol.

And once again, you have assigned yourself the supreme know all. Pretty arrogant to presume to know for everyone what is and what is not a life threatening experience.

Regarding: "If someone punches you in the face you will now legally be able to shoot and kill them."

How about here?

http://youtu.be/glrh2JrtFOU

His defense is self defense. His injuries were not consistent with what he claims happened, and there is no proof Martin went for his gun.

Legally, this is so "out there" that it shouldn't get a response.

GZ's LAWYERS will determine whether or not he takes the stand. To go against advice of counsel in a legal proceeding is moronic.

That would seem to make common sense. But every defense attorney tells their client NOT to take the witness stand.

It's not as simple as just taking the stand and giving a speech.

You're going to be cross examined by LAWYERS. And those guys are the trickiest SOB's in the world when it comes to twisting words and making you look bad.

I bet GZ himself would love to take the stand. But I'd bet the farm that his lawyers are saying "no".

Remember, they don't give you a chance to put things in context or extrapolate your answer in cross examination. The cross examination is purposefully intended to make you look like a liar. And if you have the defendant on the stand...that's red meat for those prosecuting attorneys.

In any trial, the prosecutors are just praying that the defendant will make the mistake of taking the stand.

i wasnt talking legally. please refer to the IMO in my comment.

also zimmerman is the ultimate decider of his defense. he can get advice from his counsel. but the decision is his whether to testify. & my point was quite simple...sorry you didnt understand it.

I stated what I thought would happen if Zimmerman was found innocent.

It's possible they will drop the charges down to manslaughter, but he'll get a stiff sentence.

I don't think I am the supreme anything. It just seems very obvious to me this was a fist fight that ended up with someone getting shot and killed.

Don't really have enough information on if it was life threatening or not, although it sure does look bad. I also don't know what injuries she got in the process. Looks horrible, but three people tried to break it up and we also don't know when police were called.

The eighteen year old got five years in prison for this. The other attacker is a minor.

Stunning that shit like this goes on.

with all that you said to be true, if the state is accusing YOU of murder, would you refuse the stand out of fear of the prosecutors? your a credible guy. I think any truly innocent & credible man fights for his life on that witness stand.

plus, the defense has the opportunity to retort any cross examination that may harm you on the stand. its not like whatever is damaging in cross exam cannot be clarified by the defense.

:2 cents:

Yes, after watching many lawyer shows on television I have learned that it's best to listen to the professionals. lol

But seriously...yes, I would probably argue with my lawyers about it. And then, because I like to think I'm reasonably intelligent, I'd hear what they think would happen if I did take the stand.

And then, because I don't want to go to jail...I'd listen and heed their advice.

I know that here on GFY we are all experts, but in the real world I'd listen to the real experts (and then later come on GFY and tell you that I disagreed with them lol)

There is testimony..by Zimmerman..in the police reports that Martin went for his gun and that put him in "fear for his life or great bodily harm" which by law gave him the right to use deadly force. That is defense in total.

The burden of proof lies with the prosecutor not Zimmerman...thus the prosecutor...has to prove that Martin did not go for Zimmerman's gun and Zimmerman does not have to prove that Martin did.

No you sidestepped by giving the following non-committal answer: " I believe that if he is found innocent it will set a very dangerous precedent - If someone punches you in the face you will now legally be able to shoot and kill them. "



You are talking out of both ends .. you said:

"This was a fist fight, not even close to life threatening."



Oh.. I see... In this case you don't have enough info but in the GZ case you do. Didn't realize you were privy to the court records.


This tells me 100% of what I need to know about your world view. It "looks" horrible? Seriously? She could have retaliated with an Uzi and I would support her.

i would have no problem with Zimmerman patrolling my Neighborhood :2 cents::2 cents::2 cents:

anyone punching a armed person in the face takes the risk of getting shot.

think of it this way if people know they might get shot and killed for punching someone in the face they might think twice about it. :2 cents::2 cents:

So now we accept everything Zimmerman says as being true?

You know, it's not like he doesn't have a long history of spinning bullshit here.

Now who's trolling. You asked what I thought would happen if he was found innocent, and I told you.

Correct. With the assault in Baltimore I know... Nothing. I don't know know if the victim was seen by a doctor or spent three days in a hospital recovering from wounds. I don't know anything about the victim's injuries.

With Zimmerman, well, we know everything. We have pictures of him front and back, he didn't go to the hospital, he didn't need stiches, he didn't see a doctor. The police detailed his injuries, and multiple people have testified about the extent or lack of injuries Zimmerman had.

That's great. I am not comfortable with having untrained armed civilians running around trying to be police officers. Again, the end result is some innocent kid gets shot and killed.

I certainly do not accept everything Zimmerman says...I stated that the prosecutor has to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Martin did not go for Zimmerman's gun...and Zimmerman does not have to prove that he did.

Of course you know that...you just like to troll...for whatever purpose you have for doing so. I intend to end it.

No. I NEVER asked you what you think would happen.

I asked .. and I quote:

"If he is found not guilty by a jury, will you accept that decision or continue to crucify him?"


This highlights a significant & fundamental difference between you and I. You need to see the extent of someone's injuries to determine if lethal force is warranted.

I see this requirement as quite literally insane. In most states:

"the statutes say you can use deadly force to protect yourself or someone else if you feel your life is in danger or someone else's life is in danger,"

It does not say that you can use deadly force if the injuries from an attack on you or someone else are serious enough to warrant deadly force.

Can you not see how waiting until after an attack to make that determination is insane?

Driving about 800 miles today - again listened to almost the whole day and still listening to the hearings about admitting additional evidence and testimony.. The defense pretty much crushed the prosecution today on every level. Toxicology report will be admitted. 5 or more witnesses identified Zimmerman as the guy crying for help just today alone. Prosecutor strangely can't muster up any family or friends that can do the same - of the 3 so far, being the mother, brother and father, 2 initially said it wasn't Martin.

Horrible that someone died. But it's not appearing to be anywhere close to 2nd degree murder

Beyond

A

Reasonable

Doubt


That is all that matters.

Absolutely ZERO chance Zimmerman takes the stand. He doesn't need to. Unless it's a jury made up exclusively of Martin family members or idiot GFY members (the latter of which is EASILY possible), there's simply no way he gets convicted. The only thing he could possibly accomplish by taking the stand is slipping up and making the prosecution look somewhat competent...something they haven't been able to do on their own.

The only real question remaining is will the forthcoming riots start with a few random idiots, or just one (Al Sharpton) opening his mouth and inciting them. And will they be comparable to the Rodney King acquittals.

It would be nice to see the black community acknowledge that maybe this wasn't as clear cut a case of murder as it was made out to be.

I will in fact continue to crucify him. I'm sorry, he got punched in the face, end of story. It wasn't life threatening, and there was no proof Martin even knew he had a firearm no less reached for it.

I do not believe that Zimmerman had the legal right to kill someone because he got punched in the face. Again, if we started shooting people every time a punch was thrown, we would have piles of dead bodies.

I found it most interesting that Zimmerman had a personal trainer that was teaching him how to box...

Translation: Facts mean nothing to me; only my opinion matters.

Did you listen to the testimony?

so if it was a 'white kid' who died, you'd feel the same way?

Absolutely. Race doesn't mean shit to me.

Pretty much summed it up right there.

I think you pretty much answered your own question...

Fact: Zimmerman was punched.
Fact: Zimmerman was not punched twenty-five times.
Fact: No one saw Martin go for the gun.
Fact: No one knows if Martin knew Zimmerman had a gun.
Fact: Zimmerman shot Martin.
Fact: Zimmerman killed Martin.

I watched some of it today, it was utterly stupid. The owner of the gym told us Zimmeran was "not athletic" and "soft" and "not a good fighter". Well, duh.

I can guess that you didn't find it interesting that the same guy spent an hour in the stand testifying as to how meek, timid, mild, soft and weak and thoroughly unskilled Zimmerman was? Or that he was absolutely nowhere near actually even exchanging shots with someone with gloves on, under close supervision? Or that he testified that Zimmerman had zero ability to defend himself once Martin was on top in a full mount position and swinging away?

Don't be silly. Cherry picking "facts" is MUCH more relevant than context.

People keep calling him an mma fighter with an aggressive personality - funny how the prosecutor never went there. Almost as if it has no basis in fact ????

Every witness testified that he's a great guy and pillar of the community and it had yet to be refuted by the prosecution

rightly so.

i hope the "black community" hears your pleas.

FACT those are the only two things that matter and if the first is true then the second is according to Florida law, perfectly legal.

So now any time someone punches I can shoot them? Outstanding.

Yet you thought it was important enough to mention that Zimmerman had a personal trainer that was teaching him how to box.

If you move to FL; you may not be aware, but not all states have the same laws.

I understand they are trying to portray Zimmerman as "soft" and "unable to defend himself", and they accomplished that. However, at the same, it just reinforces exactly what I think Zimmerman is - a meek, timid, mild, soft and weak man who thought he was a much bigger man than he really was only because he had a firearm.

They are not "trying" - they are doing it without challenge of the prosecution who simply has absolutely nothing by a couple recorded comments in a 311 call where he's attempting to distort the meaning (also well challenged by witness's for the defense)

It's never difficult to prove an asshole is an asshole. Prosecution is miles away from proving he meets the burden of proof when it comes to being of a deprived mind acting out of hatred, Ill will, etc

That's all fine and well. It's 100% pure speculation that is not supported by fact, not found in evidence and not supported in eyewitness testimony and is definitely something that isn't being proven in court. Your own statement above says he's not guilty of 2nd degree murder under Florida statutes.

bad news for the 'zimmerman camp'

http://www.chicagonow.com/fresh-n-si...is-system-too/


lets review.

THC causes desires for:

1. Skittles
2. Ice Tea

Adderall:
which is taken primarily for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, can cause aggressiveness, delusions, hostility, anxiety and depression

Temazepam:
which is taken for insomnia can cause anxiety, hallucination, fatigue, nervousness, dizziness, and aggressiveness.

You act as if this is some new discovery or something... The garbage article you linked was from over a year ago, so if it was truly "bad news for the 'zimmerman camp'" then the prosecution would be running with it like there's no tomorrow.

The simple FACT -- you know, those things you guys keep ignoring -- is that he was prescribed the medication, but there is zero proof that said medications were in his system at the time of the shooting.

no proof except for the medical records?

are you saying these medications don't have those side affects if they're prescribed?