A new report shows that the day after killing Trayvon Martin, George Zimmerman passed a police lie detector test. He registered truthful in stating that he was afraid for his life before shooting the teen. The report does not materially affect the trial since such tests are not admissible but may explain the the resistance of local officials to bring the case. It also further supports the view, again, that Angela Corey overcharged the case. She was no doubt aware of the test which, while not admissible as evidence because their reliability is questioned, can be considered by the prosecutors in determining the appropriate charge. UPDATE: A police report shows a critical view of Zimmerman’s account and says that he missed two opportunities to defuse the situation.
Zimmerman willingly submitted to a computer voice stress analyzer (CVSA) “truth verification” on February 27 and the test “was classified as No Deception Indicated (NDI).” This included the question of “Did you confront the guy you shot?’ He answered, “No.” He was rated as telling the truth in both saying that he did not confront Martin and that he was in fear of his life.
Also released recently are further details from Zimmerman to the police. Zimmerman insisted that the teen knocked him down and began to pound his head in the sidewalk while telling him “You’re going to die.” Zimmerman claims Trayvon reached for the gun and that he grabbed it to protect himself.
Both the question of fear and the party responsible for the confrontation could be distorted by Zimmerman’s perspective and not accepted objectively by third parties. Of the two questions, however, the confrontation question is the most interesting. It is rare for targeted suspects to agree to lie detectors, though I have agreed to such tests in past cases.
Once again, this evidence does not rule out the basis for a criminal charge, but in my view strongly militates against a charge greater than manslaughter. In fairness to the local officials, the evidence also offers support for their view that no charge was appropriate. One can disagree with that conclusion, but they may have had solid reasons for opposing a charge. That does not excuse sloppy police work and there was still a basis to detain Zimmerman at the scene. However, the case has become more muddled with such new evidence. As a criminal defense attorney, I have always viewed this case as one with strong defense arguments for trial. While the odds always favor the prosecution, the factual record has a number of elements that could create reasonable doubt. Obviously, the trial itself can present facts in different light and the prosecution has yet to be fully heard in the case.
Source: NY Daily News
Finally listened to all the interviews of George in order.
In his first interview with Serino, before the “non-criminality of the victim” was known, Zimmerman agreed that he was FOLLOWING Martin. WHy did he shoot him? He HAD TO because Martin was going to disarm and kill him — BUT he agreed he followed.
Later interviews (after chatting w/Osterman) — he asked for voice-stress test and he said he was NOT FOLLOWING but looking for a street sign. INSISTED he was NOT FOLLOWING. over and over.
BettyKath, I agree the new stuff is nothing much. One doesn’t have to prove Zimmerman had a propensity for violence if he shot someone to death. The only reason the priors came up in the public discussion of the case was that the police had told Trayvon Martin’s family that Zimmerman was “squeaky clean” when it was pretty obvious that wasn’t true.
Speaking of which, here’s O’Mara’s motion to recuse Judge Lester:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/100020949/Motion-to-Disqualify-Lester
O’Mara saying that ordinarily a judge opining that a defendant had no credibility meant the judge was not impartial is incorrect. Generally, a judge who came to such a conclusion from OUTSIDE THE CASE would not be impartial; a judge coming to such a conclusion from the conduct of the defendant IN THE CASE, right before the judge’s eyes and right to the judge’s ears, is NOT an indication that the judge is not impartial; it is an indication that the judge is alive and able to think and come to conclusions. After all, if it is already proven that George Zimmerman LIED then how could any rational judge not think he had lied? So a judge would have to be irrational (like those bloggers who keep saying we shouldn’t draw any conclusions yet because we don’t know all the facts yet) to stay blissfully and ignorantly unaware of a credibility issue with a witness (the defendant himself) who had already lied, and whose lawyer had to give, as reasons for his lies, the conclusions that when he lied he was “frightened, confused and mistrustful.”
Judges acquiring opinions from within the case are not disqualified by the fact that they are not unaware of what has taken place. If George does get a judge like that, it will probably be his daddy.
My observations are listed above – yesterday.
I looked at this evidence at the site Shano posted and listed key new information, new to me at least. It looks like the same stuff. The witness stuff is summaries, not the interview itself. There are pages about the previous breakins that I didn’t look at. And there is probably a lot of information about the gun used but it was too technical for the time I wanted to spend trying to decipher it. The “only” violence anyone knew about re; Zimmerman was from his former fiancee. She described domestic abuse and road rage but maybe that doesn’t count. : (
Supplemental evidence revealed:
http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/12/new-george-zimmerman-evidence-8-things-you-need-to-know/
Look at this:
http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/07/13/v-fullstory/2893981/air-marshal-took-zimmerman-in.html
When I read this guy’s interview I thought there was something very weird about it, even before realizing who he was. There are several interviews in there where you can just TELL they’re trying to get some talking points in about George and this one (and two others) had that quality about them.
Of course, there are two ways to read the response of the federal agency that says it will not respond to the question of whether he works for them: Either (a) they will not respond because it is their policy to not respond, and/or, (b) they will not respond because/and he DOES NOT WORK FOR THEM BUT IS LYING AGAIN.
Oh probably this attempt to recuse Lester is being done to accomplish one of two results: Either (a) Lester will quite appropriately refuse to recuse himself so that there will be a claim, on appeal, that the judge was being unfair; or (b) O’Mara has bought himself a judge already with the cool $4,000,000 that came into the “numbered accounts” and wants to get rid of Lester so the new judge can give Zimmy a walk.
Neither one will work at this point. Lester is a straight-shooter (no pun) because he really did NOT know, from on-line extrajudicial sources, that Zimmerman had all that PayPal money; he really DID get lied to and tricked and he quite appropriately pronounced Zimmerman non-credible. So he will not be likely to recuse himself (it would be legally inappropriate to do so at this point) and unless the appellate court is already prepared to undo whatever a jury and/or judge properly do in this case, the lay of the land is already laid as far as the SYG hearing is concerned. Um, that means, uh oh, George. Next time you decide to kill somebody, think about THAT one.
Yahoo News: The ex-neighborhood watch volunteer charged with killing Trayvon Martin asked for a new judge Friday, claiming the current one is biased because he said George Zimmerman had “flaunted the system.”
Zimmerman said in a motion he feared he would be unable to get a fair “stand your ground” hearing or a fair trial with Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester presiding over the case. Lester was appointed in April after Zimmerman claimed a potential conflict of interest with the original judge.
Earlier this month, Lester said in an order granting Zimmerman bond that Zimmerman had “under any definition … flaunted the system” by failing to disclose at an April bond hearing that he had raised $135,000 from donations for his legal defense.
Zimmerman’s wife, Shellie, testified at the bond hearing that they had limited resources since she was a student and Zimmerman wasn’t working. Zimmerman said nothing to correct his wife’s testimony.
Lester at the time allowed Zimmerman to be released on a $150,000 bond. The judge revoked the bond after prosecutors presented jailhouse recordings of Zimmerman instructing his wife on how to transfer funds raised from a website to different bank accounts.
Zimmerman returned to jail in June but left last week after Lester granted him a $1 million bond, saying state law compelled him to grant bail. In the second bond order, the judge said it appeared Zimmerman was preparing to flee to avoid prosecution based on the money he had raised and his possession of second passport that he had failed to disclose to the court.
Zimmerman argued that showed bias.
“The court makes sweeping generalizations about Mr. Zimmerman based on limited information and disregards the evidence that contradicts those conclusions,” Zimmerman said in the motion.
A spokeswoman for the state attorney’s office said in an email Friday that prosecutors object to the defense motion and will file a formal response early next week.
A spokeswoman for the judge said he wouldn’t comment Friday but would address the matter later.
Zimmerman is charged with second-degree murder. He has pleaded not guilty, claiming self-defense.
Under Florida law, Zimmerman could request a “stand your ground” hearing that would allow him to argue his self-defense case before a judge and without jury. The judge could then either drop the charges or set a trial date.
“Mr. Zimmerman fears that the court has already decided that he is not worthy of belief regardless of the type of proceeding or the corroborating evidence that would support his testimony,” the motion said.”
Good luck getting a SYG trial with any judge, George.
sonofthunderboanerges: that is the saddest timeline in the world.
The detail that still nags me is the position of the body. Zimmerman has said repeatedly that he spread Martin’s arms and held them down after he shot him. But Aruya said that Martin was face down with his hand under him. How did this happen?
sonofthunder, The class “G” firearm license is for private investigative, private security and repossession services. It is required that the holder perform a weapon proficiency test annually.
Zimmerman does not maintain a class G license. He doesn’t need one to carry concealed. He just needed to take the 6 hr. safety class.
The gun he used on Martin was taken by the police and they did forensic tests on it. The one he had when he was arrested was obtained by some means after his first one was taken by police the night of the incident.
In a timeline included in evidence documents released week of May 14th, Sanford police spelled out down to the second, what happened the night George Zimmerman fatally shot Trayvon Martin, based on time-stamped calls to their dispatch center.
It shows Zimmerman fired 1 minute, 57 seconds after he hung up.
Note: 1900 hours is 7:00 PM
1911:12 – Call received from George Zimmerman reporting suspicious person
(The Seminole County Sheriff’s Office, which handled the call, reported it came in at 1909:34)
1913:19 – Zimmerman relays that suspicious person is running from him
1913:36 – Dispatcher asks Zimmerman if he is following suspicious person
1913:36 – Dispatcher advises Zimmerman “Okay; we don’t need you to do that”
1915:23 – Approximate time call with Zimmerman ends
1916:43 – 911 call placed by someone where someone is heard screaming for help
1917:20 – Shot fired; screams from somebody cease
1917:40 – Officer Timothy Smith arrives on scene
1919:43 – Officer Timothy Smith locates and places Zimmerman in custody.
OK Malisha here’s some new data for you: Just found out that GZ DOES have a man on the inside that has been giving him help. Namely Mark Osterman a present US federal Dept of Homeland Security air marshal and ex-Seminole County deputy sheriff (forced to quit for being a sucker to a con-artist named Juan Diaz).. It appears that GZ hid at Mark’s Lake Mary home for 6 weeks. Mark is the one that forced GZ to turn himself in. Mark is the one that turned GZ onto guns and taught him how to shoot. Also it appears that GZ DOES read blogs like this and its spooks him. GOOD! The dumba55 thinks the New Black Panthers want to kill him. No they just want GZ to face the music with his jury. Mark should dump this con-artist like he should have done with Juan Diaz. Anyone that thinks Frank Taaffe is a “safety counselor” and a good friend must be a con-artist or a fool.
Source: FRANCES ROBLES – FROBLES@MIAMIHERALD.COM
12:56 PM EDT, THURSDAY JULY 12, 2012
Zimmerman Tried To Buy More Guns After Trayvon Martin Killing
George Zimmerman tried to buy more guns in the weeks after he shot and killed unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin, according to reports released on Thursday morning by prosecutors in his second-degree murder case.
A gun seller told investigators that Zimmerman contacted him in the weeks after the killing drew international attention and told the seller he believed his life was in danger. The reports aren’t clear whether Zimmerman was successful at buying more guns, but they show that police found a folding knife, an FN Herstal pistol and three loaded 5.7x28mm magazines on him when he turned himself into authorities on April 11.
Reported by Nick Martin Talking Points Memo (TPM)
So he had a Toshiba Laptop in his Honda Ridgeline that night? Was he using wi-fi hot spots? It would be interesting to pull his Internet web cache from that night. And the little known Microsoft tool that no one knows about that helps computer forensic scientists see what you’ve been doing for the life of the PC even if you thought you erased, deleted, and reformatted. Bill Gates is a sneaky little buzzard…
FL requires all who have a concealed weapon or a firearm license to attend a 6 hr class on firearm safety. Zimmerman paid $90 and attended. A class “G” firearm license for private investigative, private security and repossession services requires the holder to perform a weapon proficiency test annually. Zimmerman does not maintain a class G license.
Firearm/bullet testing about 2/3 of the way thru the documents. It’s all Greek or Sanskrit or something.
Serino: Z’s holster had no retention strap on the gun and it was not connected to a belt. He was unaware of [blacked out] taking pictures.
RaTL witness, with a wife, heard commotion in the back of his house said he took pictures of Zimmerman, the flashlight and Martin with his cell phone, uploaded them to his computer then erased them from his cell phone. Interestingly, the photos were subsequently retrieved from his i-phone.
From the autopsy of Martin
Delta-9 THC 1.5 ng/mL
Delta-9 Carboxy THC 7.3 ng/mL
Cannabinoids Presump Pos
*9 video cameras at the clubhouse, 5 outside 4 inside.
*Video recording system was 18 minutes slow at the time of the shooting
*Outside cameras: 2 cover back outside wall, 2 cover the pool area, 1 camera at the entrance and covers the front doors.
*3 cameras are located on poles at the front gate but were not operational and were not recording at the time of the incident.
April 11 when Zimmerman surrendered in Jacksonville his personal items included three 5.7×28 pistol magazines (loaded), FN Herstal pistol, Uncle Mike’s holster, Toshiba laptop with cord, Cruze 16 gb thumb drive, one 5.7×28 round etc., etc.
So far all interviewees either don’t know Zimmerman or he’s a nice guy.
So this is my take on this new information:
1. This means that GZ wanted easy access to his pistol and it had to be concealed as it had no belt clip. Direct violation of his permit.
2. I knew there was cell phone pictures and other video captures that night. This is not good for GZ’s story. How much ya’ wanna’ bet Frank Taaffe shows up in them? Also GZ said his flashlight was dead. Obviously this was another lie. Thanks to Apple when you delete something on an iPhone it’s still there I guess.
3. Trayvon had little or no MJ in his system as that much THC is negligible and the likelihood that it was from 2nd hand source is high. SPD released early on that TM had no MJ in his system. Hence does not fit the portrait of a thug. However, Our last 3 President’s have admitted to having much more in their systems over time (and worse!).
4. The clubhouse video system must have caught something that can be used to substantiate GZ’s version. However, there must be other cameras like personal web cameras or security systems recording.
5. So the FN Herstal with his 5 28 round full clips was the gun he turned in when he turned himself in. Where the hell is the Kel-Tec 9mm that the FBI verified was sold to him by a Arabic man the gun he killed Trayvon with? This means GZ is playing games here. Never mind… I know that they already have it anyway…
6. There was a RaTL Homeowners association meeting about 1 month before the killing. Most of the community showed up. The topic of the meeting was GEORGE ZIMMERMAN and his GUN. One member was forcibly removed by SPD from the meeting as he was very indignant about GZ and his guns. Others say he was passing out racist flyers about black burglars. How can anybody say they don’t know him? Or that he’s a nice guy? Yes he did have teaching sessions at his apartment for young local black kids on neighborhood safety but why did he focus on BLACK kids?
7. By not having a class G he has no right carrying a concealed weapon as he has no business need to do so. He is supposed to have it out in the open at all times and have a reason to be carrying it. He was supposedly going to the grocery store for Shellie the night he killed Trayvon. What was he going to do? Hold up the store? RaTL and the local area is NOT a bad neighborhood. NO GUNS NEEDED!!!
Hey Malisha, I follow this case over at Global Grind (of course Russell Simmons is keeping up ) Here is the link to the papers released:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/99916379/Documents-Given-to-the-Defendant-R-1
I’ve been looking around for the new evidence, and all I see is various news sources’ TAKE on the new evidence, which is pretty thin stuff, like “FBI thinks George is not a racist but has a ‘little hero’ complex” — utterly irrelevant and devoid of actual information. Does anybody know where I can find the actual INTERVIEWS and actual EVIDENCE that was supposed to be disclosed today publicly? What I’m most interested in, of course, is more actual verbatim statements and more reports that were contemporaneous — not people’s opinions on personal attributes of either of the two, victim or shooter.
Sonofthunder — I am not saying this was the real Trayvon Martin, the attacker I portrayed. I was doing that to show that IF the story of his attack were true, Trayvon would have had something in his hand he could have used! I believe YOUR take on it and so did Serino. Trayvon did not attack.
I know… that’s why I said ” I get your salient point.” All I was saying is what you can go back to those anti-TM knuckleheads and explain to them the “real deal” and not that fantasy world they live in thinking all young black men with hoodies, gold teeth, and tattoos want to do is hurt white men. I’ve seen some of those idiotic postings from fearful white men with big guns on other web sites. Isn’t a gun really just a overcompensation for a… well you know (LOL).