Zimmerman's bail set at $1M in Trayvon Martin case

Zimmerman's bail set at $1M in Trayvon Martin case

www.foxnews.com

ORLANDO, Fla. – The neighborhood watch volunteer who killed Trayvon Martin can be released from jail while he awaits trial on a second-degree murder charge.

A Florida judge on Thursday granted bond for a second time to George Zimmerman. Bail was set at $1 million.

Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester had revoked Zimmerman's $150,000 bond last month after prosecutors told the judge Zimmerman and his wife misled the court about how much money they had during an April bond hearing.

(visit the link for the full news article)

This whole case has been messed up from the beginning. The only reason his bond was revoked the first time is because of an accounting error from all the money pouring into Zimmerman's defense fund.

I sure hope the cops and National Guard is ready for an innocent verdict. And the fired police chief gets his job back or a payout.

Time for the political correct crown to clam up and start facing reality.

Not all people are good and it just maybe the time to thin out the herd of humanity.

www.foxnews.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Yep. I agree.. This guy got the shaft because of the media and political pressure and if he goes to jail it will be a crime in itself. Or if someone on the outside tried to kill him it will just be a travesty. This whole case is a joke and should have never happened.

Only in America.

Where those that can threaten his life with murder, can walk free also.......

His bail wasn't revoked only because of him and his wife lied about how much money they had but he didn't tell the court he also had a second passport. If you lie to the court you should think about the consequences of getting caught.

reply to post by anon72

Originally posted by anon72
The only reason his bond was revoked the first time is because of an accounting error from all the money pouring into Zimmerman's defense fund.

You haven't been paying attention, have you? He and his wife both LIED under oath about his finances. They have the proof of the money being shuffled around in an attempt to conceal it from authorities, PLUS, they have the phone calls where they discussed it - and you have the idea it's because of an innocent "accounting error? Where did you get that story? From George himself?

Ridiculous, thats excessive for 2nd degree murder charge and they know it. Anyone noticed that as this case drags on, the images of him look less and less Anglo and more Hispanic?
Check out the picture of him on Fox news website.
I think the media is intentionally fanning the racial flames for some reason, maybe because of coming election.

reply to post by anon72


is his wife still in Jail though???
i mean gee ,, with his wife in Jail,, that would be a lot of undue duress.

Originally posted by BobAthome
reply to post by anon72

 

is his wife still in Jail though???
i mean gee ,, with his wife in Jail,, that would be a lot of undue duress.

She bonded out after she was booked in on a thousand dollar bond if I remeber right.

I forgot who zimmerman/trayvon even was.... We have had peoples faces bitten off since then, this is petty news...

reply to post by anon72


I think Zimmerman is guilty, I hope he serves time, but personally I think he should have been allowed to use those donations as a bail out. If people choose to donate to zimmerman, it should be his to use as he wishes. He is being put on trial now, he has been exposed to the media, and this is enough for me. Though it is not good to lie to the authorities regardless, so they got caught red handed.

reply to post by Southern Guardian


Just because a person lies in one situation doesn't mean they are guilty in the other.

Kaycee Anthony comes to mind.

Not guilty on the felony charges yet found guilty for lying in statements she gave. If we are going to punish a person it should be based on the specific incident and put into proper context. It should not be used to punish a person for a crime the prosecutor can't prove.

A continuing example of that would be the Feds charging Zimmerman with a hate crime if he is found not guilty / acquitted / charges dismissed for lack of evidence / not guilty because the prosecution couldnt meet its burden.

The other thing to take into account is when this issue came up in the timeline. Had Zimmerman lied prior to the shooting then I can see it being detrimental. Since it came after the incident, the only way the prosecution can argue would be to state Zimmerman was lying the entire time, which means the prosecution has to prove he lied from the start.

With all of the media attention and the political grandstanding and the 100 meter rush to judgement, the death threats, etc the defense can easily argue that Zimmerman's lapse in judgment on the money extends from all of those issues together. One could also argue there is a difference between personal assets and donations.

Nothing is confirmed so just food for thought from the other side of the fence.

Again a difficult, but not impossible, task for them.

We need to remember one of the most basic rights in America, and one of the reasons that I and Don Corleone share a particular kind of love for this country.

All people are innocent until proven guilty.

That is all.

Originally posted by Xcathdra
reply to post by Southern Guardian

 

Just because a person lies in one situation doesn't mean they are guilty in the other.

Where did I say Zimmerman was guilty of shooting Trayvon because he lied about his finances? I said no such thing.

It should not be used to punish a person for a crime the prosecutor can't prove.

If you're referring to the shooting of Trayvon, nobody needs to 'prove' that Trayvon was shot by Zimmerman, we already know he was, Zimmerman admitted it. We also know that Trayvon was unarmed, there also isn't any evidence that Trayvon started the confrontation, just speculation.

At this point Zimmerman is legally innocent until proven guilty in the same manner that O.J Simpson was and still is legally innocent to this day.

In the end I know I got what I wanted, Zimmerman was revealed and he is standing trail for the shooting. He has been charged, he has been arrested, I'm happy the courts are taken this now.

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
Where did I say Zimmerman was guilty of shooting Trayvon because he lied about his finances? I said no such thing.

And I made no such accusation / attributed / claimed you said it. It was a generality and an example of Post hoc ergo propter hoc (after this, therefore because of this) .

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
If you're referring to the shooting of Trayvon, nobody needs to 'prove' that Trayvon was shot by Zimmerman, we already know he was, Zimmerman admitted it. We also know that Trayvon was unarmed, there also isn't any evidence that Trayvon started the confrontation, just speculation.

I never stated anything about Zimmerman not shooting Martin. What I am saying is the prosecution will not be able to meet their burden for the 2nd murder charge. It hinges on depraved indifference (the act itself is so bad that it outweighs the outcome of the situation) and the evidence to date does not support that element.

As for who started what there is no evidence Zimmerman started it either. The detective at the first preliminary hearing was questioned about that. His PC statement made that claim, that Zimmerman started the encounter, When Zimmermans lawyer challenged that claim the detective stated he had no evidence to support the statement (which should have been the end of the prosecution as well as an investigation into the detective for knowingly using an unsupported opinion of his as fact).

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
At this point Zimmerman is legally innocent until proven guilty in the same manner that O.J Simpson was and still is legally innocent to this day.

Not an ideal outcome for the OJ issue however in this case it has not that mindset is a bit premature since we dont have all the evidence, let alone a trial. I would rather see 9 OJ's go free than to have 1 innocent person go to prison.

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
In the end I know I got what I wanted, Zimmerman was revealed and he is standing trail for the shooting. He has been charged, he has been arrested, I'm happy the courts are taken this now.

I am glad it made it to the legal system however I am not happy about the manner in which it made it to that point. I am not happy the detective lied in his PC statement and has not been charged (while Zimmermans wife was). I am not happy the PA signed off on a PC statement knowing information contained was not factual or supported by the evidence.I am not hapy his prosecution was based on politics instead of the law.

I believe the prosecuting attorney in this case, by her actions / statements to the media, has all but guaranteed an unfair trial for Zimmerman.

I guess time will reveal the answer to these questions.

As a side note I think you may have taken my post in the wrong manner. It was not meant to challenge / blame / accuse you of anything. If it came across that way my apologies as that was not my intent.

Originally posted by Xcathdra
What I am saying is the prosecution will not be able to meet their burden for the 2nd murder charge.

Well this is your opinion. We can make opinions all day as to whether Zimmerman will be found guilty or not, fact is we'll have to wait until the final ruling. If Zimmerman is found guilty and if he serves time in jail, I'll be happy. If he doesn't, I won't be happy, but I'd hope people respect the courts decision.

As for who started what there is no evidence Zimmerman started it either.

No there isn't, we do however know that Zimmerman was the one that shot Trayvon. We also know that Zimmerman was initially following trayvon who he felt was up to no good, Zimmerman even stated that he believed trayvon was running away. At this point we have a dead unarmed boy, and the man we know who shot him. Zimmerman claims it was in self defense, but we don't just take the words of the killer and assume this was the case.

I would rather see 9 OJ's go free than to have 1 innocent person go to prison.

Define innocent? Fact is, you don't know for certain whether Zimmerman is innocent in all this. Legally he is innocent, he has a chance in court, but you weren't there that day. You know that Zimmerman shot this kid who was unarmed. You don't know yourself whether trayvon confronted anybody. Beyond this, all you have are your assumptions as do I. We're left with the authorities, the courts, to pick up the pieces.

I am glad it made it to the legal system however I am not happy about the manner in which it made it to that point.

Well this is a free country. There are those of us who feel that this incident was treated lightly by the police. There are those of us who feel that if this was a white boy or a white girl, and the shooter was a black individual, this case would have been treated different. Many of us voiced our opinions, voiced our disgust. Zimmerman was revealed by the media. This is just how it is, you can't expect everybody to have to treat this case or treat Zimmerman to how you'd prefer it to be treated.

Had Zimmerman stayed put in his truck, none of this would have happed. I hear Zimmerman supporters continiously say that Zimmerman had every right to "follow" or to ignore the operator. While this is true, that doesn't mean it was the right thing to do. Zimmerman made a choice that day, he put himself in this situation, he certainly prepared himself considering he had a loaded gun, and the end result involved him being exposed to the rest of the country. He has himself to blame.

As a side note I think you may have taken my post in the wrong manner. It was not meant to challenge / blame / accuse you of anything. If it came across that way my apologies as that was not my intent.

That's fine, thanks for clarifying Xcathdra.

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
Well this is your opinion. We can make opinions all day as to whether Zimmerman will be found guilty or not, fact is we'll have to wait until the final ruling. If Zimmerman is found guilty and if he serves time in jail, I'll be happy. If he doesn't, I won't be happy, but I'd hope people respect the courts decision.

Its not just my opinion... When this porigionally started the detective wanted to charge him with manslaughter yet for some reason escaping logic, the PA raised the charge to 2nd murder. She can prosecute as she sees fit of course but the prosecution needs to be based on facts and not political pressure.

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
No there isn't, we do however know that Zimmerman was the one that shot Trayvon. We also know that Zimmerman was initially following trayvon who he felt was up to no good, Zimmerman even stated that he believed trayvon was running away. At this point we have a dead unarmed boy, and the man we know who shot him. Zimmerman claims it was in self defense, but we don't just take the words of the killer and assume this was the case.

All of which does not constitute a crime (minus the shooting which plays into the opening facts). It is not illegal to follow anyone nor is it illegal to confront a person. The person confronted can just walk away. As for taking the words of Zimmerman yes we can assume its accurate. Contrary to peoples personal opinions Floridas stand your ground law is specific when it comes to situations like this. Its the job of the prosecution to disprove Zimmermans version of events.

Zimmerman was not arrested that night because his version of events and the evidence present did not contradict each other. Its the same reason the origional PA declined to file charges.

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
Define innocent? Fact is, you don't know for certain whether Zimmerman is innocent in all this. Legally he is innocent, he has a chance in court, but you weren't there that day. You know that Zimmerman shot this kid who was unarmed. You don't know yourself whether trayvon confronted anybody. Beyond this, all you have are your assumptions as do I. We're left with the authorities, the courts, to pick up the pieces.

Innocent - Any person in the United States who is not convicted of a crime.
Zimmerman is innocent in all of this until a judge or jury states otherwise and its not based on a technicality either.

A person does not have to be armed to be considered a threat and to ignore that is naieve. As for the remainder (police / PA) there case is in trouble and they know it. They have already assigned an assistant PA after the fiasco the lead PA caused by threatening to sue harvard over Alan Dershowitz's comments.

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
Well this is a free country. There are those of us who feel that this incident was treated lightly by the police. There are those of us who feel that if this was a white boy or a white girl, and the shooter was a black individual, this case would have been treated different. Many of us voiced our opinions, voiced our disgust. Zimmerman was revealed by the media. This is just how it is, you can't expect everybody to have to treat this case or treat Zimmerman to how you'd prefer it to be treated.

The flaw with that logic is the position that public opinion should matter, when in fact it does not. As far as the police go people need to understand how this all works. The Police cannot make an arrest when the law does not allow for it. The police are not the ones who file charges nor are they the determining factor on those charges (as we see with the 2nd murder charge).

You cant make an argument based on an individuals race and what "could" of occured had the players been different races. Making a hypothetical and trying to compare it to reality is comparing apples to nunchucks.

A prosecution is based on the here and now and the facts and evidence. Attempting to view this incident through the what if glasses is invalid.

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
Had Zimmerman stayed put in his truck, none of this would have happed.

This is a leap of logic. Secondly you dont know, as you are telling me, what could have happened had he stayed in his truck. If we go with the evidence so far he claimed he was heading back to his truck when martin ambushed him.

Secondly the lead detective has absolutely no evidence of who confronted who, so whether he stayed in his truck or not is irrelevant to the facts.

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
I hear Zimmerman supporters continiously say that Zimmerman had every right to "follow" or to ignore the operator. While this is true, that doesn't mean it was the right thing to do.

The right or wrong thing to do does not translate into a criminal violation. He has a right to follow the individual and has a right to make contact just as Martin has a right to run away or refuse to answer Zimmerman.

Martin supporters seem to be having any issue with the term totality of circumstances. The public has the benefiet (albeit not complete) of 20/20 hindsight. That viewpoint, 20/20, is not admissible as a possibility in court. The situation itself will reviolve around what Zimmerman perceived at the moment he used force.

Another reason why trials should be heard and dealt with in a court of law and not the court of public opinion. People are basing their views off of their own moral perceptions while ignoring the law and how it applies.

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
Zimmerman made a choice that day, he put himself in this situation, he certainly prepared himself considering he had a loaded gun, and the end result involved him being exposed to the rest of the country. He has himself to blame.

Again you don't know that as we dont know who confronted whom. We dont know which person put which person in which position. Being in possession of a weapon is irrelevent since he was in lawful possession of it. Again if people are going to put their view on this, they need to understand the law and how its applied. The only person to blame at this point is the Govorner and AG when they opted to override the origional PA because of politics instead of law.

Originally posted by Southern Guardian
That's fine, thanks for clarifying Xcathdra.

yup

Originally posted by Juggernog
Ridiculous, thats excessive for 2nd degree murder charge and they know it.

As far as the guilty/innocence deal, I wont speculate because I wasn't there and the media coverage is convoluted. I will say that I can see the angle of him being a flight risk because if he has the 6 figure war chest that the media is speculating he has, he could skip down to Peru & live like a king. If he has the money that his wife was perjured about...He should have no problem with the 10.

Either way, it's high profile... The Judge could be "affected"

Originally posted by Xcathdra
This is a leap of logic.

It's not a leap of logic at all. Had he stayed put in his truck, he would have not found himself where he is today. Infact I'd bet my bottom dollar that Zimmerman is looking back to that night regretting the fact he decided to follow this kid, with his weapon armed. Whether he had the legal "right" to ignore the operator and follow this kid, confront him, is besides the point. He put himself in the situation, and as the result he finds himself in the middle of a backlash. He made that choice and he has nobody to blame but himself.

If we go with the evidence so far he claimed he was heading back to his truck when martin ambushed him.

I wouldn't say that Zimmerman claiming he was ambushed is solid evidence in this case because you know, there's an obvious bias, and Trayvon can't speak for himself.

As for whether he claimed he was heading back to his truck, he should have stayed put in it in the first place. As I said, he wouldn't find himself where he is today had he left this to the real police.

Secondly the lead detective has absolutely no evidence of who confronted who,

I'll rather leave it to the justice system to decide this and make a decision on Zimmermans innocence, thanks.

The right or wrong thing to do does not translate into a criminal violation.

and again, "right" or "wrong", had he stayed put, he wouldn't find himself in this situation. You can argue all day about how he had the legal right to follow somebody he suspected was up to no good with a loaded gun, it doesn't mean it was the "right" thing to do that night. It certainly doesn't help his case that he was merely standing his ground" that night. You obviously see it differently.

Another reason why trials should be heard and dealt with in a court of law and not the court of public opinion. People are basing their views off of their own moral perceptions

People are basing their own views and moral perceptions on the issue because they have a right to. Nobody here is telling you what position you must take on this incident, we have freedom of speech and belief in this country. Life isn't fair, you aren't going to always like the view of many folks in society, but this is the reality of freedom in this country. Zimmerman is getting his day in court, he is getting the opportunity to defend himself. Whether the outcome favours Zimmerman or not, I am satisfied on a personal level that this issue has finally reached the courts as it had. I also respect the fact that people have a right to hold differents views and that we don't always have to like the result of freedom in this country.

We dont know which person put which person in which position.

No we don't, thanks for reminding yourself.