Zimmerman's Lies: A Brief Recap
July 14, 2013 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us
It is an uncontested fact that George Zimmerman put a gun to Trayvon Martin’s chest and put a hollow-point bullet through his heart, killing him almost instantly, on the evening of February 26, 2012. Trayvon Martin was walking home with a cold drink and a box of candy. George Zimmerman got out of his car, followed Trayvon, and murdered him.
From the moment of Trayvon’s death to the present day, George Zimmerman never exhibited anything close to genuine sorrow or regret over the murder. But he and those around him have pumped out lie after lie to justify the killing of Trayvon Martin.
George Zimmerman told his story to two police investigators, to his neighbor, and to Fox News host Sean Hannity. Each of Zimmerman's versions of what happened has been demonstrated to be a lie, and each of them significantly contradicts the others.
Zimmerman's story, as told to police investigators, in an interview with Hannity, and to a friend of his—also a cop—has been a concoction full of self-justifying and self-contradictory lies. Lies used to justify murder. Zimmerman's story, in fact, is impossible. The following are a few of the more important examples.
- The lie: Zimmerman told his friend Mark Osterman—who has himself been a cop for over 20 years—that he was in a desperate struggle with Trayvon for Zimmerman's gun. Zimmerman never said this to police. But Osterman wrote in a book, and it was entered into evidence, that Zimmerman said, “somehow I broke his grip on the gun where the guy grabbed it between the rear site and the hammer. I got the gun in my hand, raised it towards the guy’s chest, and pulled the trigger.”
- The truth: DNA evidence ruled out any real possibility that Trayvon ever touched Zimmerman's gun. The only DNA evidence on the gun's grip was that of George Zimmerman. None was Trayvon's. Zimmerman also claimed that Trayvon went for Zimmerman's holster. Anthony Gorgone, a DNA lab analyst for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, testified as an expert witness that “Zimmerman's holster tested positive for only Zimmerman's DNA as well.”
- The lie: Zimmerman claimed that Trayvon “bashed,” “slammed,” and “wailed” his head into the sidewalk. One of Zimmerman's lawyers claimed that the sidewalk was Trayvon's “deadly weapon.” Pictures of Zimmerman's alleged injuries have been shown repeatedly on tv.
- The truth: There is no way that Zimmerman's head was repeatedly slammed into the sidewalk. As Dr. Valerie Rao, a medical examiner in Florida, testified, Zimmerman's injuries were “insignificant,” “so minor” that all they required was an ordinary band-aid.
- The lie: Zimmerman told police investigators that Trayvon was circling his car, looking in at him, while Zimmerman was on the phone with the police dispatcher.
- The truth: That would obviously be a big deal, and something Zimmerman, if he was actually concerned about his safety, would say to the 911 dispatcher while he was on the phone. Yet, somehow Zimmerman never mentioned this very crucial bit of information to the dispatcher while they were actually talking.
- The lie: Zimmerman claims that Trayvon was straddling Zimmerman's chest, punching him, banging his head into the sidewalk, pinching Zimmerman's nose so he couldn't breathe, and reaching for Zimmerman's gun.
- The truth: Journalist Charles Blow wrote about how Zimmerman's description of the fight scene is particularly incredible, saying “...partly because of ... the idea that Martin, while straddling Zimmerman, would be able to see a gun that was presumably behind him, and the idea that Zimmerman would feel Martin’s hand snake across his body, pinch that hand underneath his arm and then reach for and retrieve the gun himself. If Zimmerman’s hand was free enough for such a maneuver, were his hands not also free enough to try to push Martin off, or force Martin to release his head and not bang it against the concrete, or to hit Martin back (which he never says he does during the entire encounter)? Did Zimmerman’s mixed martial arts training provide him no defensive options whatsoever? Something about this just doesn’t sound right. And, by the way, how was Zimmerman able to get around Martin’s leg, retrieve the gun and aim it at Martin’s chest so easily?”
- The lie: Zimmerman claimed that Trayvon “jumped out of bushes” and hit him, knocking him to the ground.
- The truth: There are no bushes to jump out of where Zimmerman claims he was assaulted. This is clearly evident on the video where Zimmerman walked through his version of what happened with some Sanford police.
And the one coherent thing about the different, self-contradictory lies is that they all serve to justify the murder of Trayvon Martin as “self-defense.”
Zimmerman's life aspiration is to be a cop; he took college courses to train for this, he tried to ride with the Sanford police. Zimmerman claimed in the interview with Sean Hannity that he had never heard of Florida’s infamous “stand your ground” law, and portrayed himself as unschooled in legal defenses for killing someone. Yet, repeated testimony and school records show Zimmerman was well-versed in Florida's “self-defense” law.
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