Is Florida's "stand your ground" law the reason Zimmerman has not been arrested?

Zimmerman claims Martin knocked him down and repeatedly smacked his head against the pavement. He says his gun was exposed during the scuffle and he feared Martin would grab it, so he drew the pistol and fired. In these circumstances, a right to "stand your ground" would make no difference, since there would be no feasible way to safely escape.

Under Florida law, the crucial question is whether Zimmerman reasonably believed deadly force was necessary to prevent Martin from killing or seriously injuring him. The same defense would have been available to him under the "duty to retreat" standard that applied in public places prior to 2005—even if Zimmerman threw the first punch.

Another change to the law seems more relevant: To arrest Zimmerman, police need "probable cause" to conclude not simply that he killed someone but also that his use of force was unlawful. Yet probable cause is the same test that applies to all other crimes, and if it has not been met so far the fault probably lies in an incomplete investigation, rather than the requirement that police have a "reasonable belief" a suspect broke the law before they charge him.

Showing probable cause, of course, is not the same as proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt—something to keep in mind if, as now seems likely, George Zimmerman's claims are scrutinized by a jury.

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Detroit  Woman, 38, fatally shoots teen intruder:  "Police say a 38-year-old woman fatally shot a man who broke into her Detroit home.  Police say the woman on Thursday spotted the man, who was among a group breaking into her home. She got a gun and fired, killing a 19-year-old.  The other men fled and the homeowner was questioned by police. The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office was expected to review details of the shooting to determine whether charges would be filed."


WA:  Retired cop shoots, kills alleged burglar in his  home:  "A retired Puyallup police officer fatally shot a stranger armed with a crowbar who broke into his South Hill home Wednesday.   The homeowner was asleep when a noise woke him about 4:20 p.m. and he discovered several people in his house, in the 14300 block of 134th Avenue East.  “They kicked the door in and got in the house,” Pierce County sheriff’s spokesman Ed Troyer said. “They probably figured they were burglarizing an empty residence.”  The retired officer told deputies he opened fire because the person with the crowbar came at him. He called 911 to report the incident after the suspects – three men and one woman – fled in a maroon Chevy pickup.  Puyallup police were notified about 4:40 p.m. that a man had checked into the emergency room at Good Samaritan Hospital with a gunshot wound.  Officers quickly responded, believing he was one of the burglary suspects. The man, who has not been identified, was pronounced dead shortly after 5 p.m.  “Officers scoured the area around the hospital and located the truck in the parking garage of Good Sam,” police Capt. Dave McDonald said.  A male suspect in the truck and a female suspect who also went to the hospital were arrested."


Gun rights advocates win in Ill. court:  "The Illinois Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday to allow a challenge to Cook County, Ill.'s assault weapons ban to proceed.  The ruling reverses decisions by the lower state courts. Chicago is the county's seat. Gun rights advocates had argued the ban "violates the due process and equal protection clauses of the United States Constitution and violates the Second Amendment right to bear arms," Justice Mary Jane Theis said in her opinion. They also argued that the ban is too vague.  Under the ordinance ban, anyone "who prior to the enactment lawfully possessed assault weapons or large capacity magazines had 90 days from the effective date to surrender the weapons to the sheriff, to remove the weapons from the county or to modify the weapons to render them inoperable or no longer defined as an assault weapon."  Violations could bring a jail sentence of six months and a fine between $500 and $1,000.

Zimmerman family member calls NAACP ‘racists,’ says ‘there will be blood on your hands’ if George is hurt

In a letter obtained exclusively by The Daily Caller on Monday, a family member of George Zimmerman ripped Seminole County, Fla. NAACP president Turner Clayton for a rush to judgment in the Trayvon Martin case.

“It’s time for you to end the race issue in this matter and call for cooler heads to prevail,” the letter reads. “If something happens to George as a result of the race furor stirred up by this mischaracterization of George there will be blood on your hands as well as the rest of the racists that have rushed to judgment. You need to call off the dogs. Period. Publicly and swiftly.”

George, the letter adds, “has been called a racist and a bigot and there have been very few that have stood up for him.” The letter was addressed to Clayton at the NAACP’s national headquarters in Baltimore.

The family member, whose identity TheDC has confirmed but is withholding out of concern for the Zimmerman family’s safety, said George Zimmerman “has been found guilty” in the court of public opinion “until proven innocent,” adding that the details of what happened on Feb. 26 — the night Zimmerman shot Martin in what he claims was self-defense — “will not be disclosed until the police report is made public.”

“Regardless of this fact, George Zimmerman has been hiding for his life because of the death threats made against him by the black community … all of our family is in hiding and frankly scared by the threats,” the family member wrote in the letter dated March 26, but shared with TheDC on Monday.

The letter also described how Zimmerman was one of “very few” in Sanford, Fla., who spoke out publicly to condemn the “beating of the black homeless man Sherman Ware on December 4, 2010 by the son of a Sanford police officer.”

“Do you know the individual that stepped up when no one else in the black community would?” the family member wrote. “Do you know who spent tireless hours putting flyers on the cars of persons parked in the churches of the black community? Do you know who waited for the churchgoers to get out of church so that he could hand them fliers in an attempt to organize the black community against this horrible miscarriage of justice? Do you know who helped organize the City Hall meeting on January 8th, 2011 at Sanford City Hall??”

“That person was GEORGE ZIMMERMAN. Ironic isn’t it?”

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Many people getting tired of the media push on the Martin/Zimmerman case:  "A majority of Republicans say the media have gone overboard with their  coverage of the Trayvon Martin slaying, and 43% of whites in general say enough is enough, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.  The survey found that 56% of Republicans are fed up with the amount of coverage. By contrast, 25% of Democrats (and 33% of Democrats who identify themselves as white) surveyed say there has been too much coverage. The survey also found that 16% of blacks polled say they've had enough."


MI: Shot in air in self defense:  "A Redford Township woman accused of firing a gun in the air in downtown Birmingham claims she was only trying to defend herself.  “I did not punch a girl in the face and then shoot a gun in the air,” she said Thursday. “I had left the bar with some of my friends, and this tall girl in the middle of the street who’s really drunk is dancing and grinding against a parked car. She thought we said something to her and that’s when the whole thing started.”  What started out as a verbal argument quickly escalated into a fist fight between the two women. At that point, the Redford woman said a guy who was with the Southfield woman came over and started choking her.  “She swung on me, so I defended myself and swung back,” she said. “We’re fighting in front of my car and this guy comes over and starts choking me. My feet were off the ground and I kneed him right between the legs to get away.”  At that point she apparently reached inside her car, pulled out the .22-caliber handgun and fired one shot into the air.  “If it had just been a fight with another girl, I could deal with that,” she said. “The only reason I grabbed the gun is because the guy was choking me. All I wanted was for him to get away from me.”


WA: Shotgun chases off intruder:  "The homeowner told Bonney Lake officers he was taking a nap in his home in the 8000 block of 205th Avenue East when he heard the door bell ring just before 9:45 a.m., Green said.  He ignored the bell. The homeowner told officers he then heard what sounded like kicking at his front door, Green said.  The homeowner grabbed a shotgun and went to the front door. He opened the door and confronted the suspect.  The suspect ran to his truck and started to drive off, Green said. The homeowner told officers he fired one shot at the truck.  Officers have yet to find the truck"

More media fraud in the Martin/Zimmerman case

NBC News issued an apology Tuesday for the way it handled the broadcasting of the 911 conversation between George Zimmerman and a police dispatcher in the Trayvon Martin case.

Following reports that NBC aired audio of the call was edited in a way that implied Zimmerman was racist, the network launched an internal  investigation.

NBC's "Today" show ran the edited audio of Zimmerman's phone call to a police dispatcher, seeming to show Zimmerman saying, "This guy looks like he's up to no good … he looks black."

A transcript of the complete 911 call shows that Zimmerman said, "This guy looks like he's up to no good. Or he's on drugs or something. It's raining and he's just walking around, looking about."

The 911 officer responded saying, "OK, and this guy — is he black, white or Hispanic?"

"He looks black," Zimmerman said.

The abridged conversation between Zimmerman and the dispatcher that NBC ran on March 27 has been blasted by media watchdog groups as misleading. Critics have said the edited version was made to suggest that Zimmerman targeted Martin because he was black -- an accusation by many that is still under investigation.

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GA: Man may have killed in self-defense during robbery:  "A man who shot and killed another man Wednesday morning in Athens may have been acting in self-defense during a robbery, Athens-Clarke police said.  He told police he shot 23-year-old Travis Sankwon Callaway after Callaway pulled a gun on him outside his home at Pinehurst Apartments off Tallassee Road, according to police.  Police questioned the man after the 3 a.m. shooting and later released him.  Callaway was dead when officers arrived, police said.  Investigators found evidence in the breezeway of 120 Pinehurst Court that appears to support the man’s self-defense claim.  “He was the shooter and the victim of a robbery,” Athens-Clarke police Capt. Clarence Holeman said.  Callaway has an extensive record of felony arrests and convictions."


Va.: Suspect shot in robbery pleads guilty:  "According to court documents, on Jan 3, Blake Richardson arrived to the 7-Eleven at 3908 Atlantic Avenue on his skateboard. Richardson stood outside the store for a time before entering at 1 a.m., drawing his gun and demanding money from the clerk.  The victim retrieved his own weapon and pointed it at the suspect. Fearing his life, the clerk pulled the trigger after he says Richardson made a threatening move. The clerk was not injured and immediately called 911.  Around 1:30 a.m., a man walked into a hospital with a gunshot wound. Investigators determined that he was the same person responsible for the 7-Eleven robbery."


Federal Judge: NC can’t ban guns during emergencies:  "Now, a federal court has agreed, ruling that state law can’t make a blanket ban that keeps the plaintiffs from carrying or buying guns and ammunition during an emergency. 'While the bans imposed ... may be limited in duration, it cannot be overlooked that the statutes strip peaceable, law-abiding citizens of the right to arm themselves in defense of hearth and home, striking at the very core of the Second Amendment,' Senior U.S. District Judge Malcolm J. Howard wrote in his order."

Republican candidates refuse to take aim at US gun laws

AS REPUBLICAN presidential candidates campaigned around Wisconsin yesterday morning, a Korean man shot dead seven fellow university classmates at a religious Californian college.

But Rick Santorum, the conservative alternative to front-runner Mitt Romney in the Republican primaries, said it was not cause to reconsider US gun laws.  "This is not a firearms issue, it is a human issue," he told CNN's Piers Morgan.

He said the right to bear arms was a crucial right for Americans, and one that could allow people to protect themselves should they find themselves caught in a mass shooting.

Last night, neither the candidates nor the President, Barack Obama, had made an official statement on the shooting.

Earlier in the day Mr Santorum boasted to supporters at a bowling alley in the town of Menasha that he enjoyed an A+ rating from the National Rifle Association. (The powerful gun lobby group ranks all politicians.)

He criticised Mr Romney for once supporting some gun control regulation in Massachusetts, where he was governor.

Mr Santorum has made his support of the liberal gun laws a key part of his campaign. Last week, at a gun club in Louisiana, Mr Santorum took time to fire a few rounds from a 1911 colt when a supporter yelled out "pretend it's Obama", prompting a brief Secret Service investigation.

For his part, yesterday Mr Romney maintained his tactic of attacking Mr Obama rather than Mr Santorum, casting himself as the presumptive candidate.

The availability of handguns did not attract political attention even as the controversy over the shooting of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin by a self-proclaimed neighbourhood watch captain, George Zimmerman, threatened to overwhelm the campaign last month. Instead, most pundits focused on the so-called "stand your ground" law Mr Zimmerman is expected to rely on should he be charged over the shooting.

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AL:  Robbery victim turns tables on suspect:  "Mobile police say a robbery suspect got an unexpected surprise when his intended victim started shooting at him.  It happened around 12:45 a.m. Tuesday on Chinquapin Street in Mobile. When it was all over, the suspect was the one who ended up in the hospital. Police said an armed suspect approached the intended victim and demanded his property. The robbery suspect may have thought the victim was reaching for his wallet when, in fact, he was going after his own gun.   The suspect fled and then fired back. The intended victim wasn't hit, but a bullet did flatten one of the tires on his car.  Police said they were called to Mobile Infirmary a short time later when a man showed up with a gunshot wound to the leg. Police said he'll remain under police guard until he's released from the hospital. Then he'll be charged with robbery."


IL: Slaying may have been self-defense:  "Williams opened fire on Larry Watts, 23, and Casnova P. Hobbs, 28, as they sat in a vehicle about 11 p.m. Saturday in the 1900 block of West Garden Street. In self-defense, one of the two men returned fire, striking Williams multiple times, once in the head, Brady said. 'That's a fair way to summarize it,' Brady said. 'You have the man who was killed opening fire on the two occupants of the vehicle, and one of those men shot back and killed (Williams).'"


MA: Judge rules immigrant gun law unconstitutional:  "A federal judge has ruled that a state law barring legal immigrants from possessing handguns and large-capacity weapons is unconstitutional .... 'This case presents the question of whether lawful permanent resident aliens are among 'the people' for whom the Second Amendment the United States Constitution provides a right to bear arms,' U.S. District Judge Douglas P. Woodlock wrote in his decision. 'I conclude they are.' Under state law, legal immigrants can possess rifles and shotguns but not handguns or large-capacity weapons"

Media distortion bears fruit as Harvard academic laps it up without checking

The following paragraph was written by Nancy Gertner, a retired US District Court judge, and a professor at Harvard Law School: 

"Nothing prevents the Sanford police from critically evaluating Zimmerman’s account, as police do in so many situations, and concluding that it was contradicted by the girlfriend’s account, by 911 tapes of other bystanders shortly before the killing, that it makes no sense for Martin to start a fight since Zimmerman obviously had a gun in a holster, was substantially larger than Martin, since the encounter took place close to where Martin was staying and he was moments away from safety."


She's accepted uncritically the relevance of all those pretty media pictures showing Martin when he was about 12 years old.  She really thinks that Zimmerman was the tall one  -- when in fact Martin was 6" taller than Zimmerman.  If that's what passes for proper judicial scrutiny at Harvard,  we are all in big trouble.




Detroit teenager Shot and Killed:  "Very little media interest so far in the case of an 18-year old shot and killed by a man who claims to have acted in self-defense.  It happened a few days ago in Detroit.  At about 1:30 am, Willie White claims that an intruder broke into his home and that, fearing for his life, he  had to shoot.  Prosecutors have concluded that White acted in self-defense so there will be no criminal case.  It is too soon to tell whether White will be sued civilly for wrongful death.  Relatives of the teen might hire a lawyer to argue that White had a “duty to retreat” and that he should have tried to hide in a bedroom closet instead of using deadly force.  If that happens, White will need hire a lawyer to fight the lawsuit."

The "gun free zone" fantasy unravels yet again:  "A GUNMAN opened fire at a Christian university in California today, killing at least seven people and wounding three more, authorities said.  The shooting erupted at 10.30am at Oikos University in Oakland.  Police confirmed a suspect has been taken into custody after being found in a shopping centre carpark nearby.  Witnesses report the shooter, identified by many as One Goh, walked into a Safeway after the rampage saying he had shot several people.  Witness Angie Johnson told the San Francisco Chronicle that she saw a young woman leave the building with blood coming from her arm and crying: "I've been shot. I've been shot."   The injured woman said the shooter was a man in her nursing class who got up and shot one person at point-blank range in the chest before spraying the room with bullets, Ms Johnson said."

The Double standard faced by George Zimmerman



Shawn Tyson (above) was sentenced this week for murdering two white British tourists in Florida. No rallies against violence and no charges of racism. Tyson even referred to his victims as "crackers" so it was a clear hate crime.

Terry Moore, 32, was beaten this week by a mob of black males. Again, no rallies against racism; no public outpouring of support for the victim. Such black-on-White violence is the norm and only rarely makes it to anything but local headlines.




Blacks are indeed under attack  -- by other blacks

Larry Elder

"Blacks are under attack," said the Rev. Jesse Jackson, irresponsibly turning the Florida shooting death of an unarmed black teenager, Trayvon Martin, at the hands of Hispanic neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman into a barometer of black-white "race-relations."

President Barack Obama, three years past his inauguration as American's first black president, weighed in, too. As when he accused the Cambridge police of "acting stupidly," Obama injected race, but this time a little less directly: "If I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon."

The implication, of course, is that race undoubtedly played a role in the death of Trayvon Martin. A special prosecutor as well as a Florida grand jury will examine the case, re-interview all the witnesses and go over all the evidence. Zimmerman may well be charged with murder, and a racially motivated one at that. Or the prosecutor may find the evidence insufficient to convince a jury that Zimmerman did not act in self-defense.

No matter whether Zimmerman is charged or convicted, a tragedy occurred. But is Jesse Jackson right, that the death of Trayvon Martin suggests "blacks are under attack," presumably by racist non-blacks?

True, black men, especially young ones, stand a much greater chance of being murdered than white males. But almost all murders involve a victim and a killer of the same race. Yes, instances of black-white murder -- as, for example, when James Byrd, a black man of Jasper, Texas, was dragged to his death by three white men -- do exist. But nationally, according to the Department of Justice, 53 percent of known homicide suspects in 2010 were identified as black -- although blacks comprise only 13 percent of the population. And in murders involving a single black victim and a single offender, 90 percent of the time it is a black perpetrator who murders the black victim. Similarly, 83 percent of whites are murdered by other whites.

What happened in Sanford, Fla. -- a white person killing a black person -- is extremely infrequent, occurring in 8 percent of black homicides. In saying "blacks are under attack," Jackson paints a picture of whites targeting and hunting down black males.

Look at the 2010 stats for New York City. While blacks comprise about 25 percent of the city's population, blacks accounted for two-thirds of murder victims. For black homicide suspects arrested, 85 percent of their victims were also black.

The leading causes of death for all young men ages 15 to 29, according to a 2006 Kaiser Family Foundation study, regardless of race or ethnicity, are unintentional injury (e.g., car accident, firearm or drowning), suicide and homicide. Not for young black men. The No. 1 cause of death in this demographic is murder. The homicide death rate for young (ages 15 to 24) African American men (85 per 100,000 persons) is three times the rate for young Hispanic men (30 per 100,000 population), the population group with the next highest homicide mortality rate. The rates for young Asian and young white males are 9.8 and 5 per 100,000, respectively.

In one recent Chicago weekend, 49 people were shot, 10 fatally, including a 6-year-old black girl. Did President Obama issue a statement? Black-on-black crime, like black-on-white crime, does not fit the liberal media's narrative of the continuing problem of white racism.

How selective is the outrage about interracial crime -- when the bad guy is black?

Ken Tillery, in 2002, walked down a Jasper, Texas, road. Three men offered him a ride. But the men kidnapped Tillery, driving him to a remote location. John Perazzo of FrontPageMagazine.com describes what happened: "When the terrified Tillery jumped out of the vehicle and tried to flee, the kidnappers caught up with him, beat him and finally ran over him -- dragging him to his death beneath their car's undercarriage."

Same town, a few years after the James Byrd murder, a black-white murder in the same fashion -- by dragging a man to his death -- but no story! Why? Well, Tillery was white, and the three suspects were all black. The irony alone would, one would think, guarantee lots of coverage. But how much coverage did the case get? An online search of 557 newspapers found that 22 covered the story.

In a scene from "Menace II Society," a movie about the struggles of inner-city black youth, a tough black high school teacher advises two black male students: "Being a black man in American isn't easy. The hunt is on -- and you're the prey." We hear a police siren in the background as the teacher gives his admonition -- just in case the identity of the hunter is unclear. But reality tells a very different story, one that even Jesse Jackson once acknowledged.

In 1994, in an unguarded moment while discussing urban crime, Jackson told an interviewer he's relieved when the footsteps on the street behind him belong to white -- rather than black -- feet.

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I love my guns:  "But, you might ask, just what is it that we (who still profess it anyway) actually love about guns? Aren't they killing machines, good only for harming others? We hear that a lot. So, why do I love my guns? Let me count the ways. To start with, about 30 years ago I was attacked and would likely have died if I had not been armed."

Trayvon Martin: Latino Silence over Zimmerman Draws Fire

Note:  In the picture accompanying the story below Martin is still shown as he was when about 12 years old  -- not as the 6'3" brute that Zimmerman encountered.  The media have a lot to answer for in this story

The shooting death of unarmed African-American teenager Trayvon Martin by a Latino man in Florida has provoked a national discussion about racism, ethnicity, and racial profiling in America—with the media referring to the shooter, George Zimmerman, as a "white Latino," a term that has been greeted with derision by some.

Now critics are questioning why prominent Latino rights groups have remained on the sidelines of the discussion of race and the case.

Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh tore into the National Council of La Raza on Tuesday, criticizing the group’s president, Janet Murguia, for omitting Zimmerman’s ethnicity from her commentary on the incident.

A caller had prompted the conversation wondering why the community hasn’t stood behind Zimmerman “seeing as how he is the victim, how he was assaulted.”

But advocates within the Latino community say these remarks are divisive and take away from the real issue.

“That has come out as part of the backlash, pitting people against one another,” said Lisa Navarette, a spokeswoman for La Raza. “We want a full and thorough investigation. If findings are consistent with what is being reported in the media then everybody who has played a role, regardless of race, should be held accountable.”

Leaders in the Latino community also say that as divisive as the remarks may be, they raise a issues about the way this country thinks about ethnic groups.

“We have paradigms in this country: Initially it was just black and white,” said Navarette. “This is complicated because the media tried to put it into that paradigm but it didn’t fit.”

Tweets indicate that a number of people are paying attention to his race --and questioning what a “White Latino” is. These discussions, while valid, show how little mainstream America knows about Latinos and minorities, experts say.

“This is much more complex than simply saying this guy is Hispanic and we (Hispanics) have to defend Hispanics,” said Angelo Falcon, president of the National Institute for Latino Policy. “There is a whole question going on like, ‘Are Hispanics capable of being racist?' ‘Why are they calling him a white Hispanic?’... That shows a lack of understanding about the Latino community.”

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MS: Suspected teen robber shot:  "A robber was shot earlier Saturday evening when he held up a barber at gunpoint in Jackson.  Jackson Police were on the scene around 5:30 at Elegante Coiffures Beauty and Barber Salon on Medgar Evers near the intersection of Rutledge Avenue.  Witnesses told WLBT  that a barber stepped outside to go to his vehicle when he was suddenly approached by a person with a gun.  Police say the 17-year old took money from the barber and attempted to take his vehicle.  Another barber in the business saw the two struggling. That co-worker then retrieved a weapon and opened fire striking the suspected robber in the face. He then ran across the street and hid in the woods.  Police later took him into custody on Hollywood Street.  The 17-year-old is being charged with armed robbery of an individual.  No word on his identity or his condition. No one else was injured."


WA: A homeowner shot and killed a man who broke into the bedroom where the homeowner and his girlfriend were hiding:  "The incident started just after 11:30 p.m. Friday night in the 300 block of SE 5th St in North Bend. A couple had been sleeping when they woke up to the sound of glass breaking.  The suspect had broken the rear sliding glass door, entered the house, and then started "trashing the house." The couple, a 46-year-old man and his girlfriend,  hid in a bedroom as they  talked to  the 911 operator.  The couple told police that they could hear the suspect ransack the house.  The suspect was yelling, "Where are you?  I'm going to kill you!"  The man living at the home retrieved a handgun from his nightstand and yelled numerous times, "I have a pistol. Get out of my house!"  West said within a short time the suspect kicked the door down and at that point the homeowner fired several shots, killing the suspect.  "What's interesting in this case is that the homeowner showed incredible restraint," said Sergeant Cindi West."

Zimmerman’s Brother Comes to His Defense: ‘He Stopped Someone from Disarming Him’

Robert Zimmerman Jr. is steadfast in his defense of his brother George, insisting that he shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin to death in self-defense only because the teenager attacked him and attempted to take his gun, putting Zimmerman in mortal danger. “That’s called ‘saving your life,’” Robert Zimmerman Jr. said.

He appeared Thursday on CNN’s Piers Morgan Tonight denying that Zimmerman pulled a gun from its holster and fired, instead saying that “he stopped someone from disarming him and shooting him, he didn’t pull out a gun and shoot him. George showed tremendous restraint.”

But according to an initial police report, Zimmerman told officers arriving at the scene of the Sanford, Fla., incident that he shot Trayvon Martin. Police reported that they found Trayvon lying face down on the ground and could not revive him. Zimmerman’s father, Robert Sr., told Orlando’s WOFL-TV in a silhouetted interview that the teen attacked his son, threatening to kill him. “At some point,” Robert Sr. said, “George pulled his pistol and did what he did.” His information was based on his own conversations with his son and others, he said.

Zimmerman has claimed that Trayvon pummeled him, broke his nose and smashed his head against the ground, causing severe injuries. But a police surveillance video obtained Wednesday by ABC News, showed Zimmerman handcuffed in police custody and apparently without any of the injuries that would be consistent with a life-or-death struggle. But his brother insists that he actually was hurt and was treated at the scene.

However, a unidentified man who claimed to see the shooting told CNN that he saw the two of them fighting on the grass, and heard one of them yell for help in the darkness, then a gunshot. He then saw one figure get up, a larger figure and a boy remained face down on the ground. He said the person who got up did not appear hurt. “As far as seeing any blood, or anything else, no.”

Zimmerman has not been charged with a crime in the case. Investigators initially did not believe his story and wanted to arrest him, but were overruled by the Seminole County state attorney’s office. The case has since been assigned to Special Prosecutor Angela Corey who will decide to either bring charges, not pursue them or let a grand jury convene on April 10.

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Lawmakers push to interview ex-White House aide in 'Fast and Furious'

Two top Republican lawmakers investigating the Fast and Furious controversy are demanding the White House make a former aide available for testimony to see whether the scandal reached the upper echelons of the administration, according to a letter obtained by Fox News.

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, fired off the letter Wednesday urging the White House to make available Kevin O'Reilly, a former National Security Council staffer who is currently stationed in Iraq for the State Department.

The lawmakers are giving White House staffers the deadline of April 4 to respond, with Republican aides privately saying the back-and-forth could provoke a showdown over executive privilege if the administration tries to shield O'Reilly from talking to investigators.

Issa and Grassley wrote in the letter that O'Reilly's personal lawyer has told them that he would permit his client to speak to the lawmakers as long as the White House does not object, and they are willing to do the interview by phone to accommodate O'Reilly's work.

"To date, the White House has not complied with multiple congressional requests to interview O'Reilly," the lawmakers wrote to White House Counsel Kathryn Ruemmler. "Our staffers have had extensive discussions with lawyers in your office, who have represented that the White House does not perceive any need for us to interview O'Reilly and consequently will not make arrangements for him to speak to us."

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FL: Judge Grants Woman Immunity Under 'Stand Your Ground':  "A judge today ruled that Ernestine Broxsie was immune from prosecution under Florida's Stand Your Ground Law. 64 year old Ernestine Broxsie described that morning in November 2008. She says she asked Elbert Johnson about a missing leather jacket and he snapped.  "He was yelling and cursing and everything. He was choking me and everything," she said.  Broxsie says Johnson reached for a 22 caliber gun on the kitchen counter.  "He reached for it and I grabbed it and I just did like this ... and I closed my eyes and I just said please don't hurt me. It's alright, brother Johnson, please don't hurt me. Even so, he just slugged me from every place and I couldn't understand because I had done so much for him," Broxsie said as she shook.  When it was over, Elbert Johnson was dead on the back steps of her home on Fred George Lane and she was charged murder."


NC "emergency" restrictions disallowed:  "A federal judge has struck down a North Carolina provision that authorizes a ban on firearms and ammunition outside homes during “a declared emergency,” determining that violates the Second Amendment.   The case was brought by the SAF, Grass Roots North Carolina FFE and three individuals against Gov. Beverly Purdue and Reuben F. Young, secretary of the state’s Department of Crime Control and Public Safety.  WND reported earlier when residents of King, N.C., were startled by the banishment of firearms during a “declared snow emergency.”  North Carolina is among the states that allowed such actions. Under its statute 14-288.7, when a municipality declares a state of emergency in which “public-safety authorities are unable to … afford adequate protection for lives or property” – such as during a record snowfall – “it is unlawful for any person to transport or possess off his own premises any dangerous weapon.” 

Zimmerman's father speaks out

Confirming the police conclusions

Robert Zimmerman, father of George Zimmerman, said he decided it was time to speak out for his son, against the advice of others.   He shared with us what George said happened on the night that 17-year-old Trayvon Martin died.

"It's my understanding that Trayvon Martin got on top of him and just started beating him," the 64-year-old Robert Zimmerman said.

He said he felt his son has been portrayed in the wrong way.  He also said he and his family have received death threats and asked that we not show his face on camera.

Because there has been a lot of break-ins in the area, Robert said George thought it suspicious that someone would not be walking on the street or the sidewalk on a rainy night -- that Martin would be walking between the town homes.  He said after making those observations, his son decided to call the police.

"He called the non-emergency number first, and they asked him where he was, because he was at the rear of the town houses and there was no street sign," said Robert.

Even though a dispatcher told George Zimmerman not to follow Martin, his father said his son continued his pursuit to locate an address to give to police.

"He lost sight of the individual, he continued to walk down the same sidewalk to the next street, so he could get an address for the police," he said.

"He went to the next street, realized where he was and was walking to his vehicle. It's my understanding, at that point, Trayvon Martin walked up to him and asked him, 'Do you have a [expletive] problem?' George said, 'No, I don't have a problem,' and started to reach for his cell phone...  at that point, he (Martin) was punching him in the nose, his nose was broken and he was knocked to the concrete."

Robert said Trayvon, "continued to beat George, and at some point, George pulled his pistol and did what he did."

From the Fox interview.  Video link here




The "coon" allegation

There are millions of loud voices discussing the incident of Sanford, Florida Neighborhood Watch Captain George Zimmerman’s shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin on a chill and raining evening on February 26, 2012.

The incident has become a genuine Bonfire of the Vanities as Rev. Louis Farrakhan, Rev. Al Sharpton, and Rev. Jesse Jackson (so many revs it sounds like an engine starting!) are campaigning for “Justice for Trayvon.”

Millions have signed a petition demanding that Zimmerman be arrested.

The New Black Panther Party has issued a “dead or alive” fatwa on George Zimmerman — a Latino with a surname more common among Jews.

President Obama has said that Trayvon Martin looks like the son he would have had.

In Florida a Special Prosecutor and Grand Jury are both in the process of re-investigating the Sanford Police Department’s conclusion that Zimmerman legally shot Martin in self-defense, while Congressional and Department of Justice investigations are already making this a federal case.

And the question supercharging this shooting of a 6’3″ African-American teenager by a 5’9″ Latino-American man in his 20′s is a 911 recording in which George Zimmerman is widely reported to have muttered under his breath, “Fucking coons.”

If George Zimmerman said that, the shooting could be classified as a hate crime under federal law.

There is controversy about what George Zimmerman can be heard saying on that 911 tape. The sound quality is marginal. Some hear “Fucking coons.” Some hear, “Fucking tools.” Some hear, “Fucking punks.”

They’re all wrong.

I downloaded the 911 recording off the web, isolated the phrase, and enhanced it with Roxio.

What George Zimmerman said in rainy 63 degree February weather in Sanford Florida was, “It’s fucking cold.”

The remark is not out of context. A minute or so earlier on the 911 tape George Zimmerman tells the 911 dispatcher, “It’s raining.”

Source





Empty Holster Protest hits campus classrooms Monday:  "As in past years students who believe in concealed carry handguns on college campuses will take to their hallways and classrooms across the US wearing empty gun holsters as a means of protesting their status as disarmed potential shooting victims. The week of April 2 through 6 is Empty Holster Protest 2012, promoted by the national non-profit Students for Concealed Carry (SCC)."


ATF rank and file don’t trust top brass:  "Top leaders at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, already under fire from lawmakers in the wake of the 'Fast and Furious' debacle, also get harsh marks from the men and women who serve under them, according to an internal survey. An ATF memo obtained by FoxNews.com reveals that rank-and-file workers at the beleaguered federal agency, where whistleblowers who first alerted lawmakers to the 'gun-walking' scandal say they were threatened or even punished, don’t trust the agency’s leaders."

Some of Trayvon Martin’s Tweets That Stand Out (Language Warning)

He was not some innocent little kid.  He was a huge guy with some very antisocial attitudes


A more recent picture of him than the one you usually get shown in the media

By  John Hawkins

The mainstream media has bent over backwards to portray Trayvon Martin as a choir boy who couldn’t have possibly been at fault and George Zimmerman as a malicious racist who was bent on killing him for no reason whatsoever. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to square with the facts we’ve learned since then. That doesn’t mean George Zimmerman is now the good guy and Trayvon Martin is the bad guy or that Zimmerman shouldn’t have to go on trial; it just means the whole case is a lot more ambiguous than it appeared to be at first glance.

George Zimmerman doesn’t appear to be a racist, he MAY HAVE had good cause to shoot Trayvon Martin, and Martin is not the angel he’s being portrayed as in the press. Pointing this out isn’t a “smear campaign;” it’s journalism.

Towards that end, Trayvon Martin’s Twitter account, which was deleted after his death, no doubt because it made him look perfectly awful, has now surfaced. What follows is a more current picture of Trayvon Martin and 20 of his tweets that stuck out. Under normal circumstances, these tweets wouldn’t be all that important, but given the media narrative, which is that Martin was a harmless little cherub who was pursued and killed for no other reason than because he was black, it’s worth noting that there might be a lot more to the story.

That story starts with the name of his Twitter account, “No_Limit_N*gga” (I put an asterisk in there that’s not in the actual name to keep it from showing up in search engines). The tweets come courtesy of the Daily Caller.

Having read through all 150 pages, most of them seem to be Trayvon chatting with his friends and talking about women. The tweets and retweets don’t reference any gang activity, don’t seem to be violent, or talk up criminal activity other than drug use. On the other hand, Martin does make a number of references to drugs and he has a very misogynistic attitude, which, in all fairness, wouldn’t seem to have a lot of relevance to the confrontation between him and George Zimmerman. As to the significance of these Tweets, many of which are retweets that apparently caught Trayvon’s eye, and the picture they paint, you can decide for yourself:

    RT @ReesyyLaTootieB: Hahaha Hoe u got USED fa yo loose ass p*ssy.! Tighten up.! #Literally

    RT @fukunurhoexxx: #youthetype of b*tch that give up your p*ssy for free and think its cool #p*ssyaintfree #fb

    RT @TheSoleManSB: We in need of some trees … Wea tha weed man

    RT @MisunderstoodC_: Get high to balance out the lows

    RT @___xMaxDee: I got game for you young hoes, don’t grow to be a dumm hoe

    RT @Bombshelll_: “@La_VidaBella: I’ll beat the pu**sy up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up up”

    RT @iTeachSEXOLOGY: d*ck slipping out when you got her in doggy? Either u trying to long stroke wit a short d*ck or she need to arch tha …

    RT @Mitchell_Garcia: I’ll slap a girl if she said suck my toes wtf, she must be giving some great dome
    for some sh*t like that òÕ òÕ òÕ

    RT @ThatBitchJenny_: A f*ck n*gga is FOREVER a f*ck n*gga! Fu*ck ‘em!

    RT @iAmCartoonFYF: 6 Pound 7 Pound 8 Pound #KUSH

    RT @GrandadJFreeman: You know you high AF when you stop at a stop sign and wait for it to turn green

    U WANNA SEE SUM CASH? WELL LEMME SEE SUM ASS

    RT @KissMeEndlessly: puss ass crackas .

    RT @TheyHATEShAHeED: Its crazy how i was jus pissed off,snappin…then i smoked..now im happy:) ha

    RT @stillblazingtho: If you don’t like #weed. #YoureNotMyType

    RT @SheIs_UNdefined: & When Im On That SMOKE, Im Going Super-HAM!

    Its a new year lets make some changes…… f*ck dat wea da weedman at??

    RT @KimmyBtchhh: Some of y’all need a Blunt!

    RT @stillblazingtho: R E T W E E T If you smoke #weed.

    RT @PrettyMeStarr: White People’(s) Call Police , Black People’(s) Call There Cousin

Source.  See also here for more info on Martin drawn from social media. 

The public have been played for suckers on this story.  Its the Duke LaCrosse players and the Jared Loughner story all over again:  Leftists leaping to false conclusions and damn the evidence.  They are vicious liars.





Black vigilante gets it wrong;  No apology:  "AN ANGRY tweet by director Spike Lee has left an elderly couple in fear for their lives.  Lee, the director of Inside Man and Do the Right Thing, posted the Florida address of David and Elaine McClain in the mistaken belief it belonged to George Zimmerman, the neighbourhood watchman who killed an unarmed black teen in Miami last month.  The McClains do have a son named William George Zimmerman but he isn't the George Zimmerman, whose shooting of Trayvon Martin has divided the US.  The McClains told a news station that they had received a threatening letter addressed to Zimmerman and have since fled their home.  The incorrect address was first tweeted by an LA man, Marcus Higgins, but it went viral after Lee, who has been extremely vocal about Martin's shooting, retweeted it to his 240,000 followers.  Lee has since removed the tweet and, uncommonly for him, is keeping quiet. Instead of issuing a statement or an apology, Lee's official stance is: "No comment."


Supporters of Zimmerman fearful of speaking out:  "Trayvon Martin's supporters pack churches, swarm rallies and wear hooded sweat shirts in solidarity while friends and family of George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who shot the unarmed teen to death, remain largely out of sight. The few that have defended Zimmerman did so reluctantly, most fearing public backlash.   "The family has had death threats, the father and mother, George has had death threats. Anything related to George is a target," said Miguel Meza, who identified himself as Zimmerman's cousin.   "The media has been quick to demonize George, but Trayvon Martin was no angelic boy walking," Meza said.   Martin was at least 6-feet, several inches taller than the 5-foot-9 Zimmerman. Meza said Martin was not the child he appears to be in photos flashed across television and newspapers.  "George was in a fight for his life," Meza said.  The teenager was suspended from school three times this year."   Speaking Monday on ABC's "Good Morning America," Joe Oliver said Zimmerman is not a racist and has virtually lost his own life since the shooting."


Chicago homeowner, 80, charged in shooting of burglar:  "An 80-year-old tavern owner in Englewood believes it's "unjust" that he is facing charges after shooting a burglar, but believes he will prevail in court.  Awakened by his 75-year-old wife, Wright confronted a 19-year-old burglar who had broken through some plywood over a bathroom window in hopes of stealing liquor, according to police. Wright grabbed his 38.caliber pistol, loaded with four rounds, and shot the intruder in the leg.  The suspect was arrested -- but so was Wright. Because of prior weapons convictions, Wright was charged with unlawful use of a weapon, sparking calls by his family and neighbors for prosecutors to back down.  "If somebody breaks into a place where they are not supposed to be, I bet something will happen," Wright said, adding that he was angry about the arrest. "That's wrong."  Wright was charged with one felony count of unlawful use of a weapon after police discovered he had two prior weapons convictions from 1968 and 1994, officials said. Records show Wright also was convicted of theft in 1990. In the 1990 and 1994 cases, Wright got probation.  Neighbors held a news conference this morning to call on prosecutors to drop the charges."

New  Witness Supports Zimmerman's Self-Defense Claim

This is beginning to look more and more like another Tawana Brawley case.  We've even got Sharpie Sharpton involved again

While members of the public hold rallies to demand justice for Trayvon Martin, the 17-year-old African-American teen fatally shot last month shot by 28-year-old George Zimmerman, new details in the case have emerged that suggest Zimmerman may have fired his gun in self-defense.

Reactions to the incident range from accusations that Zimmerman, who is Hispanic and white, was motivated by racism and shot Martin without just cause, which sparked calls for his arrest and many branding him a murderer. Zimmerman, however, claims that Martin attacked him first and gave him a bloody nose, which left him with no choice but to shoot in self-defense.

Now, a new police report and a man who claims to be a witness of the incident seem to back Zimmerman's story.

"The guy on the bottom who I believe had a red sweater on was yelling to me help, help. I told him to stop and I was calling 911. And then when I got upstairs and looked down, the person that was on top beating up the other guy was the one laying in the grass. And I believe he was dead at that point," said a man identified as John on Fox News program "The O'Reilly Factor." While the information has not been confirmed, it is believed that the man in the red sweater referenced in the account was Zimmerman, which fits with the neighborhood watchman's story.

A Sanford police report also confirms that Zimmerman was found by responding officers bleeding from his head, with grass covering his back as if he had been on the ground.

At the time of the shooting, Martin was also apparently serving a suspension from a Miami-Dade County school because traces of marijuana had been found in a plastic bag in his book bag, a family spokesman admitted.

Source




FL:  Man shot dead  appears to be case of self-defense:  "A father fatally shot a man in Pompano Beach after the man threatened his family, swinging a piece of wood at his wife and kids, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said.  “At this point, all indications so far point to this man defending his family and defending himself,” BSO spokeswoman Veda Coleman-Wright said.  It happened shortly before 5:30 p.m. Sunday in the 3000 block of Northeast Second Avenue, BSO said. The wife and two children walked out the door when a stranger confronted them.  The stranger swung a piece of wood at them, BSO said. It was two and three feet long and looked like it came from furniture. Then the father and his two brothers came home. “He sees this stranger going into his yard and he has this piece of wood in his hand and he’s swinging it toward his family,” Coleman-Wright said. “His wife and children were hysterically screaming.”  Emiliano Arellano, 37, got out of the car with his handgun, which he was licensed to carry, BSO said.  “And that’s when the guy lost it, became very agitated and made aggression toward [Arellano’s] daughter,” Coleman-Wright said.  Arellano fired once, fatally hitting the man in the chest."


SC: Robbery foiled after man shot suspect:  "Officials say it began at Greentree North Apartments at about 5:15 p.m. as the suspects robbed the man of his money and jewelry. It was a violent situation in which the man was approached and struck with the butt of a gun. In the end, the attempt to make off with the loot was foiled. The victim had a gun, and he used it.  "He the (suspect) hits the victim, he turns to walk away. The victim at that time reaches into his vehicle. He has a weapon. He fires a shot at the suspect. ...We had some shots exchanged. And, the victim was able to hit the suspect," Pryor said."  Officials with Charleston County EMS said two ambulances were sent to the scene. The person transported, according to law enforcement officials, was the suspect in the robbery. He was transported to MUSC in serious condition."

Lynch law returns

This is the second source confirming that Martin was a big guy, no "kid".  Why do 10,000 other reports not give such basic facts?   Easy answer:  It might ruin a good story

I have to admit watching this “discussion” over the who, what, when, where and how of the shooting of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman with disgust.  I refrained from commenting on it when it first hit the news because I have learned enough over the years to recognize stories where one needs to let it develop a bit for all the facts to come out.

Of course that didn’t at all stop the usual suspects from pouncing on what seemed a perfect story with which they could push their favorite racial themes (Jesse Jackson’s “Blacks are under attack” for instance) and for others to involve themselves in something that they really have no business involving themselves in.

It has laid bare the polarization within this country and how extreme it has become.

The story, if you’ve taken time to research it, is nothing like the cut and dried “whitey killed a black man because he was black” meme the race baiters are pushing.   In fact, if you’ve bothered to research the story, it appears that race had little if anything to do with this tragedy.  It is not a racial issue, even if it has been portrayed as such by the Al Sharptons, Jesse Jacksons and Louis Farrakhans of this world.

George Zimmerman, if anything, appears to have been an overzealous neighborhood watch person with a history of calling in suspicious activities he saw in his neighborhood.  Treyvan Martin, who lived 250 miles away from that neighborhood, was apparently acting suspiciously (rummaging through garbage cans, etc.) when Zimmerman spotted him.  I doubt that Zimmerman cared one whit what Martin’s skin color was at the time.   Apparently somewhere during that time, a confrontation took place, a fight ensued and Zimmerman killed Martin with a shot to the chest.

A witness has come forward saying he saw Martin on top of Zimmerman punching him in the face. Martin, aged 17 and 6 foot 3, was not the innocent “child” the media has tried to portray.   He was a probably bigger than Zimmerman and was on a 10 day suspension from school.  Obviously that doesn’t justify killing him but it sheds a little different light on the situation.

I can’t get inside the heads of either of these people but is it reasonable to assume, given the situation, that Zimmerman might have feared for his life?   Possibly.  I don’t know – and neither does anyone else.

Does that justify the shooting.  Again, I don’t know.

But of course all the race pimps do. Just ask them.  And so they’ve essentially initiated a vendetta against George Zimmerman, who, by the way, isn’t white even though that assumption was immediately made by many given his name.  Zimmerman’s mother is Peruvian and of Indian stock.

An example of the thoughtless incitement that is going on can be found with none other than Spike Lee who, uninformed jerk that he is, published Zimmerman’s address on Twitter.    Numerous threats to Zimmerman have been published on Twitter as well.  The New Black Panthers have put a $10,000 bounty on Zimmerman’s head.  Louis Farrakhan tweeted that the “law of retribution may soon be applied”, a not-so-veiled threat against Zimmerman.

The irony, of course, is this is a typical lynch mob mentality being stirred up here.  These are calls for violence outside the law.

No one is claiming that George Zimmerman isn’t at fault here.  He may very well be. We don’t know yet.   That’s for a court of his peers to decide.  Certainly not a marginally informed and inflamed mob.  If something happens to Zimmerman before his day in court, you can most likely look to the digital lynch mob for the source.  I’ve always considered the racist white lynch mobs of the past to be one of the most horrific and disgusting manifestations of the racism of the past.  I find what is happening now no less horrific or disgusting.

There’s also another reason this is on the national radar.  And it has nothing to do with race.  I’ll let my favorite leftist hack columnist at the New York Times lay it out for you:

Florida’s now-infamous Stand Your Ground law, which lets you shoot someone you consider threatening without facing arrest, let alone prosecution, sounds crazy — and it is. And it’s tempting to dismiss this law as the work of ignorant yahoos. But similar laws have been pushed across the nation, not by ignorant yahoos but by big corporations.

If you are inclined to want to see guns controlled or banned and citizens required to flee any sort of confrontation vs. defending themselves, Paul Krugman is right there with you and has the goods on this now “infamous” law.

Except, as usual, it is a mish-mash of half-truths and innuendo cobbled together to make you think that corporate America is actually the villain in all of this.

We talked about this case on the podcast last night.  What is going on right now is all too predictable.  And it again points out how polarized this country is.  And it isn’t getting less polarized.

Final thought.  As I recall, President Obama was supposed to be the “post-racial” President, or that was his claim.  Yet he has inserted himself in two local incidents that I know of (the Skip Gates incident being the first) and inflamed the incidents with his remarks.  That, my friends, is not leadership.

But then, he’s not a leader, and those of us who have actually been in leadership positions in our lives have known that from the beginning.   Instead he has difficulty denying his liberal roots and not succumbing to their siren call.

He’s an agitator.  And, as usual, he’s stepped in on something he should have stayed out of and made it far worse.  Inserting himself has given impetus, cover and justification for the Frarrakhans, Lees, Jacksons, Sharptons and the New Black Panthers to do what they’re doing.  Instead of calming the waters and talking about trusting the legal system and letting it do its work, he’s done exactly the opposite.

Congrats, Mr. Prez.  If anything happens to Zimmerman, you’re on the hook too as far as I’m concerned.

Source




The latest report of the Zimmerman/Martin  confrontation

The neighborhood watch volunteer who fatally shot Trayvon Martin said the Florida teen physically attacked him and tried to get his gun, ABC News reported.

The Orlando Sentinel reported Monday authorities said on the night of the Feb. 26 incident and in subsequent meetings George Zimmerman described and re-enacted what he said happened. He told police he had followed the youth because he was behaving suspiciously but turned around after losing sight of him.

Also Monday, hundreds gathered in Sanford, Fla., for a rally in support of Martin and The Miami Herald reported school police had found women's jewelry and what they described as a "burglary tool" in Martin's backpack in October, leading to suspension from school but no arrest.

Zimmerman told authorities he was walking back to his sport utility vehicle when the 17-year-old approached him from behind. The two exchanged words, with the teen asking the Zimmerman volunteer if he had a problem and when the man replied no, allegedly said something to the effect "Well, you do now," the Sentinel said.

Zimmerman said Martin knocked him to the ground with one punch, then jumped on him and slammed his head into the sidewalk several times so hard he was bloodied and battered, the Sentinel said. He said he then shot Martin, who was unarmed, once in the chest from close range in self-defense.

ABC News reported a police source quoted Zimmerman as saying the youth had tried to get his gun.

Zimmerman received medical attention at the scene and then was taken in a police cruiser to a police station for questioning.

Authorities told the newspaper much of Zimmerman's account has been corroborated by witnesses.

Zimmerman, who is white, had told a 911 dispatcher he was following the black teen because he looked suspicious. "We don't need you to do that," the dispatcher said.

ABC News said Martin's girlfriend said in a recording it obtained that she heard him ask Zimmerman, "'Why are your following me,' and then the man asked, 'What are you doing around here?'" She said she heard the two scuffle before the line went dead.

The network said Austin Brown, 13, told investigators he saw a man matching Zimmerman's description lying on the grass moaning and crying for help just moments before he heard the fatal gunshot.

Citing a Miami-Dade Schools Police report, the Herald reported Martin was suspended from school in October after a school security employee reported finding women's jewelry and a screwdriver that the school employee characterized as a "burglary tool" in Martin's backpack. Martin claimed a friend gave him the jewelry, which turned up during a search of his backpack for a graffiti marker.

Martin was suspended for graffiti, four months before he was suspended again -- this time for possession of an empty plastic bag that contained marijuana residue. The Herald reported Monday the suspension was also for possession of a "marijuana pipe."

Source





FL: Female store owner kills robber:  "A 16-year-old boy who tried to rob a West Tampa grocery Monday morning died after the store's owner shot him, Tampa police said.  Quintavius Antonio Moore, of Tampa, was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital, where he died at about 4:30 p.m., police said.  "At this point the shooting appears to be self-defense," said Tampa police spokeswoman Irene Thomas. "The suspect did come in armed with a gun."  Moore entered Baker's Mini Mart, 2504 Armenia Ave., about 10:45 a.m. and asked the owner to make change for a bill. He returned to the store 30 minutes later armed with a handgun, police said.  Moore pointed the gun at the store's owner, Taquanda Shanti Baker, who was behind the counter, police said. Baker told investigators she pulled out her handgun and accidentally shot one round into the ground.  She fired again, hitting Moore, police said."

The character assassination of George Zimmerman begins

All of which is strictly irrelevant but it could prejudice the grand jury against him. All that matters at law is did he have reasonable grounds for what he did at the moment he fired. It seems that he did. He fired only after he was knocked down. A black teen at age 17 would be at or near full physical maturity. The media zealously avoid mentioning such basics but one source says he was in fact over 6' tall. Sadly for Zimmerman, however, he has become a political football for the Left

George Michael Zimmerman, the man at the centre of the racially- charged killing of an unarmed black teenager, is a former altar boy, insurance salesman and college student.

And another label has also stuck in the public's perception: frustrated cop wannabe.

Over the years, his scores of calls to police showed he pursued shoplifters and errant drivers with zeal, reporting pit bulls, potholes, children playing in the street, open garage doors and "suspicious" youths - usually black males - loitering in the street.

He peppered his calls with jargon familiar to police. In one case, he chased a reckless driver while calling 911 - the driver later told police he was terrified that Zimmerman was going to attack him. In another case, Zimmerman tailed a supermarket shoplifter until a police officer successfully arrested the thief.

On the night of February 26, he tailed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin through the Retreat at Twin Lakes, the gated community where Zimmerman lived with his wife, describing his every move to a dispatcher who told him he didn't need to follow the young man. A scuffle ensued and Zimmerman shot Trayvon dead. Zimmerman claims self-defence.

Dr Laurence Miller, a Palm Beach County clinical psychologist who works with local police agencies, said he believes Zimmerman likely was acting out the "whole TV cop role in his head" when he confronted Trayvon.

"A lot of people like the power and control that law enforcement officers have but with that comes a tremendous amount of responsibility," Miller said, pointing out that a police officer is the only profession that can use "coercive physical force" or lethal force to subdue a suspected criminal.

"People act like cowboys and like the power, but not the responsibility."

Trayvon's killing has sparked large rallies, worldwide press and social media attention.

Sanford's police chief and the Seminole County state attorney, lambasted for their handling of the case, have both stepped off of the investigation.

Jacksonville's state attorney will now spearhead the probe, which will likely go to a grand jury next month.

Zimmerman, 28, and his family have gone into hiding since the shooting amid reports of death threats. The latest, according to the Orlando Sentinel, a $10,000 reward for Zimmerman's capture by the fringe group New Black Panther Party.

His newly hired defence attorney, Craig Sonner, insisted on Friday that his client was not a racist.

"Let the investigators do their job and let's see what the evidence shows. My client can prove it was self-defence," Sonner told CNN, adding that Zimmerman and his wife manicured two black youths.

What is known about Zimmerman comes from public records and interviews with the few who have defended the man's reputation.

His father told the Orlando Sentinel that his son was not a racist, stressing that he grew up in a multi-ethnic family.

"Anybody who knows my son knows and routinely tells me that they don't believe one thing of what's reported in the media," Robert Zimmerman said.

Zimmerman, one of four siblings, grew up in Manassas, Virginia. His father was a former military man who raised the children in a very strict, respectful household, a neighbour recalled.

His mother, Gladys Zimmerman, was a courts employee of Peruvian descent. The family worshipped at All Saints Catholic Church, where Zimmerman served as an altar boy, neighbours said.

Kay Hall, his neighbor from across the street, said Zimmerman would often bring her dog home if he escaped from their yard, or help her family bring in groceries.

"He just a caring person, very gracious and polite," Hall said in an interview.

After he graduated from Osbourn High School in 2001 and moving to Florida with his parents, Zimmerman would still visit his older brother in Manassas and drop by the old block.

A few years back, he came by and asked George Hall, Kay's husband, to write a letter of recommendation so that he could apply to a police agency. Hall gladly obliged.

Whether Zimmerman ever actually applied to a police agency is unclear. But according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, he never applied to take the Basic Abilities Test needed to enter recruit training.

However, in December 2008, he applied for a citizens' police academy with the Seminole Sheriff's Office. In his application, Zimmerman stressed his background with the law: He wrote that his father is a retired Virginia Supreme Court magistrate judge and his mother worked as a deputy clerk of courts.

He was accepted and completed the one-night-a-week, 14-hour program.

Sheriff's spokeswoman Heather Smith stressed that the program is simply an educational tool designed to engage citizens and teach them about policing.

"It's not a training academy. Participants are not issued any type of sheriff's equipment or deputisation," Smith said.

His prior contacts with the law would have given police agencies pause.

In 2005, according to an arrest report, a state agent arrested Zimmerman for battery on a law enforcement officer and obstructing justice. According to the report, agents with Florida's Alcohol Beverage and Tobacco division were arresting several employees near the University of Central Florida.

Agent Paul Fleishman wrote that Zimmerman walked up to a friend under arrest and began chatting, refusing to leave. Zimmerman cursed him, Fleishman wrote, before pushing him and causing a "short struggle."

The charge was later dropped when Zimmerman entered a "pre-trial diversion" program, which is not unusual for first-time offenders. The program usually entails paying fines and taking classes for anger management.

Zimmerman - in applying to enter the citizens' police academy - later disputed the official version of the event, insisting that the agent never identified himself. "I hold law enforcement officers in the highest regaurd (sic) as I hope to one day become. I would never have touched a police officer," Zimmerman wrote.

Before the case was resolved, he was also involved in a domestic dispute with his ex-fiancee, hair salon employee Veronica Zauzo.

Zauzo claimed Zimmerman was trolling her neighborhood to check on her. At her apartment, they spoke for about an hour when she asked him to leave. He asked for some photos and paperwork and she refused.

A pushing match ensued and her dog jumped up and bit him on the cheek, Zauzo claimed. Zimmerman, in a petition filed the next day, painted her as the aggressor, wanting him to stay the night.

"She accused me of going to another woman's house or going to party," wrote Zimmerman, who said Zauzo slapped, clawed and choked him.

In their petitions, both included previous allegations of violence. In the end, an Orange County circuit judge ordered them to stay away from each other for more than a year, according to court records. No charges were filed.

Source




La.: Man is shot and killed attempting robbery: "A man who was shot Saturday night and found lying in his car was gunned down while trying to rob someone, police said Sunday. Officers found Charles “Wayne” Alexander, 22, 4633 Wells St., about 8:15 p.m. Saturday, lying face down in his vehicle near 2360 Balis Drive, police spokesman Cpl. Tommy Stubbs said in a news release. Alexander died at a hospital. A short time later, another man contacted police detectives to say that he shot someone on Balis Drive after that person tried to rob him, Stubbs’ release says. That man surrendered to police, Stubbs said. After investigating, detectives determined that Alexander had tried an armed robbery when his would-be victim shot and killed him, the release says. No charges have been filed"

A code that could have saved a life

By JESSE WASHINGTON

I thought my son would be much older before I had to tell him about the Black Male Code. He's only 12, still sleeping with stuffed animals, still afraid of the dark. But after the Trayvon Martin tragedy, I needed to explain to my child that soon people might be afraid of him.

I turned off the radio and told my son about the rules he needs to follow to avoid becoming another Trayvon Martin — a black male who Zimmerman assumed was "suspicious" and "up to no good."

As I explained it, the Code goes like this:

Always pay close attention to your surroundings, son, especially if you are in an affluent neighborhood where black folks are few. Understand that even though you are not a criminal, some people might assume you are, especially if you are wearing certain clothes.

Never argue with police, but protect your dignity and take pride in humility. When confronted by someone with a badge or a gun, do not flee, fight, or put your hands anywhere other than up.

Please don't assume, son, that all white people view you as a threat. America is better than that. Suspicion and bitterness can imprison you. But as a black male, you must go above and beyond to show strangers what type of person you really are.

I was far from alone in laying out these instructions. Across the country this week, parents were talking to their children, especially their black sons, about the Code. It's a talk the black community has passed down for generations, an evolving oral tradition from the days when an errant remark could easily cost black people their job, their freedom, or sometimes their life.

After Trayvon Martin was killed, Al Dotson Jr., a lawyer in Miami and chairman of the 100 Black Men of America organization, told his 14-year-old son that he should always be aware of his surroundings, and of the fact that people might view him differently "because he's blessed to be an African-American."

"It requires a sixth sense that not everyone needs to have," Dotson said.

Dotson, 51, remembers receiving his own instructions as a youth, and hearing those instructions evolve over time.

His grandparents told Dotson that when dealing with authority figures, make it clear you are no threat at all — an attitude verging on submissive. Later, Dotson's parents told him to respond with respect and not be combative.

Today, Dotson tells his children that they should always be respectful, but should not tolerate being disrespected — which would have been recklessly bold in his grandparents' era.

More here




WI: Man shot by homeowner while hiding from police: "After first checking that the front door was locked, he went out through the kitchen to the rear porch, or three-season room. The kitchen door swung open into the porch toward the right. Morrison was also on the right side of the porch, crouching between a refrigerator and a dresser. Friends said he had gone there to hide from police, not to go farther into Kind's house. Kind said he did not notice anyone at first, but as he took a couple steps toward the door to the exterior he noticed someone stand up in the dark. Kind told police he thought he said something like "Who are you," or "What are you doing," and then fired a single shot after the person raised a hand and took a step forward. When police arrived, they found Morrison still crouched between the dresser and refrigerator, but found a bullet hole in the wall 49 inches from the floor. Morrison had been shot through the heart and lung. Bensen also concluded that the late hour, the darkness, the expectation that the intruder had broken in through a locked door, the close quarters of the porch, and the fact that his wife and children were in the home all supported the castle doctrine's presumption that Kind acted reasonably in using deadly force."


Mass.: Husband loses in shootout: "A local resident has been shot dead by his estranged wife, who was wounded in an exchange of gunfire on Martha's Vineyard. Kenneth Bloomquist, 64, was killed, and his wife, Cynthia Bloomquist, 63, is hospitalized from gunshot wounds, police said, following the shootings on Friday morning at the couple's vacation home on the island. The violence erupted shortly before 8 a.m., when the man apparently broke into the West Tisbury home and shot his wife, police said. The wife called 911 and the island's police tactical response team found her in an upstairs bedroom with gunshot wounds to her torso, police said. Her husband was also found upstairs, but was already dead of apparent gunshot wounds, they said. Cynthia Bloomquist later underwent surgery at Martha's Vineyard Hospital, where she was in stable condition, a hospital spokeswoman said. [The man's mother] said her son had moved out of the couple's home to a home she used to live in Rehoboth, but that he was hoping to reunite with his wife even though she had a new boyfriend that worsened their relationship.

He may be politically incorrect but Geraldo Rivera (below) has a point

“Take that thing off,” I snarled at my dashing, dark, handsome then late-teenage son. Named for his grandfather, in those not so long ago days Cruz styled himself a ghetto gangster, fashion-wise. His baseball cap worn askew, the rim almost unbent, I worried that gravity would leave his brown behind, bare-assed when his low-slung pants completed their descent to his knees just a step or bump away. “And pick up your pants,” I often added as he walked out the door.

Let me leave the issue of low-slung pants for another day; except to say that any kid who looks for a job similarly dressed is not seriously looking for a job, unless it is as a bank robber or pimp. Jay-Z, Eminem and the tiny handful of others aside, as President Obama wisely once said, “Maybe you’re the next Lil Wayne, but probably not.”

It was a refreshing moment when the leader of the political party that sometimes revels in victimization spoke the plain truth. Most success is not flashy. It requires heavy lifting and an education. It also demands personal responsibility because regardless of the bad hand poor folk are dealt; they must do the best they can to provide for themselves and their families.

Posing like a hip hop mogul when the holes in your pants are real is ultimately self-defeating. But leave the subject of self-destructive pretense for another time, let’s talk hoodies.

His hoodie killed Trayvon Martin as surely as George Zimmerman did.

Remember when my friend and colleague the estimable Juan Williams got fired from NPR for saying that Muslims formally garbed freaked him out at airports? Juan is among America's sharpest commentators. He wasn't justifying his reaction, he was copping to it. Maybe shock therapy or a semester of sensitivity training could change it, otherwise It is what it is.

No one black, brown or white can honestly tell me that seeing a kid of color with a hood pulled over his head doesn’t generate a certain reaction, sometimes scorn, often menace.

When you see that kid coming your way, unless you specifically recognize him you are thinking ghetto or ghetto wannabe high-style or low-brow wise-ass. Pedestrians cross the street to avoid black or brown hoodie wearers coming their way.

Because this is a teachable moment let me speak plainly.

Whatever Reverends Sharpton and Jackson say in Florida Friday, after listening to the 911 tapes and hearing the witness’ testimonials, I believe Trayvon Martin would be alive today but for his hoodie.

I want the feds to thoroughly investigate and prosecute vigorously if the evidence warrants. But understanding the wrath currently focused on George Zimmerman and the police chief and the town council and the gun sellers and everyone else, I am begging parents of kids in Trayvon’s vulnerable demographic to heed my politically incorrect approach to this story.

If you dress like a hoodlum eventually some schmuck is going to take you at your word.

Remember Elvis’ ‘In the ghetto’? or that old Johnny Cash song about not taking ‘your guns to town son, leave your guns at home Bill, don’t take your guns to town?’

The kid in the both songs dies in totally predictable gun fights. Trayvon was unarmed save his box of skittles. But his hoodie gave his assailant cause to think him the enemy.

Maybe his specific encounter with an over-zealous, gun-toting, blood-lusting neighborhood-watch captain was less predictable than usual, but not by much.

I am begging parents to unbait the trap. Don’t let your child provoke madness. Agonize all you want about the unfairness of stereotypes. Argue how it amounts to a million, million little cuts of racial profiling. Work to change the world. Rail against the inequities of life; but don’t let your child go out into the hard cruel world wearing a costume that is really a sign that says ‘shoot me.’

‘And as his mama cries,’ sang Elvis.

Source





Retired Detroit Officer Fataly Shot Armed Robber: "It was a slow, sleepy Friday morning at 9:00 a.m. at the Dollar General on East Lafayette in Detroit. Two guys walked into the store. One of them had a gun. They forced a female employee to give them a bag of cash, but the security guard at the store is a retired Detroit police officer. He worked in the homicide division. He said what's the deal. Investigators say one of the bad guys with the gun pointed it at the retired officer, but in one, swift move he pulled his gun and shot the armed robber in the face. EMS responded. The armed robber shot once in the face was rushed to Detroit Receiving Hospital. He was dead on arrival. The partner of the armed robber ran with a bag of cash. He dropped that bag in the parking lot. All of the money was recovered. The second suspect escaped"


Man shoots crazy mother: "A hint of a smile -- subtle but there -- crossed Adam Raszynski's face Friday evening as he left a Boulder County courtroom just minutes after a jury found him not guilty of murdering his mother. After spending more than a year behind bars on a charge of second-degree murder in the brutal Feb. 23, 2011, death of 60-year-old Rita Redford in her Lafayette townhome, Raszynski is now a free man. Redford shot her son five times with a .22-caliber Beretta handgun just moments before her death. His lawyers maintained throughout the weeklong trial that their client, injured and bleeding, did what he needed to do to eliminate the threat to his life at that moment."


French gun controls didn't work either: " France asks itself whether it could have done more to prevent Islamist gunman Mohamed Merah shooting dead seven people in a killing spree that shook the nation, there is one question that refuses to go away: how did he obtain so many guns. The size and nature of the arsenal amassed by Merah - who stockpiled at least eight guns including a Kalashnikov assault rifle and an Uzi machine pistol - has focused attention on the easy availability of illegal weapons in France and their growing use in ultra-violent crimes. Just weeks after France tightened gun laws which were already among the strictest in the world, the issue has blown into the political debate ahead of an April-May presidential election."

Zimmerman was knocked down before he fired

Which gives very good grounds for a self-defense plea. Whether he should have approached Martin in the first place is another matter but that does not affect the fact that he had a reasonable apprehension of being in great danger when he fired. Clearly, if the black teen had kept his hands to himself, he would be alive today.

An interesting wrinkle in the case is the common Leftist claim that only whites can be racist. Zimmerman is clearly Hispanic.



So the racism claims being hurled about would seem undermined by that. He could presumably get some Leftist nut to argue that he could not be racist

No one disputes that Zimmerman called police from his SUV, then left it and encountered Trayvon on foot as the teenager returned from a 7-Eleven candy run.

Before an officer arrived, Trayvon and Zimmerman got into a fight, according to police, and witnesses heard one or both calling for help, and Zimmerman shot Trayvon once with a 9 mm handgun.

Zimmerman told police he acted in self-defense. Police found blood on his face and the back of his head as well as grass on the back of his shirt.

That jibes with what Cheryl Brown's teenage son witnessed while walking his dog that night. Thirteen-year-old Austin stepped out his front door and heard people fighting, he told the Orlando Sentinel on Thursday.

"I heard screaming and crying for help," he said. "I heard, 'Help me.' "

It was dark, and the boy did not see how the fight started, in fact, he only saw one person, a man in a red shirt — Zimmerman — who was on the ground.

The boy said he is not sure who called for help. After a moment, his dog escaped, and he turned to catch it and a few seconds later heard a gunshot, he said.

"When I heard the shot, the screaming stopped," he said.

He then rushed inside and told his sister to call police.

Police on Tuesday turned the case over to the State Attorney's Office, saying they did not have evidence to justify George Zimmerman's arrest on a charge of manslaughter.

More here




MI: Victim shoots at suspects: "Police say one suspect got the homeowner to come into his front yard while two more entered the home through the back door. When the homeowner became suspicious of the suspect, he went back inside and interrupted the attempted burglary in progress. All the suspects fled as the homeowner got a hand gun. As the suspects were fleeing in a minivan the victim fired one shot, hitting the van in the driver's side fender."


TX: Armed Customer Chases Pawn Shop Thief: "Police are searching for the man who they say tried to rob a First Cash Pawn yesterday afternoon. The suspect was chased out of the store by employees and a customer with a licensed, concealed handgun. The robbery happened just after 6 p.m. Wednesday, when a man in his 20's asked to get a closer look at a $1,200 necklace. He snatched the jewelry from the clerk and ran out of the business. It was not a clean getaway as the suspect smacked his face on a glass door while running. When the suspect got to his car parked down the street, he reached for something underneath the driver's seat, and that's when the customer pulled out a handgun. No shots were fired. Instead a struggle started with the thief who decided to drop the chain and ran into the neighborhood. Officers know who the suspect is, but are not releasing his name."


SC: Self defense claim succeeds on appeal: "A jury acquitted Justin McManus, 26, of voluntary manslaughter in the death of Kendrick Blakeney, 25, Wednesday evening. Chesterfield County deputies charged McManus with killing Blakeney at a home on Tiny Grove Church Road on September 21, 2005. She says her client was trying to defuse a situation between his brother and Blakeney when things got out of control. Blakeney reached for a gun and that's when McManus grabbed a gun he saw in the home and shot Blakeney eight times in self-defense, according to McNeill. McManus initially went to trial in 2006 and was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and sentenced to 35 years in prison. He filed what's called a post conviction relief, citing ineffective counseling during his trial and was granted a new one last July. It took the jury about three and a half hours to acquit McManus of voluntary manslaughter."

A safer society with guns

by Jeff Jacoby

THE COLORADO SUPREME COURT put some noses out of joint when it ruled unanimously this month that the University of Colorado's campus gun ban violated a 2003 state law that entitles residents with permits to carry concealed weapons.

One of those noses belonged to Abraham Nowels, a University of Colorado student who wrote to the Denver Post: "We're in the middle of midterms right now, and I can't think of anything I'd rather be focusing on than which of my fellow over-stressed, binge-drinking peers is carrying a concealed weapon into class with me." The Post agreed, pleading in an editorial for "legislators with enough gumption" to change the state's concealed-carry law and "give colleges the power they need to keep students safe."

To those with an emotional bias against guns, it goes without saying that more guns in private hands invariably mean more crime and violence. If the number of people carrying firearms on campus rises, then of course that campus is less safe: What could be more obvious?

But it isn't obvious at all.

While the University of Colorado spent much of the past decade resisting the state's concealed-carry law, Colorado State University complied with it. If the gun controllers are right, Colorado State should have seen a surge in crime, while its gun-banning sister institution should have been an Eden of security and lawfulness. That's not what happened. As Clayton E. Cramer and David Burnett write in a new monograph for the Cato Institute, "crime at the University of Colorado has risen 35 percent since 2004, while crime at Colorado State University has dropped 60 percent in the same time frame."

Something similar happened after the US Supreme Court's 2008 Heller decision striking down the longstanding gun ban in Washington, DC. The city's mayor predicted in dismay that "more handguns in the District of Columbia will only lead to more handgun violence," yet crime in the nation's capital plunged. Murder nose-dived to its lowest rate in half a century, falling from 186 in 2008 to 144 in 2009 to 132 in 2010 to 108 in 2011 -- a far greater decline, as economist John Lott points out, than in the rest of the country, or in cities of comparable size.

To be sure, correlation doesn't prove causation. But the experience of Colorado and DC should come as no surprise. There is by now so much evidence that higher rates of gun ownership lead to lower rates of crime that it isn't hard to fathom why fewer and fewer Americans want to ban handguns. According to Gallup, just 26 percent of the public now thinks the private possession of handguns should be illegal -- down from 60 percent half a century ago. Roughly 1 of every 4 Americans reports keeping a gun to protect themselves or their homes. Having a gun makes many people -- for good reason -- feel safer.

How often firearms are used defensively is a much-debated question in American criminology. Respected studies over the years have come up with estimates that range widely, from more than 100,000 defensive gun uses annually to as many as 2.5 million. Whatever the number is, it clearly isn't trivial. An enormous amount of death, bloodshed, and suffering is prevented in this country by ordinary citizens with firearms.

That doesn't mean terrible things can't sometimes happen when a gun is used for protection. Trayvon Martin, an Orlando teen, was shot dead last month by a Florida man who claims he was acting in self-defense. Yet the teen carried nothing more deadly than a bag of candy, and police told the gunman -- a Neighborhood Watch patrol member -- not to follow him.

Such tragic tales inevitably draw the spotlight. Far more common, but far less likely to be played up, are cases where guns are used to scare off, resist, or thwart a genuinely dangerous criminal. For their Cato paper, Cramer and Burnett assembled nearly 5,000 news stories reported by the media between 2003 and 2011. Their catalogue includes instances of armed customers preventing a store from being robbed, of victims fighting off would-be rapists, of senior citizens defending against a home invader, of attempted carjackings foiled because the driver had a gun -- even of self-defense against deadly animals.

Of course, most defensive gun uses never make the news at all. As Cramer and Burnett observe, "Man Scares Away Burglar, No Shots Fired," is not a very compelling headline.

But with or without headlines, millions of Americans grasp instinctively that guns make us safer. For when honest citizens carry weapons, criminals are less likely to attack -- and those who do are more likely to fail.

Source




KY: 78-year-old homeowner shoots attackers: "It was still dark, before 4 a.m. Monday, but Jack Thompson, 78, was able to make out two figures in the night. It was noise outside that had woken him up and the sight confirmed his fears. ... there was a noise he described as a 'thud.' The two men had kicked in the door of his Brewers-area home and one was charging up the stairs to the Thompson's bedroom. 'He knew where he was going. He headed for me. He knew where I slept,' he said of the possibility the intruders had previously cased his house. The blood spattered on the tan walls upstairs tell the story of what happened next. 'I think I fired three rounds.'"


Neb. homeowner Fires Gun To Scare Intruder: "An elderly man fired his gun to scare off an intruder who broke down his door, helping police catch a wanted man. The homeowner told KETV NewsWatch 7 that a man was hitting and kicking his door for 10 minutes before the shot was fired. He said he was woken up by yelling outside his house near 36th Street and Grand Avenue about 3:30 a.m. Wednesday. The homeowner said he fired a shot when his door was kicked open, just as police were pulling up. Neighbors said they had the man in custody within seconds."


NY: Indiana man who tried to check gun at NYC landmark takes no-jail plea deal: "An Indiana jewelry dealer arrested after trying to check his gun at the Empire State Building took a plea deal Tuesday that will spare him jail time in a case that got attention from gun-rights advocates, veterans and a former governor. Ryan Jerome, who said he had tried to act responsibly but misinterpreted New York’s stringent gun laws, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor weapon-possession charge. The former Marine from South Bend, Ind., will have to complete 10 hours of community service and pay a $1,000 fine."