Source: IBtimes.com
The case against George Zimmerman, the Florida man who claims he killed teenager Trayvon Martin in self defense, is sure to be one of the most defining cases of justice of our time. Although many legal analysts can see just how the Stand Your Ground law may get Zimmerman off the hook, the Orlando Sentinel has just reported that Zimmerman’s self-defense case has weakened in light of recent accounts from witnesses.
Three of the witnesses have changed their original recollections of the February night in question and a fourth witness has completely “abandoned her story.” The Sentinel described how each of the witnesses changed their accounts:
Witness 2
A young woman who lives in the Retreat at Twin Lakes community, where Trayvon was shot, was interviewed twice by Sanford police and once by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
She told authorities that she had taken out her contact lenses just before the incident. In her first recorded interview with Sanford police four days after the shooting, she told lead Investigator Chris Serino, “I saw two guys running. Couldn’t tell you who was in front, who was behind.”
She stepped away from her window, and when she looked again, she “saw a fistfight. Just fists. I don’t know who was hitting who.”
A week later, she added a detail when talking again to Serino: During the chase, the two figures had been 10 feet apart.
That all changed when she was reinterviewed March 20 by an FDLE agent. That time, she recalled catching a glimpse of just one running figure, she told FDLE Investigator John Batchelor, and she heard the person more than saw him.
“I couldn’t tell you if it was a man, a woman, a kid, black or white. I couldn’t tell you because it was dark and because I didn’t have my contacts on or glasses. … I just know I saw a person out there.”
Witness 12
A young mother who is also a neighbor in the town-home community never gave a recorded interview to Sanford police, according to prosecution records released last week. She first sat down for an audio-recorded interview with an FDLE agent March 20, more than three weeks after the shooting.
During that session, she said she saw two people on the ground immediately after the shooting and was not sure who was on top, Zimmerman or Trayvon.
“I don’t know which one. … All I saw when they were on the ground was dark colors,” she said.
Six days later, however, she was sure: It was Zimmerman on top, she told trial prosecutor Bernie de la Rionda during a 21/2-minute recorded session.
“I know after seeing the TV of what’s happening, comparing their sizes, I think Zimmerman was definitely on top because of his size,” she said.
For witness 6, the Sentinel reported that the witness originally described a black man on top of a lighter-skinned man, throwing punches. Later, he told an agent that he wasn’t sure that Trayvon was throwing punches, as he could’ve been pinning him down to the ground.
As for witness 13, he is the one that spoke to a calm Zimmerman immediately after the shooting. He didn’t neccessarily change his story but he gave more detail as to the non-chalant attitude of Zimmerman’s demeanor following the shooting. “Zimmerman’s tone, the witness said, was “not like ‘I can’t believe I just shot someone!’ — it was more like, ‘Just tell my wife I shot somebody …,’ like it was nothing.”
Do you think these witnesses took the questioning more seriously now that the case is so high-profile or do you think they may be sympathizing with Trayvon Martin after allowing the news to penetrate?
More on Madame Noire!
- Dayummm…They Look Good For Their Age: Celebs Who Prove That Black Don’t Crack
- Let This Be A Lesson: Nas Says He Knew Marriage To Kelis Wouldn’t Work
- 7 Singers Turned Actors: Who Was a Natural On-Screen and Who Was a Hot Mess?
- Decoding Your Downstairs: 8 Things Women Need To Know About Their Va Jay Jay
- No Need To Call Tyrone: 7 Ways To Bow Out Of A Relationship Gracefully
- Madame On the Street: How Long Should You Wait to Have Sex?
- Bet You Didn’t Know: Secrets Behind the Making of “Jungle Fever”
