What Is The Topic Selection George Zimmerman Case

Topic Selection: George Zimmerman Case

This case is about the death of Trayvon Martin after an encounter with George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer. Trayvon had gone to a 7-Eleven, and that was when Zimmerman saw him and called the police, stating that he was "a real suspicious guy" and that the man with a gray hoodie was watching the houses and staring at him (Zimmerman). In that same phone call, he stated, "These assholes, they always get away," after the dispatcher on the call said there was an officer on their way (George Zimmerman trial). Zimmerman continued to follow Martin regardless of the dispatcher's suggestion not to do so. Then the call ends. On the other hand, Martin was on the phone with one of his friends named Rachel

There were different stories about the encounter; according to Zimmerman, Trayvon was the one that attacked him after he was returning to his car. Trayvon punched him in the nose, and he yelled for help, and it got to the point where Zimmerman felt he could not breathe; however, Jeantel stated Trayvon was the one yelling for Zimmerman to get off before the call ended. During the altercation, Zimmerman thought Trayvon was going for his firearm, so he "grabbed it immediately," saying, "I just pulled my firearm and shot him" (George Zimmerman trial). This case was tried as self-defense, and the jury found Zimmerman "not guilty of murder or manslaughter, but the jury agreed that Mr. Zimmerman could have been justified in shooting Mr. Martin because he feared great bodily

This caused there to be more segregation, thus leading to more crime or more "black killing" (Peterson & Krivo, 1993). I also found an article that stated Zimmerman apologized to Trayvon’s parents, saying he did not know if he was armed or not, as well as not knowing he was a kid (McCann, 2014). This just goes to show that this issue matters because without knowing who this person is, people can assume they are dangerous based on their race. He might have suspected Trayvon was a criminal because he looked suspicious, but there was no probable cause that he committed a crime; therefore, Zimmerman should not have followed him, which is unjustifiable. Then there is the case of the police, who just automatically believed Zimmerman without verifying that he was dangerous or engaging in illicit behavior. The outcome of this case can lead someone to think that it is okay to make sure someone is not dangerous by following them around, and if they are armed, it is acting in self-defense to protect oneself by using violence. If it is true that Trayvon initiated the physical violence, that is also not correct, but he was the one being followed for no reason, and in no way is violence the answer. They both could have waited for law