Yesterday State Attorney Angela Corey, the special prosecutor in the Trayvon Martin case announced that  Florida is charging George Zimmerman with second degree murder in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.  This news came as a shock to me because I was sure that Zimmerman was facing involuntary manslaughter charges. There is still a high chance that Zimmerman will not get convicted of second degree murder.  The Sanford Police Department  failed to collect vital evidence during the first stages of the investigation which may inevitably help George Zimmerman in the end.  

Where are the photographs of Zimmerman’s head injuries? Why wasn’t he taken to the hospital for his broken nose? Was there ballistics taken at the scene of the crime? Was Zimmerman standing over Trayvon Martin when the gun went off or vice versa?  Perhaps all this information is already in evidence and has not been revealed to the public.  Mark O’Mara , who is a very seasoned criminal defense attorney, will exploit all the flaws of the case to create enough reasonable doubt in the minds of the jury. The burden of proof is on the prosecutor. If they can’t prove beyond a reasonable doubt that  Zimmerman is guilty of second degree murder then the jury must give a not guilty verdict.

People invested in the case are declaring that Trayvon has received justice when the fight is just beginning. Let me emphasize that there is still a very strong possibility that Zimmerman will walk.  His father is a retired judge and mother a court clerk. Clearly they have a lot of legal and political clout in their local community. I believe their influence is the reason Zimmerman has gotten nothing more than a slap on the hand for his past violent behavior.  He attacked an officer and has a history of domestic violence.  In my eyes, Zimmerman lacks impulse control and is very dangerous. If he actually punished for his past violent behavior, Trayvon Martin would still be alive. Someone like Zimmerman should not have a concealed weapons permit.  He lacks the temperament to carry a gun.

Legal battles are long drawn out processes. Everything is under scrutiny especially since Trayvon Martin’s death has become a high-profile case. Despite my personal feelings about Zimmerman’s actions that night, he deserves his day in court and hopefully the evidence reveals that truth of what happened that night.  George Zimmerman must account for his actions in the court of law.   Trayvon Martin’s parents need to know what happened the night of their son’s death.  We need the facts instead of hearsay.

Now that George Zimmerman will to go trial, everyone directly involved needs to stop talking to the media.  Trayvon Martin’s mother Sybrina Fulton made ignorant statements on NBC’s Today Show stating that she believes her son’s death was an accident. 

She continued to make foolish remarks stating that she just wanted an arrest, nothing more, nothing less.  She also stated ”I believe it was an accident. I believe that it just got out of control and he couldn’t turn the clock back…” Well any reasonable person would infer that Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman were fighting,  Zimmerman felt that his life was at risk, and shot Trayvon Martin in self-defense. If that is that case then George Zimmerman acted in self-defense and was within the confines of the law.

There is a reason grieving and emotional distraught people should not speak to the media. If Zimmerman murdered my child, I want more than just an arrest! I want that person to go to prison for the rest of their life or get the death penalty. I would not say anything to the media that would jeopardize my son or daughter receiving justice.  As one of my friends noted, if Sybrina Fulton only wanted an arrest, why did she spend all that time campaigning to bring attention to her son’s murder? Does she realize that Zimmerman’s defense will use her statement to create reasonable doubt in the minds of the jury?  IF the victim’s own mother believes Trayvon’s death was an accident, why is the case going to trial? Hopefully Trayvon Martin’s family uses more wisdom when they speak to the media about their son’s case.

(Note that Sybrina has clarified her response made on the Today Show: “Earlier today, I made a comment to the media that was later mischaracterized. When I referenced the word ‘accident’ today with regard to Trayvon’s death, in NO way did I mean the shooting was an accident. We believe that George Zimmerman stalked my son and murdered him in cold blood. The ‘accident’ I was referring to was the fact that George Zimmerman and my son ever crossed paths. It was an accidental encounter. If George Zimmerman hadn’t gotten out of his vehicle, this entire incident would have been avoided. My son was profiled, followed and murdered by George Zimmerman, and there was nothing accidental about that.” Read more: http://globalgrind.com/news/sybrina-fulton-clarifies-today-show-statement-details#ixzz1rqj7lGni)

The media has managed to convoluted the case and used Trayvon Martin’s murder to further push political agendas of the Right and Left. The case has caused divisiveness and uncovered the underline racial hatred that still exist in our country. Instead of coming together to have an honest discussion about race relations and work towards practical solutions, people are using the Trayvon Martin  case to inflame the emotions of everyone.  There have been talks of riots and violent retaliation if Zimmerman isn’t charged and convicted. White Supremacist groups are using the Trayvon Martin case to come out and spread their ideological hatred.  There is a rage that simmer beneath the surface because disenfranchised groups want the inhuman treatment to stop.  The privileged members of our society refuse to acknowledge that their station in life may have come at the cost of exploiting others.

Some Blacks are running around looking foolish wearing hoodies and skittles but fail to do anything to create real  changes within our communities.  There are thousands of Trayvon Martins that rarely get any buzz in the media. While it is easy to mobilize around racism, we also have to hold ourselves accountable and realize that a Black person’s biggest threat to their safety is another Black person.  As a Black woman, a Black man poses more of a risk to my safety than anyone else. The police annoy me at times but my personal experience is that they have been tremendously helpful in my time of need. I’m not anti-cop but, just anti-assholes who abuse their power and hurt others.  We need to fight racism concurrently with Black self-hate.  When Black people unite, we can do a more effective job fighting systematic and institutional racism.