The Murder of Trayvon Martin

[maconmagnolia]

Originally Posted by Mizeree I2K

Well that's obvious. In those jurors minds they basically thought about somebody like Zimmerman protecting their neighborhood from somebody like Martin. That's all that was.

I don't think that's fair. The jurors said that they wanted to convict Zimmerman of something, but under the law, they couldn't do so.

The state overcharged the case, could not back it up, and this is the natural end result. I think that if they originally would have charged Zimmerman with manslaughter and made their case that way, he would have been convicted. Unfortunately, that isn't what happened.

[TonyB06]

Originally Posted by maconmagnolia

I don't think that's fair. The jurors said that they wanted to convict Zimmerman of something, but under the law, they couldn't do so.

The state overcharged the case, could not back it up, and this is the natural end result. I think that if they originally would have charged Zimmerman with manslaughter and made their case that way, he would have been convicted. Unfortunately, that isn't what happened.

I disagree. How did "overcharging" (by this, I'm presuming you mean murder 2) prevent jurors from convicting on the lesser included charge of manslaughter?

I thought, as did many others, manslaughter was clearly proven. Given that it was a lesser included charge, it was certainly there for the jurors to consider.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by TonyB06

I disagree. How did "overcharging" (by this, I'm presuming you mean murder 2) prevent jurors from convicting on the lesser included charge of manslaughter?

I thought, as did many others, manslaughter was clearly proven. Given that it was a lesser included charge, it was certainly there for the jurors to consider.

Manslaughter is a matter of intent, negligence, and justifiability. Even if manslaughter could be proven, manslaughter potentially carries a heavy sentence in Florida. That is why the defense and judge wanted the jury to know that manslaughter is not doing Zimmerman a favor. Manslaughter is not the lesser penalized charge in Florida that it is in some other states.

One explanation of manslaughter with a firearm:
http://www.richardhornsby.com/crimes...html#Penalties

[maconmagnolia]

Originally Posted by TonyB06

I disagree. How did "overcharging" (by this, I'm presuming you mean murder 2) prevent jurors from convicting on the lesser included charge of manslaughter?

I thought, as did many others, manslaughter was clearly proven. Given that it was a lesser included charge, it was certainly there for the jurors to consider.

I just don't think it's a very convincing argument for the state to say, "Well, here is my argument for why he should be convicted of second degree murder. Oh, and if you don't believe me, here's this lesser charge that you can convict him of."

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by maconmagnolia

I just don't think it's a very convincing argument for the state to say, "Well, here is my argument for why he should be convicted of second degree murder. Oh, and if you don't believe me, here's this lesser charge that you can convict him of."

Prosecutors do that all the time. That is one of the purposes behind multiple charges and plea bargains.

I'm all for people challenging the legal and cj system. Just be consistent.