General Briefing

More Updates in the Trayvon Martin Murder Case (3/22/12)

More things have happened that relate to this case. Here’s the latest:

Sanford Mayor Jeff Triplett has expressed doubts on how the investigation into the murder of Trayvon Martin was conducted. Sources state that the Sanford Police Department interviewed Zimmerman for five hours the night of the shooting, and again the following day at a re-enactment of the incident. Relations between Caucasians and blacks in the Sanford community were already strained, due to a 2010 incident where a black homeless man was struck unconscious by the son of a Sanford Police lieutenant. The lieutenant’s son was not charged for three weeks. [CBS News]

During the course of eight years, George Zimmerman called 911 in 46 separate incidents, which you can read here. In November 2006, Zimmerman called 911 to report that a “late model red Toyota pickup” was “driving around the neighborhood” for several minutes. In June 2009, Zimmerman called 911 to report that people were misbehaving in the community-pool area. His obsession with black males started in early 2011. On April 22, 2011, Zimmerman called to report a “black male, about 7-9 years old, four feet tall, with a skinny build (HE REPORTED A KID!!!) On August 3, 2011, Zimmerman called to report a black male who he believed was responsible in recent burglaries in his neighborhood. And, on October 1, 2011, Zimmerman reported to police that he saw two black male suspects because he “didn’t recognize them.” Zimmerman was only a member of the Neighborhood Watch since September 2011, due to the watch not existing before then. In his Neighborhood Watch training, he was instructed that “the neighborhood watch is “NOT the vigilante police.” In total, the Sanford Police was called to the community a total of 402 times in the last 13 months, with a small percentage of those calls coming from Zimmerman himself. [The Daily Beast]

Florida Governor Rick Scott appointed a new special prosecutor to investigate the Trayvon Martin case. State Attorney Angela Corey of Jacksonville will now be in charge of the investigation of the events that led to Trayvon’s murder. [The Palm Beach Post]

The full details of the 46 calls that George Zimmerman made to Sanford Police 911 between August 2004 and February 26, 2012 have been released by the Sanford Police Department. You can see the full list here, and an explanation of the Sanford Police codes is here. [The Daily Beast]

Skittles, owned by the Wm. Wrigley Company Inc., issues a statement regarding the tragedy. It reads, “We are deeply saddened by the news of Trayvon Martin’s death and express our sincere condolences to his family and friends. We also respect their privacy and feel it inappropriate to get involved or comment further as we would never wish for our actions to be perceived as an attempt of commercial gain following this tragedy.” To send a pack of Skittles in protest of the Sanford Police Department’s handling of the tragedy: 815 West 13th Street, Sanford, Florida 32771 Phone: 407-688-5070, Fax: 407-688-5071. [News One]

Trayvon’s parents say that the stepping aside of Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee is not enough. His parents want an arrest, a conviction, and a sentencing of George Zimmerman. [The Atlanta Journal-Constitution]

For more information about the case, please continue to keep posted on my blog. My blog will continuously be updated with the latest news related to the case.

-Drew, The Political Freakshow