The George Zimmerman murder of 16-year-old Trayvon Martin trial verdict has prompted many including me to ask many questions as to the fairness of the trial. Some of us were glued to the television throughout the trial and were stunned (infuriated) when the verdict of “not guilty” was read. Then we were outraged to learn that the judge did not allow the trial lawyers to pursue racism among other things as a motive for the murder when in fact the evidence clearly pointed to that being potentially the major cause.
There will be a lot questions that need answers. And the only way to get answers will be through a (FBI) federal investigation and prosecution. Will a federal trial be able to prove that the murder was a hate crime? Will the federal prosecutors, if the U.S. Department of Justice decides to conduct an investigation, be able to overcome the hindrance of double jeopardy and find new evidence to prosecute? Will federal trial attorneys be able to show “preponderance of evidence” as compared to “beyond reasonable doubt” as was required in the Zimmerman trial? This was the case in the O.J. Simpson murder trial where O.J. Simpson was found not guilty in state court and then guilty in federal court. The same thing happened in the Rodney King case where the Los Angeles police were acquitted in state court and found guilty in federal court. The federal investigation will have more discretions than the state had in that they can compel Mr. Zimmerman to testify. The federal investigation, for instance, can dwell into such matters as why Zimmerman had made 46 calls to the police prior to this case to alert the police regarding potential wrong doing, all of which involved black people.
There are those, especially in the media, that are quick to say that there should have never been a trial and blame people like the Reverend Al Sharpton and President Obama for injecting race into the picture. Sharpton for his covering of the tragedy and Obama for saying to the Martin family that he could see himself in their shoes. The day after the verdict Ann Coulter of Fox News had the gall to blame Obama for dividing the country with his remarks.
This morning National Urban League President Mark Morial and the NAACP President appeared on MSNBC and encouraged the country to express themselves regarding the trial’s verdict, its fairness but to do it in a responsive and disciplined manner. What would you want for LULAC and National Council of La Raza to have done had Tayvon Martin been Hispanic? Obviously, to speak out and continue to pursue justice! Especially in view of the fact that the jury was all non-Hispanic, race not pursued as a cause, no arrest was made until 45 days after murder but only after pressure was put on by demonstrations, Trayvon Martin had no weapon, and he was only 16 years old and not doing anything to provoke Mr. Zimmerman, a police department with no minorities and the state prosecutors all white.
I would like to encourage those of you that have an interest in matters such as this to express your thoughts in this publication. And I would like to thank the publisher for allowing us to do so.
Richard Sambrano
LULAC District III Civil Rights Coordinator
There will be a lot questions that need answers. And the only way to get answers will be through a (FBI) federal investigation and prosecution. Will a federal trial be able to prove that the murder was a hate crime? Will the federal prosecutors, if the U.S. Department of Justice decides to conduct an investigation, be able to overcome the hindrance of double jeopardy and find new evidence to prosecute? Will federal trial attorneys be able to show “preponderance of evidence” as compared to “beyond reasonable doubt” as was required in the Zimmerman trial? This was the case in the O.J. Simpson murder trial where O.J. Simpson was found not guilty in state court and then guilty in federal court. The same thing happened in the Rodney King case where the Los Angeles police were acquitted in state court and found guilty in federal court. The federal investigation will have more discretions than the state had in that they can compel Mr. Zimmerman to testify. The federal investigation, for instance, can dwell into such matters as why Zimmerman had made 46 calls to the police prior to this case to alert the police regarding potential wrong doing, all of which involved black people.
There are those, especially in the media, that are quick to say that there should have never been a trial and blame people like the Reverend Al Sharpton and President Obama for injecting race into the picture. Sharpton for his covering of the tragedy and Obama for saying to the Martin family that he could see himself in their shoes. The day after the verdict Ann Coulter of Fox News had the gall to blame Obama for dividing the country with his remarks.
This morning National Urban League President Mark Morial and the NAACP President appeared on MSNBC and encouraged the country to express themselves regarding the trial’s verdict, its fairness but to do it in a responsive and disciplined manner. What would you want for LULAC and National Council of La Raza to have done had Tayvon Martin been Hispanic? Obviously, to speak out and continue to pursue justice! Especially in view of the fact that the jury was all non-Hispanic, race not pursued as a cause, no arrest was made until 45 days after murder but only after pressure was put on by demonstrations, Trayvon Martin had no weapon, and he was only 16 years old and not doing anything to provoke Mr. Zimmerman, a police department with no minorities and the state prosecutors all white.
I would like to encourage those of you that have an interest in matters such as this to express your thoughts in this publication. And I would like to thank the publisher for allowing us to do so.
Richard Sambrano
LULAC District III Civil Rights Coordinator
