[See also: “I Guess Everybody Would Have Preferred George be Beaten to Death; My Son being Shot”: Video of George Zimmerman’s Father’s Exclusive Miami Herald Interview”]
George Zimmerman's father: My son is not racist, did not confront Trayvon Martin
By Rene Stutzman
March 15, 2012, 10:42 p.m. EST
Orlando Sentinel
The Sanford Neighborhood Watch volunteer who shot and killed Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teenager, did not instigate the encounter but has received death threats and moved out of his home, his father told the Orlando Sentinel on Thursday.
George Zimmerman, 28, has not been arrested, something that has put him and the Sanford Police Department at the center of a firestorm. Critics say Trayvon, who was visiting family from his home in Miami, was a victim of racial profiling.
Zimmerman's father, 64-year-old Robert Zimmerman of Lake Mary, delivered a one-page letter to the Sentinel on Thursday, saying that the depiction of his son in the media has been cruel and misleading.
George Zimmerman is Hispanic and grew up in a multiracial family, the statement says.
"He would be the last to discriminate for any reason whatsoever ...," the letter says.
"The media portrayal of George as a racist could not be further from the truth."
The letter does not provide details about what happened Feb. 26 on a walkway in the gated community where George Zimmerman lives and where Trayvon was visiting. But it does challenge one basic assumption of the family's lawyers: that Zimmerman's intent when he got out of his sport utility vehicle was to confront Trayvon after calling police to report a suspicious person.
"At no time did George follow or confront Mr. Martin. When the true details of the event became public, and I hope that will be soon," the letter said, "everyone should be outraged by the treatment of George Zimmerman in the media."
Police have released little information about what happened that night and no details about how Trayvon and Zimmerman came to be face to face.
No one disputes that Zimmerman called police from his SUV, then left it and encountered Trayvon on foot as the teenager returned from a 7-Eleven candy run.
Before an officer arrived, Trayvon and Zimmerman got into a fight, according to police, and witnesses heard one or both calling for help, and Zimmerman shot Trayvon once with a 9 mm handgun.
Zimmerman told police he acted in self-defense. Police found blood on his face and the back of his head as well as grass on the back of his shirt.
That jibes with what Cheryl Brown's teenage son witnessed while walking his dog that night. Thirteen-year-old Austin stepped out his front door and heard people fighting, he told the Orlando Sentinel on Thursday.
"I heard screaming and crying for help," he said. "I heard, 'Help me.' "
It was dark, and the boy did not see how the fight started, in fact, he only saw one person, a man in a red shirt — Zimmerman — who was on the ground.
The boy said he is not sure who called for help. After a moment, his dog escaped, and he turned to catch it and a few seconds later heard a gunshot, he said.
"When I heard the shot, the screaming stopped," he said.
He then rushed inside and told his sister to call police.
In his letter, Robert Zimmerman wrote that what happened that night was "tragic … and very sad for all concerned. The Martin family, our family and the entire community have been forever changed."
George Zimmerman has not talked publicly about what happened, his father said, because that's the advice police gave him. Both Zimmerman families have moved out of their homes, at least temporarily, Robert Zimmerman said, because they've received death threats.
Police on Tuesday turned the case over to the State Attorney's Office, saying they did not have evidence to justify George Zimmerman's arrest on a charge of manslaughter.
Prosecutors will now likely spend several weeks studying the case before making a decision on whether to charge Zimmerman.
Sanford police Chief Bill Lee Jr. told the Sentinel on Thursday night that he has invited the U.S. Department of Justice and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to review the investigation.
"It's an open book," Lee said. "If they want to look at what we did and how we did it and what information we have, they're welcome to it."
The FDLE has received a letter from the State Attorney's Office asking agents to review the case, spokeswoman Gretl Plessinger said.
Sanford police on Thursday also challenged a WFTV-Channel 9 report, in which Mary Cutcher said police largely ignored her even though she told them, "I know this was not self-defense. There was no punching, no hitting going on at the time, no wrestling."
Police said they twice tried to interview her without success, and the third time, she wrote a very short sworn statement for her roommate that was consistent with Zimmerman's account.
More than 400 people gathered Wednesday at a Sanford church, where black community leaders and Baltimore evangelist Jamal Bryant again demanded that Zimmerman be arrested.
Some of Trayvon's family members are expected to be a news conference this morning called by Orlando attorney Natalie Jackson, who is representing the family.
Another rally is scheduled for Monday outside the Seminole County Courthouse.
And a call has been issued for people to rally March 26 during the Sanford City Council meeting.
Staff writers Susan Jacobson and Jeff Weiner contributed to this report. rstutzman@tribune.com or 407-650-6394.
Statement of Robert Zimmerman, father of Neighborhood Watch volunteer:
The tragic events of February 26 are very sad for all concerned. The Martin family, our family, and the entire community have been forever changed.
The portrayal of George Zimmerman in the media, as well as the series of events that led to the tragic shooting are false and extremely misleading. Unfortunately, some individuals and organizations have used this tragedy to further their own causes and agendas.
George is a Spanish speaking minority with many black family members and friends. He would be the last to discriminate for any reason whatsoever. One black neighbor recently interviewed said she knew everything in the media was untrue and that she would trust George with her life. Another black neighbor said that George was the only one, black or white, who came and welcomed her to the community, offering any assistance he could provide. Recently, I met two black children George invited to a social event. I asked where they met George. They responded that he was their mentor. They said George visited them routinely, took them places, helped them, and taught them things and that they really loved George. The media portrayal of George as a racist could not be further from the truth.
The events of February 26 reported in the media are also totally inaccurate. Out of respect for the on-going investigation, I will not discuss specifics. However, the media reports of the events are imaginary at best. At no time did George follow or confront Mr. Martin. When the true details of the event become public, and I hope that will be soon, everyone should be outraged by the treatment of George Zimmerman in the media.
Our entire family is deeply sorry for the loss of Trayvon. We pray for the Martin family daily. We also pray that the community will grieve together and not be divided by more unwarranted hate.
The Zimmerman family will have no further contact with the media prior to the resolution of the investigation. It would be greatly appreciated if the media would respect our privacy.
[From the Trayvon Martin Hoax files:
“Sanford, Florida: Black ‘Little Boy,’Trayvon Martin 17, Beat White ‘Vigilante’ George Zimmerman Bloody; Zimmerman Shot Martin Dead; Now Black WFTV ‘Reporter,’ Daralene Jones, Black Supremacists, and White Aunt Jemima Earwitness Demand That Zimmerman be Arrested”;
“Trayvon Martin: ABC ‘News’ Gets on Bandwagon, Acting as Martin’s Family Mouthpiece; Family Lawyer Refuses to Release All Information about Teen’s Last Phone Call to Girlfriend, but Insists That It Requires That George Zimmerman be Arrested ‘Right Now’”;
“Arrest First, Investigate Later: Press Conference by Lawyer Benjamin Crump, of Trayvon Martin’s Family, Seeks Through Violation of Due Process… to Railroad George Zimmerman”;
“News Coverage of the Trayvon Martin Case Keeps Getting Worse: New York Daily News Passes Off ABC News Hearsay as ‘Interview,’ While Changing the Hearsay!”;
“USA Today: ‘In wake of black teen Trayvon Martin's death, USA is soul-searching’; McPaper Invokes Jena 6, Quotes Al Sharpton, Self-Described ‘ThugNiggaIntellectual’ Mark Neal, and Jena Attacker Theo Shaw as Moral Authorities”;
“Why the Secret ‘Interview’ with Trayvon Martin’s Secret Girlfriend is Bogus, and His Alleged Last Cell Phone Call is Insignificant”;
“Another Trayvon Martin Supporter: Florida Atlantic U. Hate Crime Attacker Jonatha Carr Had Just been Interviewed about the Jena Six/Nuremberg-Style Rally She’s been Organizing; CBS12 News Tries to Rationalize Her Crimes”;
“Trayvon Martin’s Parents Attend New York City Riot Held on Their Behalf”;
“Associated Press and Penn Live: Arrest George Zimmerman for Killing Trayvon Martin, the Law be Damned! Let Zimmerman Prove His Innocence in Court!”
“National Review ‘Conservative’ Rich Lowry Goes to Bat for Al Sharpton in Trayvon Martin Case, Ignoring or Misrepresenting Facts of the Case”;
“Trayvon Martin Case: Real Eyewitness Supports Zimmerman’s Story, as Opposed to Lynch Mob’s Fake Eyewitnesses”;
“Barack Obama: Because Trayvon Martin was Black, and Vaguely Resembled Me, ‘All of Us Have to Do Some Soul-Searching’”;
“Federale on the Trayvon Martin Hoax: National Review’s Rich Lowry and Robert VerBruggen Seek Street Cred with Black Supremacists by Sacrificing George Zimmerman; America Needs More Zimmermans, and Fewer Lowries and VerBruggens”;
“The Trayvon Martin Hoax: Business Insider Joins Mob Seeking to Lynch George Zimmerman”;
“The Trayvon Martin Hoax: Geraldo Rivera Finally Does the Right Thing!”;
“Black Supremacist Spike Lee (‘Tawana Told the Truth!’) is Trying to Get George Zimmerman Murdered, by Tweeting His Address: The Trayvon Martin Hoax”;
“Hoax Starts to Unravel: Trayvon Martin Started Fight, and was Going to Kill George Zimmerman”;
“George Zimmerman’s Lawyer and Friend Defend Him Against Trayvon Martin Hoax, While ABC News Soldiers on, Repeating Refuted Claims”;
“First Report on Trayvon Martin’s Death One Month Ago Already Included Eyewitness Description of Martin Beating George Zimmerman, and Zimmerman Yelling ‘Help Me!’”;
“George Zimmerman: Trayvon Martin was Trying to Murder Me (Orlando Sentinel)”;
“Jesse Jackson Called for Riots on Behalf of Trayvon Martin, and North Miami Beach Senior HS Students Came Through, Ransacking a Walgreen’s”;
“Another ‘Honor Student’: Trayvon Martin was a Thug, Vandal, Burglar, Pothead and/or Drug Dealer, and Had been Suspended from School at Least 3 Times”;
“The Nation of Islam’s New Black Panther Party Offers $10,000 Bounty for the Kidnapping (or Murder?) of George Zimmerman, for Shooting Trayvon Martin”;
“Walter Williams on Profiling and the Trayvon Martin Case”;
“Barack Obama’s Ally, the Genocidal Nation of Islam’s New Black Panther Party, Calls for the Murder of George Zimmerman”;
“Trayvon Martin: Racist Terrorist Rep. Bobby Rush (Race-Chicago/Black Panthers), is Thrown Off House Floor for Donning a Hoodie, and Denouncing ‘Racial Profiling’; CBS ‘News’ Soldiers on with Race Hoax”;
“Heather MacDonald Goes Halfway on the Trayvon Martin Case, Race, and the Media”;
“I Guess Everybody Would Have Preferred George be Beaten to Death; My Son being Shot”: Video of George Zimmerman’s Father’s Exclusive Miami Herald Interview”;
“Trayvon Martin FAQ”;
“Elderly Couple Terrorized by Spike Lee Hires Attorney; Lee Simulates Humility and Humanity, in Order to Avoid Losing Millions in Court”;
“Vichycon David Frum to MSM: I’ll Support Your Trayvon Martin Hoax, if You’ll Continue Supporting Me as a ‘Conservative’”;
“Cartoonist Stephanie Eisner Gets Fired for Excessive Honesty in Racial Fairy Tale Pic Depicting Trayvon Martin Hoax”;
“Petition Demands That Suppressed UT Cartoonist Stephanie Eisner, Victim of the Racist Trayvon Martin Witch Hunt, be Reinstated!”;
“Sherlock Holmes on the Curious Case of Trayvon Martin, the State of the Legal Mechanisms in ‘the Colonies,’ and the Value of Even a Corrupt Press”;
“A Washington State Reader Writes on the Trayvon Martin Hoax, a Raceless Shooter, Readers Who Do Reporters’ Work for Them, and Seattle’s Northgate Mall”;
“Relative of George Zimmerman: George Stepped Up for Black Homeless Beating Victim Sherman Ware, When the Black Community Ignored Ware, but the Same Black Community, Including Ware’s Sister, Now Denounces Him as a ‘Racist’”;
“The Orlando Sentinel Provides a Non-Explanatory Map of the Shooting of Trayvon Martin, Highly Censored Comments, and One Typical, Black Racist Post”; and
“Racist, Black L.A. Times Columnist Sandy Banks Goes to Plan B: Trayvon Martin Case ‘Transcends the issue of race.’”]
4 comments:
Well, I'm from canada so I have a sort of an outside view of this whole case. I have been a Zimmerman supporter from the start and I have been very disgusted from how the media and black community were so quick to jump on this as a racial issue when it was clear to me that Mr. Zimmerman was not racist. At first he was called white, then when they realized he was Hispanic, they media backpedaled a little but still said it was racially motivated. The black community leaders actually seemed disapointed that he was not 'whitey', but still it went on. They kept insisting that Zimmerman was racist and lied about his injuries. Then after viewing the police video showing Zmmerman, the blacks and the media were quick to jump all over it saying he wasn't hurt---but then, the video was enhanced and injuries could be clearly seen. So, with that gone from their arsenal of lies, they focused on his 2 word statement which made him sound as if he were saying 'F-n C**n'-you know what it was. Anyway, I JUST SAW ON CNN-they did a proper job cleaning up the sound bite and now he is clearly saying 'F-n COLD!!!!', just as his family had always said it was. Even the reporter said he now heard 'cold'. Zimmerman also passed a voice stress test, which is like a lie detector test but from what I understand, is actually more accurate! So what I want to know is this: When is the media going to apologize to Zimmerman??? When is the black community going to admit this was not a racial crime and apologize to Zimmerman for trying to incite violence againts him and his family. We will never see this happen. In fact, as more evidence comers out in Zimmerman's favor, the media seems to cover the story less and less, and when they do, now all of a sudden they are saying we should give Zimmerman the benefit of the doubt, whereas, 2 weeks earlier, they were outright calling him a racist murderer. As more and more evidence comes out in Zimmerman's favor, maybe people will learn that the media is not trustworthy and that they do things for ratings and political reasons. People must learn to think for themselves and not take everything they see on tv at face value.
Hi Anonymous,
I agree with your comments. It's hard to tell, but I think there are many people in the U.S. who understand (or might be beginning to understand) what happened between Zimmerman and Martin, and who are repulsed at all the false outrage. But there seem to be many people who want to see Zimmerman railroaded, including much of this nation's media and its (so-called) president.
It's hard to tell if there is hope for George Zimmerman to avoid unjust imprisonment or revenge at the hands of wicked vigilantes, like the New Black Panthers. I pray there is.
I believe that the campaign of hate that has been unleashed against George Zimmerman is nothing less than an attempt to intimidate the decent people of this country (many of whom are white) from defending themselves.
Many of Zimmerman's enemies must hate him simply for defending himself, and successfully at that.
You know how when the paper makes a mistake and then prints a tiny retraction on page 10?
Damage is already done, perception by the public is that Zimmerman is a racist and he murdered Treyvon in cold blood. The media has already pretty much convicted Zimmerman and will be reluctant to wholeheartedly change it's portrayal of Zimmerman. Even if Zimmerman is exonerated 100% legally black people and white liberals will say the system is racist and rigged against black people.
This feeds into the "it's OK to be violent against whitey cause he's shoots us down in the street and courts protect him" mentality in the black community. It's inaccurate and self centered but it exists and is reinforced daily by the media. Yes, plenty of justification in the minds of black thugs so expect more knockout king, black rapists and white vics and more violent assaults directed toward whites in general.
I don't know if this is even relevent at this point but I just realized something as I was reading an unrelated story on this site. At the beginning of the 'Little Saint Trayvon' story, wasn't the media really stressing as fact that Zimmerman was not really officially with the neighborhood watch and that zimmerman was an overzealous vigilante who wanted to be a cop, thus he had no business following trayvon in the first place?
But now that the Trayvon race-hoax and race baiting has been revealed, and now that it is clear this was self defense, I just realized that the media totally changed their tunes and say he was in fact with the neighborhood watch. The reason they changed their story is so they can now make claims that as an official neighborhood watch he was not allowed to carry a weapon while on duty.
The media, quite frankly is a joke. They change stories every day to suit their agendas, and whenever they are proven wrong by facts, they change the facts around again. What a farce! It all started with the pictures they used of a 12 year old trayvon and an old mug shot of zimmerman. A mug shot, I should point out, was when he was arrested for a crime that he was NOT convicted of.
I have actually seen vids and pics of trayvon on the internet portraying trayvon as an angel in heaven having a robe placed upon his shoulders by Jesus himself.And dont even get me started about that stupid self serving tribute video for trayvon.
Has the whole planet gone insane???
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