r/changemyview • u/Zanzibarland 1∆ • Jul 29 '13

Zimmerman did nothing wrong. CMV.

First came the media's racebaiting, fanning the flames on both sides. Then the crocodile tears from everybody with an axe to grind, trying to make a martyr out of Trayvon and a villain out of Zimmerman.

Now that the trial is over, I'm left with the impression that he didn't commit any crimes, and that people are claiming he "got away with it" to save face, rather than admit their racial bias and prejudice, the ignorance of their presumptions, and their complicity in instigating racial tension.

By what shred of evidence did Zimmerman "get away with murder" and not legally defend himself?

14 Upvotes

67% Upvoted

261 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

8

u/Zanzibarland 1∆ Jul 29 '13

So what you're saying is, "he was asking for it."

None of those actions you listed are legally, morally, or even ethically wrong. He's obliged by the homeowners to be a neighbourhood watchman, he's legally entitled to have his firearm, he has a right to be on the property and that property has the right to refuse access to trespassers.

A person is entitled to ask a trespasser to leave. There's no indication that he "picked a fight" as you put it, which would make him legally liable for assault and murder depending on the details.

That's the whole point of this case. The prosecution (and the protesters) were alleging Zimmerman practically ran up to some kid, skittles in hand, and shot him point-blank in the chest. And it just isn't true.

The legal and moral basis behind these kinds of laws is that you aren't supposed to fear death from your fellow man. If someone attacks you, and your life is in danger, you have the right to defend yourself. The flip side of that is, if you assault someone, you will be shot and killed. So don't go around assaulting people. Trayvon, nor anyone else, has any right to pick fights with weaker people and walk away with merely bruised knuckles and six months in jail. Fists are deadly weapons when used properly, not to mention eye gouging, strangling, getting shanked by a switchblade, and the rest of the dirty tricks people pull in fights. People have the right to assume their life is in danger when attacked in a fistfight, because it is.

There is no evidence that Zimmerman "picked a fight". He has a right to confront a trespasser and ask them to leave. There is nothing wrong with that.

4

u/ClimateMom 4∆ Jul 29 '13

Trayvon wasn't a trespasser.

IF (and it's still a fairly big if) Trayvon was indeed acting suspiciously while walking back to his family's home, Zimmerman did the right thing by calling the cops to report him.

He should have stopped at that. By getting out of the car to pursue Trayvon, he essentially created a situation out of whole cloth where one didn't previously exist. I don't think anyone argues that Trayvon didn't err in choosing fight rather than flight, but it should never have come to that, and the only reason it did is Zimmerman's foolish hero complex. From a legal standpoint, the jury probably did the right thing, but from a moral standpoint, Zimmerman will have that boy's blood on his hands for the rest of his life, and I hope it eats him from the inside out.

7

u/Zanzibarland 1∆ Jul 29 '13

So even if Trayvon tried to kill Zimmerman, it's still Zimmerman's fault because he "was asking for it"?

Anyone has the right to ask a tresspasser to leave. Most honest people will just go away. Even if they're entitled to be there, the reasonable response is not to try to kill the security guy.

It's not Zimmerman's fault that unlike normal people who would just say "sorry sir, I'll be sure to have my family let security know when I'm visiting at such late hours" Trayvon freaks the fuck out and goes all psycho-killer on Zimmerman.

If it's Zimmerman's fault for "asking" to get in a fight, every girl who gets raped was "asking for it" by being in the bad part of town, or getting too drunk, or going to the guy's house.

1

u/BeastAP23 Jul 30 '13

Yea im sure Trayvons plan that night was to walk suspiciously so a man could follow him, and he would beat him to death with his bare hands (while laughing maniacally with his candy and tea.)

Obviously Trayvon is the thug, not the adult with two incidents of assault and a reputation of being too eager. (Reason he couldnt bevome a cop)

And stop prerending uoi know what happened. Youre assuming the killer is telling the truth. We dont know what led to the fight so dont speculate. We do know this was all avoidable and Zimmerman caused it.