that he smoked pot; could it also mean he was around someone else who was smoking pot?

In any case - what does this have to do with anything? Zimmerman could only respond to what he thought he was seeing, not to an after the fact toxilogy report. Just what was Martin doing that made Zimmerman think he was on drugs and also an imminent threat to other people?

doesn't always mellow a person.

I could never smoke it without becoming anxious and paranoid.

Just like alcohol will turn some people into assholes and other people into non-aggressive clowns

in a new neighborhood to buy Skittles and tea?

who is so mellow have the energy to go out to buy Skittles and tea?

I have no idea.


What I do know is that people who are claiming that pot affects everyone the same way don't know what they're talking about.

But people have a lot of personal knowledge of pot and its been studied extensively. While there is a link to paranoia, there's very little evidence that pot alone causes aggression.

Also, Trayvon's test shows miniscule amounts which I think the expert will say indicates he wasn't high at the time.

Lets be real, Even if he had been high, Zimmerman gave him way more cause to be paranoid than pot.

pot would cause aggression.

It didn't cause aggression in me, and I've never heard of anyone who did get aggressive from pot.

But it can cause short term paranoia and anxiety (and hallucinations) in certain individuals.

Two particularly horrible incidents I remember...

1969, at a friend's house, a bunch of us are smoking. I go to use the bathroom, which is painted red with some black accents, and start screaming because it's turning into blood covered walls with spiders crawling all around. Nobody else reported having anything strange happen.

1978, again, with some friends, I live on the third floor, and after a while I start having a panic attack so bad I try jumping from the window to the street below, and continued to have panic for what seemed like hours. And yet again...nobody else had anything weird happen to them.

Early 1980s...I'm not even actively smoking...just sitting in the same room with people who are. I disappear and they find me hiding in a dark closet.


I could have been extremely violent under those circumstances without exactly being aggressive.



The only times this didn't happen was when I mixed alcohol with weed.

And I and people I know have done extensive research! Lol

Hallucinating? Is it possible you were getting marijuana laced with other drugs?

Pot is definitely not fun for you.

If I am not mistaken it comes from hashish eaters.. All Americans need to hear is he was on "drugs" and he will be immediately guilty of any and all charges....

But not everyone does.

I related a story before that I was on a jury where pot use was brought up and only 1 out of 12 jurors expressed that sort of opinion. Everyone else felt it was a none-issue.

From what I've read, the amount of the drug in Trayvon was minuscule. I can't believe any doctor would say he had used very recently, was high at the time or that it actually played a role.

The defense is smearing the victim.

Pot does make some people anxious and paranoid, although I think that may be more for fear of legal or social consequences rather than the actual effects of the drug in many cases. Being anxious and paranoid is not the same thing as being violent however, I am not aware of any cases in which marijuana has been directly linked to violence.

just above...

I wasn't violent, but because of panic and paranoia, I could have become violent.

My usual response to panic is to become paralyzed, but in rare cases, I have become somewhat violent. I've ripped out bunches of my own hair, even...

Reefer madness struck and Trayvon was looking to feed his soda to neighborhood kittens to induce hyperglycemic shock, at which point he would abduct and torture them while listening to the Dead and eating cheetos.

And besides Trayvon is not on trial here-Zimmerman is. They're saying it was tiny amount that could have been in his system up to 30 days.

I was on a jury for a rape trial and the defense attorney made a point of making her admit she had smoked pot. Not even the night of the rape mind you, but way before. She tested negative for everything right after the attack. I can tell you that only 1 of 12 jurors mentioned it and everyone else was like- not an issue and who cares.

Also for anyone who claims pot makes people aggressive that's bull. Paranoid, maybe, but I've never seen anyone get aggressive except maybe with a Hershey wrapper. Pot is NOT like alcohol. And furthermore, Trayvon had reason to be paranoid! An armed asshole was following him.

proves any THC in his system was negligible.

are an issue then if the Judge rules the pot issue is allowed re Trayvon Martin she should also allow the issue of the prescription drugs Zimmerman had taken that night as well as they could have had an effect (paranoia?) on him.

I hope the State goes for admittance of evidence re Zimmerman's drugs seeing as the pot issue has been allowed.

Hadn't heard that.

"MSNBC.com reports that, according to the paramedic incident report, Trayvon Martin's shooter was on the prescription drug Temazepam which is known to cause insomnia and anxiety. Other side effects not mentioned in the MSNBC.com report are “aggressiveness,” “hallucinations,” and other serious symptoms. The U.S. National Library of Medicine cautions that, after taking Temazepam, patients should not be walking around trying to watch anything or anyone and that, if they do not sleep for at least 7-8 hours after taking the drug, they may experience memory loss.


Zimmerman was also on the commonly prescribed drug Adderall, which is known to cause “worsening mental or mood problems (eg, aggression, anxiety, delusions, depression, hallucination, hostility),” according to Drugs.com. Adderall is prescribed for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or narcolepsy. Both Temazepam and Adderall are medications that can cause problematic side effects including agitation and mood swings."

http://www.examiner.com/article/the-prescription-drugs-george-zimmerman-was-taking-when-he-killed-trayvon-martin

I am interested in the possible effects of any drugs Zimmerman had in his system the night he shot Trayvon Martin now that the defense is raising the trace amounts of THC in Trayvon Martin's system and the possible effects. I hope the State can now bring that in seeing as the defense has 'opened the door'.

I didn't know that this had been reported in the paper. Thanks for the link.

Still, the point remains. Prosecution can't use this because GZ wasn't tested. I'm only familiar with what adderall & temazepam are used for, one is an upper, the other one a downer. My husband just recently was prescribed temazepam to help him sleep and is available as a generic. Same dose, but he only takes it as needed. And he's NOT taking adderall.

the on-scene paramedics and it is recorded in their incident report. The State should be able to use the report as it is reporting what Zimmerman himself disclosed at the time of the shooting.

Given what we as the public are digesting day by day, the jury is sequestered and who knows what's going through their minds?

If they're thinking like what I'm seeing regarding polls, commentators, defense lawyers & prosecutors being interviewed on TV, it feels like most think he'll walk. So prosecutors risk being seen as piling on. While whatever the defense is presenting doesn't seem to be looked upon in the same way.

Sometimes I think we should just remove the word "fairness" from our vocabulary. I see so very little of it, and not just when it come to this case. So many subjects from A to Z to seem to simply ignore "what's fairness?"

for the same reasons the trace amount of THC in Trayvon Martin's system is being allowed (probative over prejudicial) I strongly doubt it will happen. Justice is supposed to be blind and the scales balanced but, in reality, that seems to be an 'old-fashioned notion' that no longer applies.

I find the tactics of the defense, in this case and others, to be more and more unethical and despicable. Maybe it has always been this way and I just didn't realize it but, if Justice is to be truly blind and the scales balanced then the standards should also be balanced, imo. Dreaming, I know.

I think Zimmerman may well get away with the killing of Trayvon Martin, not because it really was self-defense, but because of where it happened and to whom.

Last edited Mon Jul 8, 2013, 07:48 PM - Edit history (1)

The jury could decide that the drugs made Zimmerman less culpable for the shooting. I'd rather that he be presented as clearly in control when he murdered Trayvon.

if testimony is given on the possible effects of the pot in Martin's system then testimony should also be given on the possible effects of the two drugs taken by Zimmerman that night as well as the amount prescribed re Zimmerman and the amount found in Trayvon Martin.

I give the jury credit with common sense if they hear the possible effects of the drugs in both persons and the side effects that go with them.

Aggressiveness, anxiety, hallucinations, mood problems, hostility = possible side effects of the prescription drugs in Zimmerman's system vs a miniscule trace of THC in Trayvon Martin. As a juror, I think one stands out more than the other as to how drug effects could have been part of what happened that night and why Trayvon Martin is dead.

that as long as those medications were legally prescribed and being taken as prescribed, any negative side effects, such as hostility, mood change, hallucinations, whatever...could be attributed to the drugs.

Not to Zimmerman's "hatred" or "racism" or purposeful hunting down of an unarmed teenager, or anything else people want to accuse him of.

Would the prosecution really want to go down that road? Really?

because the prescription drugs taken by Zimmerman have the listed possible side effects does not negate the 'purposeful hunting down of an unarmed teenager', in fact it strengthens the point, imo. Racism is already out of the argument on either side by order of the Judge so that is a moot issue within the testimony.

issue would certainly negate the "hunter" aspect for me, if I were a juror.


Which part of his actions that night could be attributed to a hunter mentality, and which part could be blamed on things he can't control...legal medication side effects?

If the prosecution can't say for a fact which cause was more prevalent that night, it's all a wash anyway. A huge waste of time.

If I'm a juror listening to stuff that is, basically, a waste of time, I'm not going to view the people who brought it up in a very good light.

But hey...I'm not a juror. What the hell...maybe the prosecution will even do something like that and...sadly...end up looking even more incompetent.

It has been made clear to the jury already Zimmerman was a 'wannabe cop' so the hunter aspect is already implanted. If you add to that the aggressive, anxiousness and agitation to that, it makes the hunter aspect even more likely rather than less.

drug/alcohol tested that night, the police didn't have probable cause to force a test. So there's no evidence that he was impaired.

and it is the possible effects of the drugs that are in discussion not impairment. The drugs he had in his system and which he reported he had to the on-scene paramedics have the above listed possible side effects.

The defense is going to go into the trace amounts of THC in Trayon Martin's system and the possible effects, it is only right the drugs in Zimmerman's system and the possible effects also be allowed into testimony.

Plain and simple.

and I think it's wrong.

They know the best bet they have is to have people think bad things about Trayvon Martin, so they're pushing for all the dirt they can sling.

And that's true for a lot of people. Call it signalling, call it whatever; I know this is someone who breaks the law, so I'm more cautious.

otherwise......nothing. I get worried when I see someone with a gun not if I get a whiff of pot off someone.

that say GZ was taking ADDERALL! BUT, since Sanford police seem to have "pre-judged" and "believed" GZ's story without question, he was never tested for any substance. The only medical information that the prosecution can use is what medical help GZ sought after the incident.

I've seen comments here that the prosecution did investigate what drugs he was taking at the time, but there's no way to know if he took any that day. He could very easily have said that he had taken it in the past but had stopped using it. Adderall, called the "college drug" by many is simply a form of speed. It was available in many forms back in what I refer to my "hippie" days and not hard to get a prescription for.

We've all probably seen before & after pictures of people who lost weight using whatever methods they chose, if those before & after pictures of GZ were allowed it would show that GZ has gained approximately 100 lbs since the murder. I don't know what show I saw or even WHO said it, but the person did say he used this drug. Still, it doesn't matter, it's gossip at best and we will never know for sure.

Pot vs adderall? Anyone have any trouble deciding which substance would cause the most aggression?

Well, what about the effect of NO marijuana on a person habituated to it?

Just throwing that in to be a smart-ass!