http://www.change.org/petitions/prosecute-the-killer-of-17-year-old-trayvon-martin

When you don't know all the facts?

It's likely there was no provocation and this was murder, but it's POSSIBLE that it wasn't. We just don't have all the facts.

If it were you in an incident that looks bad to the public, I'm sure you'd want it investigated first and not condemned in the court of public opinion even before all the facts are out.

From your link, bolding mine. And at least one member of the HOA board is lying.

At an emergency homeowner’s association meeting on March 1, “one man was escorted out because he openly expressed his frustration because he had previously contacted the Sanford Police Department about Zimmerman approaching him and even coming to his home,” the resident wrote in an email to HuffPost. “It was also made known that there had been several complaints about George Zimmerman and his tactics" in his neighborhood watch captain role.

The meeting was attended by Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee, the detective assigned to the investigation and an unnamed member of the city council, according to the homeowner’s association newsletter. The chief couldn't immediately be reached for comment about the complaints. A member of the homeowner’s association board, who asked not to be quoted by name, said she “hadn’t heard about any complaints” about Zimmerman.

source has said. It occurs to me the HOA is back peddling so IT isn't blamed for this.

But it's probable this story is true. It could explain why the police are slow to arrest. Because they had been warned about the man.

snip>

Mr. Zimmerman lives in the predominantly white gated community where the shooting took place. A criminal justice major in college, he often patrolled the streets in his car. In the last 14 months, Mr. Zimmerman had made 46 calls to the police, officials said, reporting everything from alarms and disturbances to reckless driving and, most commonly, a “suspicious” person.

snip>

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/17/us/justice-department-investigation-is-sought-in-florida-teenagers-shooting-death.html?hpw

I've known several, and they all failed the psych exam to get on the local force, and they all act dangerously like this: at home, at work, at play (ie at parks, ballgames, etc.).

an innocent person.

got himself into a position where he was a local code enforcer, which allowed him to harass and badger people about grass that was a quarter inch too high and other such "violations."

If he was planning on joining the force after he graduated and has friends in the department that have already accepted him as one of their own, it makes sense. Cops do cover for each other and leading witnesses would be no surprise.

between this, and all of the anti-woman BS going on, I can barely listen to any news without blowing a gasket-and I'm a level-headed person.

He himself could be shot in self defense, or at least Stand Your Ground defense. Not advocating that at all, but the irony is there.

I think that if I were black and around Mr. Zimmerman, I would feel threatened. He's proven that he will kill the unarmed.

and this guy will get away with murder.

yup

From what is known about this case, there was no reason for Zimmerman to have even engaged the teenager. He had called the police, he was told not to follow him that they would handle it. Had he followed those directions he was never in any danger so how can he claim he was defending himself? It seems he pursued the teenager after being told not to.

Shoot them dead, then claim they attacked you. How would the dead teenager prove otherwise?

that also has the boy's pleas before he was shot.

the boy is no longer a witness; the shooter can make up any explanation he desires. In fact, he did; Zimmerman says it was him in distress on the tapes, and him that the witnesses heard crying for help.
http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/03/16/2697604_p2/trayvon-martins-parents-criss.html

into a slam of Florida law?

Are you saying there IS NEVER a valid self defense shoot?

Self defense has been a principle of criminal law long, long , long before states began enshrining these asinine and often racist statutes.

The police chief keeps telling the media that he can't find any evidence to arrest anybody. He can't find anything that shows that this is something other than self-defense. Most reasonable people listening to the 911 calls would disagree, but apparently the police chief thinks that the "Stand Your Ground" law in Florida allows him to shrug his shoulders and say that no laws were broken.

Looks to me like this Florida law needs slamming.

http://law.onecle.com/florida/crimes/776.041.html

[div class='excerpt']776.041 Use of force by aggressor.

The justification described in the preceding sections of this chapter is not available to a person who:
(1) Is attempting to commit, committing, or escaping after the commission of, a forcible felony; or

(2) Initially provokes the use of force against himself or herself, unless:

(a) Such force is so great that the person reasonably believes that he or she is in imminent danger of death or great bodily harm and that he or she has exhausted every reasonable means to escape such danger other than the use of force which is likely to cause death or great bodily harm to the assailant; or

(b) In good faith, the person withdraws from physical contact with the assailant and indicates clearly to the assailant that he or she desires to withdraw and terminate the use of force, but the assailant continues or resumes the use of force.

It's not the law, it's the racist lack of enforcement at work here.

can reliably determine whether or not a voice on a tape is the same as another voice. If his voiceprint doesn't math that of the voice on the tape, that claim won't hold water--and nowadays I am pretty sure that almost everyone's voice is available on some audio or video recording, so Trayvon's voiceprint could also be compared to the voice on the tape.

I imagine, too, that the voice on the tape would be saying something like "Please don't shoot."

I think that if there is anything resembling a fair investigation, Zimmerman is toast. Sure, Good Ol' Boy Southern LEOs will try to cover up for Zimmerman, but if a more impartial investigating authority gets involved, there will be enough evidence to pin Zimmerman to the wall.

Now.

George Zimmerman will be dealing with the people he doesn't like for the rest of his life in prison.

Sanford Police are attempting to cover this up - and certainly the locals aren't buying what the SPD is selling.

It's time to place George Zimmerman under arrest right now.

And string him up from the nearest tree!

We don't need no stinkin' investigation!

I think you have the facts a little turned around. The Sanford police are the ones who say they can find "no evidence" to charge anybody with any crime. The rest of us are calling for an investigation.

If the stonewalling by the police keeps up, then somebody might decide to take matters into their own hands. It would be wise for the police to put a move on.

He has been found guilty by many in this forum. No facts or investigation are apparently necessary, except a scant story in the news about some unnamed source, with a conflict of interest, saying s/he "warned" about that aggressive guy.

Let's find the nearest tree!

I'll grant you it looks bad, and I even think h e probably IS guilty. But I'm shocked at the seemingly normal people who want to bypass the simple initial stage of investigation and finding out facts. NO ONE knows what happened yet, except the bare minimum about phone calls and the guy shot the kid. Oh, and the shooter was white and victim black, which apparently means ipso facto it was racially motivated. Maybe it was. I think it probably was, actually.

But thinking something is probably so, and wanting an investigation, is very different from demanding someone be prosecuted for murder without all the facts being in.

If you check GD and LBN here on DU you will find several different threads linking to eight different 911 calls, videos of interviews, and numerous articles quoting dozens of people. After you spend some time reading and listening to all that, you can come back here and continue accusing people of being vigilantes if you still feel like that's necessary.

In the meantime, you're the only one who has suggested vigilante justice here on DU.

That report is repeated in other stories. Of course the HOA is going to get as far away from that guy as possible; they could possibly found civilly liable for the death.

I know about the 911 calls. That's not an investigation. That is stage one of an investigation and open to interpretation.

No one was present but the shooter and the victim.

That's it.

A petition to "prosecute" before an investigation is a type of vigilante justice. Condemn him in the court of public opinion. Then sue him civilly and hope the jury kept up with the news stories and internet blogs about how guilty he is.

A petition to investigate, or even arrest, the guy, would be different. Prosecution means no investigation necessary, we know he's guilty, no need for the D.A. to approve the facts necessary for a conviction because we've decided that for him. Straight to trial. Bypass the laws.

all you have to do is feel "threatened" and you can kill somebody. I'm sure there would be a LOT of people in Florida who would feel "threatened" by Zimmerman. He's an armed vigilante whose ALREADY killed an unarmed teenager.

Hell, I'm not even black and I'm FAR from a teenager, but I would feel "threatened" by this nutjob.

bypassing the laws that determine there's evidence of murder, enough for the D.A. to decide to prosecute and bring him to trial.

That's what is disturbing here. These aren't calls for investigation. These are calls for prosecution, meaning they've determined there is no need for a formal investigation. The laws are unnecessary. They have done the job of the police and teh D.A.

I will grant you that there SHOULD be an investigation. If the police won't do it, another law enforcement agency should step in and do it. That will probably happen because of the notoriety the matter has rec'd.

Most people go straight to jail and are held until the investigation is over and they go to court.. It is not normal for someone like him to be free to roam around the neighborhood at will while under such suspicion..

Huh? Zimmerman? Isn't that German?

Here is an informative Wikipedia article:

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-trayvon-martin-shooting-911-call-20120316,0,2412941.story