Trayvon Watch Part 9: The Armed Stalker is Not The Victim

So the Defense has rested. As expected Zimmerman did not testify in person. Why should he have? I wouldn't have. Zimmerman told his story a couple of times and it is on tape. His story has been "confirmed" by a number of credible witnesses. What was his story?

He stalked Trayvon while in his car because Trayvon was "not walking fast enough in the rain" and "looking at his surroundings".

Zimmerman then left the safety of his vehicle from this "clear threat" of a man "walking too slowly in the rain" and "looking at his surroundings" with his loaded gun and followed this person.

Zimmerman found himself in an altercation with this unarmed man who had been "walking too slowly in the rain" and "looking at his surroundings" and in the ensuring fight killed the unarmed man who had been "walking too slowly in the rain" and "looking at his surroundings".

Zimmerman's defense team would like for the jury to disregard the fact that Trayvon was "walking in the rain" and "minding his own business" when he realized he was being stalked by a man he did not know or recognize.

Zimmerman's defense would like the jury to disregard the fact that there was only one person in this entire situation who had an ongoing and credible fear for his life from a man he discovered was not only stalking him but had a loaded firearm.

Zimmerman's defense team would like the jury to disregard all of that and act as if Zimmerman was just another guy, walking in his complex with his loaded gun when he just happened to be jumped by Trayvon for no other reason that being a "creepy cracker."

I do not know what charges the jury will be told they can convict on. What I do know is that as I predicted, the state has not proven beyond reasonable doubt that a murder II has occurred. The reason for this is that they did not prove beyond reasonable doubt that there was "malice" and intent. It would seem to me that the state in this case has done the same mistake that the state of NY did with the Sean Bell killing trial.

If the state has failed to add any charge that is something akin to "criminally negligent homicide", then Zimmerman walks. Zimmerman should have known that by leaving his vehicle has was creating a situation in which he was a danger not only to himself but to anyone else he encountered. His decision to escalate the situation lead directly to the shooting. He never considered that to Trayvon, HE was the one who was about to commit a crime. Zimmerman did not consider that by following Trayvon in his car, that HE came across as a person who was stalking a would be victim and that Trayvon had decided he would not be a victim.

This last point is why I haven't even commented on the latter part of the trial. I expect that Trayvon took matters to deal with someone who by any objective standard was stalking him. This is where I refer the reader back to the long story - short story theory. The prosecution in it's closing argument will have to stress that this was a created situation by Zimmerman against a person who was minding his own business. That if Zimmerman had not acted negligently he would not be on trial now and Trayvon would be alive. That the injuries that Zimmerman sustained were his own fault. Yes, his own fault. You do not stalk and confront someone and then when they act to defend themselves shoot them and call it self-defense and walk away clean as if it was an innocent accident.

The prosecution does not need to find "disrepancies" in Zimmerman's story. It does not matter if the gun was pressed to Trayvon's chest or only on the shirt. It does not matter if Trayvon was found face up or face down. It does not matter if Trayvon was on top or on the bottom. The fact of the matter is that Trayvon was walking down the street minding his own business, talking to his friend and observing his surroundings when he noticed he was being followed by a vehicle with a strange man in it. That he tried to get away from the "creepy ass cracker" who was following him and that the man exited his car, with a loaded gun, and continued to follow Trayvon on foot even after, by his own testimony he had been spotted by Trayvon.

The prosecution must repeatedly bang on the point that the armed stalker is NOT the victim.

The armed stalker is not the victim.