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O'Mara Requests New Judge in George Zimmerman Case

George Zimmerman's attorneys, Mark O'Mara and Don West, have filed a motion to recuse Judge Lester. The 17 page motion, chock full of examples of why Zimmerman believes the judge is biased and should not preside over either a Stand Your Ground hearing or trial, is here.

The motion also takes a shot at State's Attorney Angela Corey for not bringing the case to a grand jury, and at the woefully weak Affidavit the state filed in support of the second degree murder charges.

Under Florida law, the judge must accept the facts as alleged in the motion as true. The question becomes whether the facts as alleged in the motion would reasonably cause George Zimmerman to fear he will not get fair treatment from the Judge, and whether his fear is objectively reasonable.

I think the motion is spot on. [More..]

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Zimmerman Investigator felt Peer Pressure to Charge

In Sanford Investigator Chris Serino's 2 page interview with the FBI, he says he felt pressure from three officers to charge Zimmerman, even though he didn't feel there was enough evidence to charge. He didn't believe Zimmerman was motivated by racial bias. The Miami Herald article is here, and Serino's FBI interview is here.

According to Serino, one of the cops pressuring hims was a Sgt. Barns, who Serino said is a friend of Tracy Martin's. Barns even asked Serino for Martin's phone number. Serino says he ended up getting it from somewhere else. My likely suspect: Team Crump.

Serino told the FBI this during a discussion about his concern that officers were leaking information.

Serino also told the FBI that he didn't think George was racist, but that he may have had something of a "hero complex". [More...]

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George Zimmerman Released on Bail

More news in the George Zimmerman case. He posted the $1 million bail and was released from jail.

The next discovery round will be available to the media on Monday through the court's media website. There are very few blogs with access to the media site -- and we have to pay the same amount for access as the mainstream media. I don't know the amount yet for this batch (we'll be told Monday), but I expect it to exceed $100.00 and I've agreed to pay whatever it is.

If you'd like to contribute a few dollars to help with the cost, it would be appreciated, and you can do so via Paypal, using either your PayPal account or your credit card. Here is the the paypal link. It's very easy (and takes credit cards even if you don't have a paypal account.) Or you can use snail-mail.

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George Zimmerman's Lawyers Seek Donations

Via Mark O'Mara and the Zimmerman defense team: They need money and explain why. In order to come up with an additional fee for the bondsman of $85,000 ($100,000 less the $15,000 premium paid for the first bond the bonding company is apparently going to apply to the new bond), they won't have enough left for the costs associated with George Zimmerman's defense (let alone legal fees.)

For those who have given in the past, for those who have thought about giving, for those who feel Mr. Zimmerman was justified in his actions, for those who feel they would do the same if they were in Mr. Zimmerman's shoes, for those that think Mr. Zimmerman has been treated unfairly by the media, for those who feel Mr. Zimmerman has been falsely accused as a racist, for those who feel this case is an affront to their constitutional rights -- now is the time to show your support.

The defense fund is at GZDefenseFund.com.

Doesn't the Court accept real property bonds? I'm surprised there isn't a wealthy Zimmerman supporter in Florida who wouldn't put up real property with $1 million in equity, to avoid needing a bondsman entirely, saving the defense $85,000. The Judge's order doesn't specify it has to be a cash or surety bond. The Judge's approval might be necessary, but it doesn't seem to be prohibited by statute. Other Florida counties/districts take them: [More...]

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George Zimmerman Bail Set at $1 Million

Update: You can read the bail order here. My analysis is below.

The Judge has set George Zimmerman's bail at $1 million. He has to post 10%, will not be allowed to open a bank account, and must be on GPS. Order to follow. Feel free to discuss here or at TalkLeft Forums.

The Court on page 5 confirms "the State failed to prove that the Defendant may be held without bond." On page 4, he repeats his finding the evidence is "strong", and says that the June 29 hearing was not an Arthur hearing, so the evidence on self-defense presented by the defense is mostly irrelevant. He lists a number of short-comings in the defense presentation at both the April 20 and June 29 bail hearing. [More...]

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O'Mara Publishes George Zimmerman Medical Records, Exhibits

Update: Judge Lester said today he'll rule on bond Thursday. He has started drafting the order.

As he waits for a ruling on bond, which may come today, Mark O'Mara, attorney for George Zimmerman, has posted the exhibits from Friday's hearing on bond at his case website.

At the June 29 Bond Hearing, the defense submitted a number of exhibits into evidence in an effort to demonstrate the weaknesses of the State’s case against George Zimmerman and illustrate the strength of Mr. Zimmerman’s claim of self defense. As evidence submitted by the defense is to be made public record, we feel it is appropriate to provide it here.

The medical records are here.

TalkLeft readers and commenters: Keep reading below, we have an announcement: [More..]

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George Zimmerman: Bond Hearing, Final Arguments

Thanks to DiwataMan2 for his You Tube posting of a very clear audio of the 2 and 1/2 hour bond hearing yesterday in the George Zimmerman case. It begins with the media arguments. The bond hearing begins at 11:18. O'Mara's closing arguments begin at 2:03.

In between, are the witnesses who were the subject of much discussion yesterday and don't need rehashing, and O'Mara's introduction of evidence: All 11 of George Zimmerman's statements and interviews, and all of the recordings and written statements of Witnesses 6, 11, and 20, all of whom help Zimmerman. The state introduced no witnesses or evidence.

While I linked to the video of the final hour yesterday, the audio in it wasn't clear. DiwataMan2's version is crystal clear, including the Judge's brief comments. [More...]

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City of Sanford Wants Help With Expenses of George Zimmerman Prosecution

Update: The second hour of the bond hearing can be watched here on YouTube.

As the judge today considers whether to grant George Zimmerman bond, the City of Sanford is reeling from the costs of the investigation and prosecution to date. It's asking that the State of Florida chip in.

The costs so far: $385,000, including:

* $96,000 in overtime
* $182,000 in regular time
* $106,000 in other expenses

These costs don't include expenses of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the state attorney's office or the special prosecutor.

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ABC Reporter Says Serino Leaked Zimmerman Info

Investigator Chris Serino will no longer be acting as a homicide investigator starting July 1. He will be on night-time patrol duty. Apparently it's at his own request.

Yesterday, ABC's Matt Gutman responded to a question on Twitter asking if Serino was the leaker by answering yes, Serino was the leaker. But what did Serino leak? I'm not sure that's as clear. The person who asked apparently meant the police station video. [more...]

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George Zimmerman: New Reports, New Injury Video

Update 6/27: The state has just released a voice exemplar of Zimmerman yelling for help. It was taken on March 22, the same date that Zimmerman met with investigators to provide his cell phone and and a consent to search it. You can listen here.

Original Post 6/26/12 below:[More....]

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George Zimmerman : Witness Support and Legal Recap

I've made a new category called "Reference Docs" for the George Zimmerman case. It is for handy access to things like the witness interviews and case photos and maybe some legal documents. I'll be adding to it over the next few days.

I also made a special set of commenting rules for the George Zimmerman case. Please read them.

On to witnesses: Many have focused on Witness 6 (John) and Witness 13, but I'd encourage everyone to listen to the later interviews of W-11, who was the first to call 911 and lives with Jeremy at 1211 Twin Trees Lane. Her audio interviews are available here. [More....]

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Commenting Rules for George Zimmerman -Trayvon Martin Case

Due to the inflamed passions and emotional intensity generated by the George Zimmerman-Trayvon Martin case, TalkLeft has instituted additional commenting rules applicable to this case.

Please understand TalkLeft is not a neutral site While a lot of factual and legal research go into my posts, and I strive for accuracy (and will correct any inaccuracies) this is a criminal defense site. I view every case through the lens of the Constitution and from the perspective of the person accused or under investigation. My goal is always to protect the rights of those accused of crime.

I personally moderate comments on my posts about this case. Those that I think violate the rules will be deleted. Since I do have a day-job, and may not get around to moderating comments more than a few times a day, I highly recommend you save your comment on your own computer in case it gets deleted. I recognize that commenters with opposing views put a lot of thought and time into their comments on this case, and my intent in deleting a comment is not to deprive you of your hard work, but only to keep it from appearing on TalkLeft if it violates our rules and principles.

Commenters must follow our general commenting rules, but in particular, and in addition:

  • URL's must be in html format because long ones skew the margins of the site and it can take hours to find the comment causing it. There is a link button at the top of the comment box you can use to highlight the words in your comment you want hyperlinked and then paste in the url. Please preview your comment before posting. I cannot edit comments here, only delete them.
  • No use of profanity (you can use asterisks in place of one or more letters);
  • No misstating the law, no misrepresenting disputed facts as undisputed truths;
  • No character attacks on either Trayvon Martin or George Zimmerman (which means no discussion of school suspensions or the contents of their Twitter, FB or My Space pages);
  • No declarations Zimmerman is guilty. You may state your opinion, provided you state it as your opinion and not as fact.
  • No personal insults or attacks on me, TalkLeft or anyone commenting here.
  • No potentially libelous comments, including calling anyone a racist or a liar;
  • Your comment must be on the specific topic of the post.
  • While all points of view are allowed in moderation, please understand that if you repetitively express your belief George Zimmerman should be convicted, and mock or argue with almost every comment that doesn't agree, you are likely to be deemed a "chatterer" or a "blog-clogger" and limited to four comments per thread or four comments a day. I have no intention of allowing this site to be dominated by guilt-mongers.
  • The site automatically closes comments when they reach 200. The "reply" button will be gone. Even though there will still be a space at the end of the thread to post a single comment, please wait for a new thread unless you have something really important and on point to say that can't wait.
  • If you see a comment that should be deleted, or that you think is objectionable, because it misstates the facts or law, please reply to the commenter by name but do not reprint the objectionable part of the comment in your response. Otherwise, if I agree and delete the comment, I will also have to delete your reply to keep the inaccurate information from being associated with this site.
  • The posts on this case are about the facts of the case, the investigation, the applicable law, the legal proceedings, and the media coverage (including bias and errors in reporting.) They are not about the broader subjects of race, gun laws and politics, and unless specifically referred to in the post, comments about those broader topics will generally be deemed off-topic and deleted.
  • If you want to discuss a facet of the case I have not addressed, you can do so in an open thread. We have open threads almost every day.

I realize there are hundreds of sites on the internet discussing this case and TalkLeft's commenting rules are stricter than most, if not all of them. But TalkLeft is not the Government, it is a private site, and commenting here is not a right. My goal is to provide intelligent discourse, without unfair prejudice to the rights of the accused.

If you've read this far, and you still want to comment, thank you for your understanding and patience. If you don't, you are still welcome to browse, and I hope you find the end result to be a rational and informative discussion of the particular aspects of the case we have chosen to cover.

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