Mar 21 2012
Time: Trayvon Martin’s Killing: Was the Motive Self-Defense or Racism?
Only two people know for sure what happened in a gated community in Sanford, Fla., on the night of Feb. 26: Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old high schooler, and George Zimmerman, 28, at whose hands Martin died of a gunshot wound to the chest.
But because Zimmerman — at least for now — remains a free man, justice has been called for in the racially charged case, in which an unarmed black teenager was shot by a white neighborhood patrol volunteer. He claims he was defending himself, but others say he was overzealous and lethally reckless.
Martin was in the gated community with his father as they visited the home of family friends. He had gone to a nearby 7-11 for snacks and was on his way back to the house when he was spotted by Zimmerman, who called police to report a “real suspicious guy.” He told the dispatcher that Martin “looks like he’s up to no good or he’s on drugs or something.” He described Martin as having his hand on his waistband, carrying an object, and coming towards him. “And he’s a black male…Something’s wrong with him…These a**holes, they always get away.”
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