Piece by piece George Zimmerman’s credibility is being hacked at. The trial judge in Florida threw out a detective’s statement that he found Zimmerman credible. The question considered George Zimmerman’s description of his fight with Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman’s claim is that the death of Trayvon Martin was in self-defense. Zimmerman has said he fatally shot Martin, 17, in self-defense because he was banging his head into a concrete sidewalk. Zimmerman, 29, could get life in prison if convicted of second-degree murder. He has pleaded not guilty.
Immediately after the death of Trayvon Martin, Sanford Police did not arrest Zimmerman. Protests started and debates on race and self-defense laws were sparked around the country. The police chief of Sanford was fired and later a special prosecutor charged Zimmerman with second-degree murder.
At this time in the trial, prosecutors aim to show inconsistencies in Zimmerman’s statements. They attacked Zimmerman’s version of events. They included the testimony of a friend who Zimmerman called after the tragic event. They also included the testimony of a doctor who found the defendants injuries to be insignificant. They also sought to introduce school records that indicate the neighborhood watch volunteer had studied the state’s self-defense law. In these ways they want to demonstrate the “true” nature and character of George Zimmerman as apparently different from his testimony of this events. The discrepancy between these versions of events can ultimately build or destroy his credibility. Of course the prosecutors will try to show Zimmerman as not credible.
According to the Huffington Post, Prosecutors on Tuesday tried to pick apart the statements of prosecution witness lead investigator Detective Chris Serino. Some of what he said appeared to help the defense, and prosecutor Bernie de la Rionda asked the judge to strike Detective Chris Serino’s statement. Serino testified that he thought Zimmerman was credible when he described how he got into a fight with Martin.
The prosecutor argued that Serino’s statement was improper because one witness isn’t allowed to evaluate another witness’s credibility. Zimmerman’s Defense attorney Mark O’Mara argued that it is Serino’s job to decide whether Zimmerman was telling the truth. Late on Tuesday morning the prosecution questioned Mark Osterman, Zimmerman’s friend who spoke with him after the shooting. Prosecutors questioned Osterman, who said that Zimmerman told him Martin had grabbed his gun during their struggle, but that Zimmerman was able to pull it away. That account is different from what was initially told to investigators in multiple interviews. In those interviews, he only said it appeared Martin was reaching for his gun prior to the shooting. He never told police the teen grabbed it. Zimmerman’s defense attorney told CNN that he believed prosecutors might finish presenting their case Wednesday or Friday, and that the defense attorneys will be calling witnesses most of next week. “We’re going to put on a case,” he said.
