The Trayvon Martin case has been getting LOTS of media coverage. Of course - this is a racially charged situation. But I would like to echo Martin Yant’s previous post on the danger of a “rush to judgement”. You cannot - I repeat, CANNOT - try these cases in the media. There is no way “Joe citizen” can possibly be cognizant of all the details, and facts, and intricacies of a case like this. And there is great probability that neither the prosecution nor the defense can either.
With all the media hype, people make a quick determination based upon their own set of prejudices, and then form an emotional attachement to that determination. Then “confirmation bias” kicks in big time.
And at this point in time, the investigation hasn’t even been completed.
Another case in point is the Casey Anthony case. Now …. did Caylie Anthony die? Yes. Was her body found in a garbage bag? Yes. Did her mother have any kind of involvement in her death and the coverup? Probably. But was it premeditated, 1st degree, capital murder? The jury said “no”. And the jury did the right thing. The prosecution did not prove it’s case. In their rush to “make big headlines” and “build careers” they got greedy. A lesser charge would have returned a “guilty” verdict in a minute.
Whether you be prosecution or defense, this is supposed to be about facts, and truth, and logic, and JUSTICE.
My point exactly. Although there has been flip flopping by the police and the media, what is at stake here is due process and justice. However, justice delayed is justice denied! And the longer this inertia by the authorities drag on, the more interlopers would have a free reign.
You and I are the only ones concerned about the media hype in the Trayvon Martin case, Phil. Here’s an excellent AP article from yesterday on the topic:
Media Using Forensic Techniques to Analyze Slaying
Apr 03, 2012
.The news media are taking on an increasingly police-like role in the Trayvon Martin slaying by using modern forensic techniques to analyze evidence, an approach some legal experts say can lead to a distorted view of the case because a lot of the key evidence is still under wraps.
The news media are taking on an increasingly police-like role in the Trayvon Martin slaying by using modern forensic techniques to analyze evidence, an approach some legal experts say can lead to a distorted view of the case because a lot of the key evidence is still under wraps.
The public has been whipsawed back and forth as new revelations emerge, appearing to support one version or the other.
Most recently, the Orlando Sentinel had a voice analysis expert examine a 911 call in which a person is heard screaming for help before the fatal gunshot. The shooter, neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, told police he was yelling. But the expert told the newspaper the voice most likely was not Zimmerman’s.
“It would be nice to know who was doing the calling for help, but identifying the caller is not necessarily going to definitively identify the wrongdoer,” said Univ. of Florida law professor Bob Dekle, a former state prosecutor and public defender. “Situations sometimes arise where it is the wrongdoer calling for help.”
ABC News on Monday aired what it said was an enhanced version of a police video taken the night of the shooting that appeared to show wounds or welts on the back of Zimmerman’s head. The initial, grainier video aired last week seemed to show no wounds or blood, which led Martin’s family and supporters to proclaim that it undercut Zimmerman’s story.
Legal and forensic experts cautioned that none of the media-led investigations, which are done in many high-profile cases, have been conclusive.
“The public needs to know that this is a very complex case,” said Ron Martinelli, a forensics consultant in Temecula, Calif. “There are many issues that come into play and sometimes come into conflict.”
Zimmerman told police that he was attacked by Martin on Feb. 26 and believed he had no choice but to fire his gun at Martin in self-defense.
The teenager’s family believes Zimmerman, 28, singled Martin out as suspicious because he was black. Zimmerman’s father is white and his mother is Hispanic.
The family also said Zimmerman should have listened to a police dispatcher who told him not to follow Martin.
News organizations also used audio technology to enhance a 911 call in which some reported that Zimmerman muttered a racial epithet under his breath. Other media organizations, including The Associated Press, said the raw recording was not clear enough to determine what Zimmerman had said.
Special prosecutor Angela Corey has been appointed by Gov. Rick Scott to lead the investigation after Sanford officials declined to make an arrest. The Justice Department and FBI are also investigating.
Much still is not known about the evidence being weighed by prosecutors, including:
•The autopsy on Martin’s body, which could show signs of a fight and whether the bullet entry wound supports Zimmerman’s claims.
•Medical records of treatment Zimmerman received on the scene that night by paramedics, which again could back up or disprove his self-defense assertion.
•Videotaped interviews police conducted with Zimmerman.
•Whether any witnesses saw the shooting and the circumstances leading up to it, including the alleged fight.
Many of these unanswered questions, especially the forensic results, will provide a more complete picture of how Zimmerman came to shoot Martin that night, Martinelli said.
“The decedent gets to have a voice only through forensics,” he said. “That’s how people speak from the dead.”
Source; The Associated Press
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