Zimmerman Defense Wants to Ban Words "Racist" and "Vigilante" from Trial

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They don’t want the jury getting emotional.

June 7, 2013
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Attorneys represnting the man who shot Trayvon Martin have requested the judge forbid prosecutors from using words like ‘racist’ to describe George Zimmerman. Despite the fact that many of the descriptors they listed in their motion are central to the case, Zimmerman’s attorneys thinks they would elicit “unfounded connotations” and “unfair emotional responses.”

Here ae some of the words they hate, from HLN:

  • “Racial profiled” (or any variation)
  • “Vigilante”
  • “Self-appointed neighborhood watch captain”
  • “Wannabe cop”
  • “He got out of the car after the police(or dispatcher) told him not to”
  • “He confronted Trayvon Martin”

Zimmerman’s attorneys said this language would just manipulate the jurors’ emotions, making them biased against Zimmerman. Keep in mind, these are the same lawyers who wanted to claim Trayvon Martin was ‘paranoid’ and ‘aggressive’ because he, like many other teens, smoked pot sometimes.

Kristen Gwynne is an associate editor and drug policy reporter at AlterNet.  Follow her on Twitter: @KristenGwynne

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