Trayvon Martin’s death was ‘ultimately avoidable’: Florida police report

Anonymous/AP

Trayvon Martin was slain in the town of Sanford, Fla., on Feb. 26 in a shooting that has set off a nationwide furor over race and justice.

AP

George Zimmerman, 28, is free on a $150,000 bail. His next court appearance is schedule for Aug. 8.

Trayvon Martin's death was “avoidable.”
That’s the conclusion of a new police report on the unarmed teen’s killing at the hands of George Zimmerman in Sanford, Fla.
"The encounter between George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin was ultimately avoidable by Zimmerman, if Zimmerman had remained in his vehicle and awaited the arrival of law enforcement, or conversely, if he had identified himself to Martin as a concerned citizen and initiated dialog in an effort to dispel each party's concern," the document by Sanford, Fla. Police said.
"There is no indication that Trayvon Martin was involved in any criminal activity at the time of the encounter."
EVIDENCE MIXED FOR SELF-DEFENSE CLAIM: EXPERT
The report was written on March 13, weeks before Zimmerman was charged with second degree murder.
Trayvon, 17, was returning home from a convenience store Feb. 26 in Sanford, Fla. when Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer started following the teen, telling police dispatchers that he looked suspicious.
Zimmerman, 28, claimed he fired in self-defense after Martin jumped him and has pled not guilty.
Among the slew of new information revealed in the latest document dump:
-Trayvon had THC-the active ingredient in marijuana-- in his system the night he was gunned down.
-A photo of Zimmerman with a bloody nose and a paramedic report saying Zimmerman had a one-inch laceration on his head.
-Trayvon was killed by a single bullet to the chest, fired at intermediate range, within 36 inches, according to the autopsy.
-Travyon had a small abrasion on his left ring finger, which could support Zimmerman's claim that he was punched.
Zimmerman remains free on a $150,000 bond and his next court hearing is scheduled for Aug. 8

Bill Cosby Comments On George Zimmerman’s Killing Of Unarmed Trayvon Martin

Bill Cosby’s comments on George Zimmerman in regards to the Trayvon Martin case via CNN Transcript:

Candy Crowley: So you saw more a gun issue than a race issue?

Cosby: How are you going to solve a race issue when it becomes he said, she said or he said, he said? And the other question is, what is solved by saying he’s a racist that’s why he shot the boy? What solves that? This. [Makes gun symbol with hand] And what is he doing with it? And who taught him and told him how to behave with this? It doesn’t make any difference if he’s a racist or not racist. If he’s scared to death and not a racist, it’s still a confrontational provoking of something.

I don’t know what happened, but I know that this — I used to have a gun. The policeman who okayed it said to me, “Mr. Cosby, when you pull this trigger, you can’t call it back.” And so I had the gun in my pocket. And the reason why I had it was to protect my family. But I also knew that anything that went on outside–and it appeared to be something that wasn’t on the OK, I went out with my gun. And the thought was if this person is not right or if that doesn’t move when I say move, I’m going to show that I have a gun.

Cosby goes onto say:

“Cause people on drugs really don’t care, they don’t – they don’t think well, and they will kick in your door. So you gotta protect yourself in your own home. But I also believe that when you tell me that you’re going to protect the neighborhood that I live in, I don’t want you to have a gun. I want you to be able to see something, report it, and get out of the way because you happen to be a part of the neighborhood – I don’t want you to get hurt and I don’t want you to hurt anyone.”

R&B stars record tribute song for Trayvon Martin

R&B legend Chaka Khan, Eric Benet, Kelly Price, Kenny Lattimore and other celebrities are all rallying behind the parents of slain teen Trayvon Martin.

To show their support for the fallen youth whose death has captivated the nation, more than a dozen singers, musicians, actors and TV personalities came together on Sunday to record a special tribute song in his honor.

The celebs hit the legendary Henson studios in Hollywood for eight hours to re-record Khan’s “Super Life” from her 2007 album “Funk This,” reads a statement on Khan's website.

Tinseltown stars including Angela Bassett, Terry Crews and Boris Kodjoe showed up wearing white T-shirts with the words “Super Life - Fear Kills, Love Heals” emblazoned across the front, a nod to the circumstances behind the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, who was shot and killed by a neighborhood watch volunteer in Sanford, Florida.

The song contains the lyrics, "A mama's cryin' 'Cause another young man has gone and died / He's not some statistic / He's another awesome destiny denied.” Also,"We take it all so lightly / How did we get so 'climatized / On the 9 o'clock news nightly / Genocide of babies / I can't believe my eyes. ... Right or wrong / I'm gonna live a super life."

Grammy winner Khan unveiled a music video for the tribute on "Piers Morgan Tonight" Monday.

But the studio wasn’t the only place celebrities were letting their voices be heard.

They also took to the street and Twitter like thousands of others around the country, particularly in Florida, Los Angeles and New York.

Actress Tichina Arnold wrote from an L.A. march, "'Black Brown Asian White same struggle same fight!' Is what we r chanting at the rally 4 #Trayvonmartin."

R&B singer Janelle Monae tweeted that she was "moved" to see the outpouring of support in New York. "Seeing pics from the 'Million Hoodies' march in NYC for #TrayvonMartin touched. my. heart,” she said. “When we come together it's priceless."

Florida shooting of black teenager by white vigilant(, Trayvon Martin Police Investigation Shows ‘Racial Bias’ Says Civil Rights Group)

The way Sanford, Florida police handled the shooting of an unarmed teenager by a neighborhood watch volunteer has caused outrage from civil rights groups, who have demanded a federal investigation, RadarOnline.com can exclusively reveal.

As RadarOnline.com previously reported, Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee Jr. "temporarily" stepped down from his position on Thursday in the wake of public outcry over the department’s lack of action after Trayvon Martin was tragically killed by George Zimmerman on February 26, while he was walking home carrying only a bag of Skittles and a bottle of ice tea.

On Thursday evening, thousands of supporters attended a rally in 17-year-old Martin’s home town, where the Reverend Al Sharpton spoke to the crowd while flanked by Trayvon’s parents Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin.

"We are tired of going to jail for nothing and others going home for something. Zimmerman should have been arrested that night ... you cannot defend yourself against a pack of Skittles and iced tea,” said Sharpton.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) believes that the outpouring of support shows the deep impact of the shocking case.

“It was inspiring to see so many people out calling for justice, but given the gravity of the issues involved, we weren’t surprised by the responce,” Baylor Johnson, spokesperson for the ACLU of Florida, told RadarOnline.com in an exclusive interview.

“This is an issue that has been under the surface for so long and it is sad that this kind of tragedy has to happen for us to have a serious conversation about race in America.

“In order to understand why so many people from Sanford across Florida and across the country came out, we have to look at how we got here,” he went on to explain.

“There is a tragic hateful history of crimes with clear and undeniable racial motives that have been overlooked or swept under the rug.

“It is clear to us that when the police chief said there was no reason to dispute George Zimmerman’s claim that he was acting in self defense that he had already made his mind up about the matter,” Johnson told RadarOnline.com.


The ACLU and other civil rights groups took action and called for other law enforcement and federal investigators to look over the shoulder of the Sanford police and examine what happened that day – not just the shooting itself but the police department's response to it.

“We want these outside investigators to look into any deviances from standard police procedure, as well as the attitudes and any possible bias of the police officers.”

When it comes to whether he believes charges should be brought against the shooter, Zimmerman, 28, Johnson said that is up to law enforcement to come to what conclusions they think are fitting.

“We want the justice system to arrive at a just conclusion – we haven’t specifically called for an arrest, but if it results in that then it is the right conclusion,” said Johnson