...Some legal experts following the case, however, were not surprised at
the defense's decision to forego a "stand your ground" hearing, given
normal legal maneuvering in a high-profile murder case.
One argument goes that Zimmerman's ultimate claim may not be "stand
your ground" at all, since he technically was on the ground and unable
to retreat any further at the moment he shot Trayvon. In that scenario,
he could claim self-defense under pre-"stand your ground" laws.
A more likely scenario, says University of Florida law professor Bob
Dekle, is that Mr. O'Mara doesn't want to go through a bench mini-trial
and possibly tip off the prosecution about its strategy should the
"stand your ground" plea fail.
"If you're not 100 percent sure you're going to win the 'stand your
ground' hearing, you just end up telling the state what your defense is
and you've got nothing with which to surprise the state at trial," says
Professor Dekle. "What you want to do at trial is catch the state with
their britches down."
Several new developments suggest that Zimmerman's defense attorneys
are having some success finding information that could raise doubts
among jurors about the state's version of events. For one, the defense
has been digging furiously, with the judge's permission, into Trayvon's
social media history, which may present a more complex, edgier picture
of the youth.
Also on Tuesday, a key witness for the prosecution was caught in a
second apparent lie amid probing by the defense. A woman who says she
was on the phone with Trayvon as Zimmerman pursued him originally gave
her age as 16, though she was really 18. And she also said she missed
Trayvon's funeral because of a hospital stay, which wasn't true....
...Some legal experts following the case, however, were not surprised at
the defense's decision to forego a "stand your ground" hearing, given
normal legal maneuvering in a high-profile murder case.
One argument goes that Zimmerman's ultimate claim may not be "stand
your ground" at all, since he technically was on the ground and unable
to retreat any further at the moment he shot Trayvon. In that scenario,
he could claim self-defense under pre-"stand your ground" laws.
A more likely scenario, says University of Florida law professor Bob
Dekle, is that Mr. O'Mara doesn't want to go through a bench mini-trial
and possibly tip off the prosecution about its strategy should the
"stand your ground" plea fail.
"If you're not 100 percent sure you're going to win the 'stand your
ground' hearing, you just end up telling the state what your defense is
and you've got nothing with which to surprise the state at trial," says
Professor Dekle. "What you want to do at trial is catch the state with
their britches down."
Several new developments suggest that Zimmerman's defense attorneys
are having some success finding information that could raise doubts
among jurors about the state's version of events. For one, the defense
has been digging furiously, with the judge's permission, into Trayvon's
social media history, which may present a more complex, edgier picture
of the youth.
Also on Tuesday, a key witness for the prosecution was caught in a
second apparent lie amid probing by the defense. A woman who says she
was on the phone with Trayvon as Zimmerman pursued him originally gave
her age as 16, though she was really 18. And she also said she missed
Trayvon's funeral because of a hospital stay, which wasn't true....
Defense must be very confident in their case. I'm no lawyer but I really wouldn't even want it going to trial if I had a good chance at getting the case dismissed. It seems like they have a good chance too.
Defense must be very confident in their case. I'm no lawyer but I really wouldn't even want it going to trial if I had a good chance at getting the case dismissed. It seems like they have a good chance too.
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