Tuesday, March 20, 2012

#JusticeforTrayvonMartin

The death of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed teen who was shot while walking in his neighborhood in Sanford, Florida, has sparked allegations of racial profiling and calls for the gunman to be charged.

Federal prosecutors and the FBI will investigate the incident.

George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who has acknowledged shooting Martin, has not been charged and says it was self-defense.

Martin, 17, was killed while walking to his father’s fiancee’s house in Sanford from a nearby convenience store.

Zimmerman first called police at 7:09 p.m. ET with concerns about a suspicious teen in the area, according to 911 tapes released by the Seminole County Sheriff’s Department.

A 16-year-old girl who was on the phone with Martin most of the day last spoke to him around the time the incident allegedly began and lasted until 7:16 p.m. ET, when the call dropped.

Almost immediately, 911 calls began coming in. Police arrived on the scene at 7:17 p.m. Several witnesses called 911 at 7:16, 7:17, 7:18 and 7:19 p.m. ET.


Below are the transcripts of the calls as Zimmerman and witnesses describe what they saw and heard that night:

7:09 p.m. ET Dispatcher: “Do you need police, fire or medical?”

Zimmerman: “We had some break-ins in our neighborhood … and there is a real suspicious guy. … This guy looks like he’s up to no good, he’s on drugs or something. It’s raining, and he’s walking around looking about. “


Dispatcher: “Is this guy white, black, Hispanic?”


Zimmerman: “He looks black.”


Dispatcher: “Did you see what he’s wearing?”


Zimmerman: “A dark hoodie, grey hoodie, jeans or sweatpants or white shoes. He’s walking around staring at the houses. Now he’s just staring at me.”


Dispatcher: “Location?” Zimmerman: “He’s near the clubhouse right now. Now he’s coming towards me. He has his hands in his waistband. He is a black male. Something’s wrong with him. Yep. He’s coming to check me out. He’s got something in his hands. I don’t know what his deal is. Send officers over here.”


Dispatcher: “Let me know if he does anything else.”


Zimmerman: “These a**holes, they always get away. When you come in go straight to the left … when you pass the clubhouse …”


Dispatcher: “Clubhouse?”


Zimmerman: “Go straight in. Oh, s***. He’s running … down towards the other entrance of neighborhood.”


Dispatcher: “He’s running? Which way is he running?”


Zimmerman: “Down towards the other entrance to the neighborhood.” Dispatcher: “Which entrance is that, that he is running towards?


Zimmerman: “The back entrance.” [inaudible]


Dispatcher: “Are you following him?”


Zimmerman: “Yeah.”


Dispatcher: “OK. We don’t need you to do that. What’s your name?”


Zimmerman: “George. Zimmerman.”


Dispatcher: “Do you want to meet with the officer …”


Zimmerman: “Tell them to come past the clubhouse and make a left then past mailboxes and they will see my truck …”


Dispatcher: “What’s your apartment number?”


Zimmerman: “It’s a home. … I don’t want to give that out. I don’t know who this kid is.”


Dispatcher: “I will let them know where to meet you.”


Zimmerman: “Have them call me, and I will let you know where I’m at.”

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