On July 13, 2013, George Zimmerman was acquitted of 2nd degree murder for killing Trayvon Martin. Massive fury was aimed at the jury, and the question of how Zimmerman got away with murder when it was his noncompliance that resulted in the unarmed teen's death was at the forefront.
Several legal experts predicted the outcome, with pundits and Zimmerman supporters agreeing the jury got it right because Florida's self-defense laws wouldn't permit a 2nd degree murder conviction. Martin's supporters foresaw the outcome as well. This wasn't the first time someone senselessly murdered an unarmed Black male with no consequences. For them, the aftermath was a prime example of how little Black lives are valued (per USA Today).
Juror B29, aka Maddy Rivera, told ABC News she initially voted for second-degree murder because the evidence supported it. But after deliberating for 18 hours over two days, she felt pressured to acquit Zimmerman based on the jury instructions (per ABC News). According to The Jurist, a flawed Florida law incorporated into the jury instructions produced the outcome, not the jurors. The law states that a person can instigate a confrontation and use deadly force to defend themselves.
The Young Turks host Cenk Uygur said, "There's something wrong in a system that allows you to chase someone down with a gun, and then after you start the fight you feel you're losing anyway, that you are allowed to kill him and we have to take your word for it."
