Archive for the ‘George Zimmerman’ Category

Florida legislature poised to bolster ‘Stand Your Ground’ law – Reuters

Florida lawmakers advanced a measure on Wednesday that could make it easier to avoid prosecution in deadly shootings and other use-of-force cases by seeking immunity on self-defense grounds under the state's pioneering "stand your ground" law.

In a 74-39 vote, the state's House of Representatives passed legislation that shifts the burden of proof from defendants to prosecutors when the law is invoked to avoid trial.

The measure now returns to the state Senate, which last month approved its own version of the bill. Both chambers are controlled by Republicans.

Florida's "stand your ground" law, passed in 2005, received wide scrutiny and inspired similar laws in other states. It removed the legal responsibility to retreat from a dangerous situation and allowed use deadly force when a person felt greatly threatened.

Opponents say the measures will embolden gun owners to shoot first, citing the 2012 death of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin in Florida, which spurred national protests and the Black Lives Matter movement. The neighborhood watchman who killed him, George Zimmerman, was acquitted of murder after the law was included in jury instructions.

Wednesday's House vote on changing the law followed party lines.

Supporters, including the National Rifle Association, the powerful U.S. gun lobby, see the legislation as bolstering a civilian's right to quell an apparent threat.

"This bill is trying to put the burden of proof where it belongs, on the state, because all people are innocent before being proven guilty," said the Republican sponsor of the bill, Representative Bobby Payne.

Florida's law did not specify the process for applying "stand your ground" immunity. State courts established the current protocol, which calls for a pre-trial hearing before a judge and puts the burden of proof on the defendant.

Most of those speaking in the House debate were Democrats who said the bill would lead to more violence.

"Who will speak for the voiceless victims, silenced by an aggressor who claims he wasnt an aggressor but is protected by a flawed law? said Democrat Representative Bobby Dubose.

While public defenders support the changes to the law, the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association and gun control advocates oppose them.

"Every battery case, every domestic violence case, every use of force case, as a matter of routine, defense attorneys will now request hearings," said Phil Archer, a state attorney.

Archer, a lifetime NRA member who teachers gun owners about "stand your ground," said of the changes: "This is just going too far."

WASHINGTON The Trump administration and the Japanese government are in discussions to ensure that the bankruptcy of Toshiba Corp's U.S. unit Westinghouse Electric Co does not lead to U.S. technology secrets and infrastructure falling into Chinese hands, a U.S. official said on Thursday.

AUGUSTA, Georgia American journeyman Charley Hoffman led the U.S. Masters after firing a sparkling 65 in a wind-swept first round on Thursday as world number one Dustin Johnson pulled out due to a back injury.

AUGUSTA, Georgia In a field of golfing thoroughbreds, self-described plow horse William McGirt plodded his way up to second place at the U.S. Masters on Thursday after a gusty opening round at Augusta National.

Excerpt from:
Florida legislature poised to bolster 'Stand Your Ground' law - Reuters

‘A force of nature’: Lynchburg native Jennifer Petticolas a staple of theater community – Lynchburg News and Advance

Theater is a reflection of life for Lynchburg native Jennifer Petticolas.

Her plays touch upon topics and themes that range from menopause to race to suicide.

My goal is not for you to be just solely entertained but to walk away with a little bit more than you came in with, she said.

Petticolas involvement in theater was a slow progression.

She wrote short stories as a student at the former Dunbar High School, and when she entered Livingstone College in Salisbury, North Carolina, she wanted to be a war correspondent, but the college lacked a journalism major.

Following graduation with a degree in English, Petticolas accepted a teaching position at a Baltimore junior high school. It would be a tough assignment even for an experienced teacher.

It was October when Petticolas stepped into the classroom and, by that time, three other teachers had been assigned to lead the class. One teacher was beaten by a student, she said.

These were kids who grew up in the projects of Baltimore, and who lacked the sheltered life Petticolas was accustomed to as a child.

These were kids who could look out their windows and see someone knifed or shot, or drug deals taking place or their moms prostituting themselves to pay the bills. I dont know why I was able to break through.

Petticolas said she commanded and received respect in her classroom.

I kept on going and really fell in love, she said.

It was during her time teaching in a different Baltimore junior high that the schools faculty needed someone to write a play. So, being an English teacher, Petticolas stepped forward.

The production focused on the history of music and dance, and that first play would feature the heavy research that goes into her current theatrical work.

Petticolas served 30 years in education, including time as an assistant principal at E.C. Glass High School and in the central administration office of Lynchburg City Schools.

Even during her educational career, theater wasnt far behind. Petticolas directed two school plays during her tenure at E.C. Glass. She also acted in local productions at the former Fine Arts Center, now the Academy Center of the Arts.

When Lynchburgs Black Theatre Ensemble of Virginia formed, Petticolas was among its founders.

But she said she wanted to have more control over the writing and production process, so she began her own company, JLP Productions, in 2010.

Petticolas said she doesnt write or perform for profit. Instead, the majority of revenue received by JLP Productions goes back into the community through donations to organizations like the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank, Gleaning for the World and the Jubilee Family Development Center.

Local venues where her work has been performed include the Academy Center of the Arts, the lounge in the downtown Holiday Inn on Main Street and the Glass House on Jefferson Street. Other venues include the D.C. Black Theatre & Arts Festival, Howard University and performances in Henrico County and Farmville.

Petticolas is a force of nature, said Tony Camm, general manager of the Holiday Inn on Main Street.

Camm said Petticolas roped him into the theater when he took his wife to an audition for a show Petticolas was directing. She asked Camm if he would like to try out for a part and, since then, he has acted in and directed several plays.

Petticolas lit that fire, the theatrical fire, Camm said. She roped me into the theater during that audition for my wife.

One recent JLP Productions performance was A Little Bit of Ray, an homage to the life of iconic musician Ray Charles, which was performed at the Academy Center of the Arts last summer around the anniversary of the performers death.

A piece that shes presented several times is Menopausal but Still Groovin, which will be performed again this weekend at the Holiday Inn downtown.

In February, JLP Productions presented Black Lives Matter at Mount Carmel Baptist Church in Lynchburg; it focused on the lives of five women, including Mary Turner, a pregnant black woman who was doused with gasoline, hung and shot by a white mob in 1918 after protesting the lynching of her husband a day earlier, and Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed Florida teen fatally shot by a neighborhood watch captain, George Zimmerman.

You have these mothers talking about their pain, and what its like losing a child and their child cant get justice, Petticolas said.

She said her goal is to spark conversation or for audience members to walk away with more knowledge of a subject than what they came in with.

Gloria Simon has known Petticolas for about 25 years and worked with her while both served in Lynchburg City Schools and Roanoke City Public Schools.

Simon portrayed Mamie Till-Mobley, the mother of Emmett Till, in Black Lives Matter. Emmett Till was a 14-year-old boy who was mutilated and shot in 1955 after Carolyn Bryant, a white woman, falsely accused Till of grabbing and whistling at her.

Work presented by JLP Productions will always be a teachable moment, Simon said.

You walk away from her productions knowing something you might not have known prior to her show. Through entertainment, theres always something teachable.

A piece performed about two years ago, Little Black Dress, was born from a local mothers desire to inform the public that help is available for depression after she lost her daughter to suicide. The performance included a discussion with mental health professionals.

The subject matter is heavy, but Little Black Dress is so worthwhile because we know we are reaching people who need to be able to talk, Petticolas said.

Menopausal but Still Groovin, which will be performed Friday and Saturday, is about seven women discussing their experience with life and menopause. After viewing the play, Petticolas said men sometimes approach her to express gratitude for gaining an understanding of what their wives experience during menopause.

Sometimes that happens in theater, Petticolas said. If you can see it onstage, you can relate it to your own life and deal with it a little better.

Life should be teaching you something, she said. You shouldnt be walking through life without learning something.

Petticolas theatrical team is made up of a core group of women, including Regina Phillips, the principal of Monelison Middle School in Amherst County. Phillips met Petticolas through the theater and has appeared in several of her productions. Now, her theatrical work mostly is backstage.

In a group of alpha females, she is our alpha female, Phillips said laughing.

Shes decisive. She always tells the truth, Phillips said. She was my mentor, she is my friend. If I want to know the truth, I want to call Jennifer because shes always going to tell me whats good for me. I may not want to hear it, but she always tells me whats good for me.

Petticolas said when she is approached by audience members about how one of her plays has touched them in some manner, it just makes me feel like I have accomplished my goal.

Theater to me is another way of teaching, Petticolas said. When you are teaching, you have to have a lesson plan and you have to have goals for your lesson. A way for you to know if you have reached your objective is, usually, you have a little quiz. I cant do that with my audience, but when an audience gives me that feedback, it lets me know I have reached my objective.

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'A force of nature': Lynchburg native Jennifer Petticolas a staple of theater community - Lynchburg News and Advance

Arrests are down in Los Angeles and across California (Is the Ferguson Effect responsible?) – Hot Air

posted at 8:31 pm on April 1, 2017 by John Sexton

There has been a significant decline in arrests in Los Angeles even as crime is rising in the city. Today the LA Times looks at what is behind the drop in arrests:

The arrest data include both felonies and misdemeanors crimes ranging from homicide to disorderly conduct. From 2010 to 2015, felony arrests made by Los Angeles police officers were down 29% and misdemeanor arrests were down 32%.

Two other measures of police productivity, citations and field interviews, have also declined significantly.

The 2016 numbers arent available yet but an Assistant Chief with the LAPD tells the Times the number of arrests has continued to decline. Similar declines were seen in other big cities including San Diego. The result is that the overall number of arrests in California is at its lowest level in nearly 50 years.

The LA Times doesnt say the so-called Ferguson Effect, i.e. police pulling back to avoid becoming the next viral video, is responsible, but some of its reporting certainly fits with that explanation:

In a nationwide survey conducted in 2016 by the Pew Research Center, 72% of the law enforcement officers questioned said their colleagues were less likely to stop and question suspicious people as a result of high-profile incidents involving blacks and the police.

Police officers and sheriffs deputies interviewed by The Times echoed that view.

Everyone is against whatever law enforcement is doing, so that makes an officer kind of hesitant to initiate contact, said one LAPD officer, who has worked in South L.A. for more than a decade and requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. A lot of guys will shy away from it because weve got the dash cams, weve got the body cams. We dont want it to come back on us.

A motorcycle deputy named George Hofstetter tells the Times, Not to make fun of it, but a lot of guys are like, Look, Im just going to act like a fireman. Im going to handle my calls for service and the things that I have to do. He added, But going out there and making traffic stops and contacting persons who may be up to something nefarious? Im not going to do that anymore.

The picture of what is happening isnt quite as simple as it sounds, though. For one thing, the decline in arrests began before the shooting of Mike Brown in 2014 made police shootings a national issue. That would seem to suggest that something else was motivating the decline or, at a minimum, that other factors were involved.

It may be the case that other factors play a role, including a recent ballot proposition that downgraded some drug offenses. However, the LA Times fails to note that the public issue of police handling of shootings involving black men really began two years earlier with the Trayvon Martin case. Martin was shot by George Zimmerman, not by police, but there was widespread anger at the police starting early in 2012 for failing to arrest Zimmerman for what many considered a murder rather than self-defense.

In March the local police chief was pressured into stepping down from his job over criticism that he was failing to handle the case appropriately. The NAACP wrote to then Attorney General Eric Holder expressing a lack of faith in the local police and asking for federal oversight of the case. And months later, it was in response to the verdict freeing Zimmerman that the phrase Black Lives Matter initially arose.

The climate toward police began to sour well before the shooting of Mike Brown in Ferguson, so its possible the views of police officers around the country toward going the extra mile also began to change well before 2014.

Originally posted here:
Arrests are down in Los Angeles and across California (Is the Ferguson Effect responsible?) - Hot Air

Trayvon Martin’s Mom Just Can’t Stop Lying About Her Son’s Death – Bearing Arms

Sybrina Fulton, the mother of the Trayvon Martin, refuses to let reality intrude into her fantasy world. Sadly, biased news media like the Miami Herald allow her to spew forth her easily disproven lies.

On Feb. 5, my son Trayvon Martin would have been 22 years old. Just like every year, my family celebrated his birthday surrounded by friends and loved ones. And like every year since his death, I mourned my son, whose life was cut short by someone who decided to shoot first just because of the color of Trayvons skin.

Clearly, Fulton didnt pay any attention at all during the trial of George Zimmerman, even though she did attend it. Zimmerman didnt know Martins race when he called Sanford police, a fact proven by the recorded conversation with the dispatcher. Zimmerman became suspicious of Martin when he saw a shadowy figure lurking under the window of a recently burgled home in the rain. He only saw Martins face and race well after he began talking to the dispatcher.

Further, eyewitness evidence and forensics alike indicate that after Trayvon Martin attacked George Zimmerman from behind as Zimmerman was returning to his truckin what may have been a gay-bashing attempt. Multiple 911 calls and witness statements establish that Martin viciously committed felony assault on George Zimmerman for the better part of a minute before a dazed Zimmerman pulled his pistol as a last resort and fired a single shot to stop Trayvon Martins vicious criminal assault.

Trayvon was only 17 years old when he was followed and killed by a stranger who believed he looked threatening. He was visiting with his father, walking home from the store, unarmed. He had just a packet of candy and a can of iced tea. This person killed my son for simply walking through his own neighborhood. He claimed that he was acting in self-defense, though Trayvon never approached him and he pursued my son before attacking him.

No sane person who watched any part of the trial or who knows anything at all about the case will believe Fultons lie that Martin was shot for simply walking through his own neighborhood. As noted above, Trayvon Martin waited four long minutes to sneak up behind George Zimmerman as Zimmerman was walking back to his truck, allegedly screamed, What you followin me fo?! then launched his attack on Zimmerman. Lets be very clear on the point that Trayvon Martin was the aggressor.

Everything Fulton said about Zimmerman attacking Martin is an abject lie, unsupported by anything other than a mothers refusal to face the facts about the son she raised.

Our states laws allowed him to claim he was standing his ground, and it took the public crying out for police to even make an arrest. This is common in Stand Your Ground cases. The law is applied inconsistently and studies have found that it is difficult for police to enforce it. The American Bar Association found that Stand Your Ground laws can actually increase homicides, and that the policy carries an implicit bias against African Americans.

Stand your ground laws played no role at all in the Zimmerman/Martin confrontation, a lie Fulton continues to spread. Neither the prosecution nor the defense in the Zimmerman case made any mention of Floridas implementation of stand your ground laws for one very simple reason: George Zimmerman never had a chance to stand his ground. Zimmerman was approached from behind, sucker punched, mounted, and viciously attacked by a violent young criminal named Trayvon Martin. Zimmerans defense was a straight self-defense case.

And he was victorious.

Like almost all gun control advocates, Sybrina Fulton must lieto support her new career. If she admitted the truth that her son was a violent criminal justifiably shot during the commission of a felony assault, shed have to get a real job.

Author's Bio: Bob Owens

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Trayvon Martin's Mom Just Can't Stop Lying About Her Son's Death - Bearing Arms

Chicagoan’s Art a Celebration of Blackness, Tribute to Lives Lost – Chicago Tonight | WTTW


Chicago Tonight | WTTW
Chicagoan's Art a Celebration of Blackness, Tribute to Lives Lost
Chicago Tonight | WTTW
Hopelessness and guilt compelled Ervin A. Johnson to take a stand on police brutality and racism in America. Following the death of Trayvon Martin and trial of George Zimmerman, the man who fatally shot him, Johnson says he felt hopeless. My mom ...

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Chicagoan's Art a Celebration of Blackness, Tribute to Lives Lost - Chicago Tonight | WTTW