Tensions were high in the town of Sanford, Florida before last Saturday’s verdict in the George Zimmerman trial but the small Seminole County town remains unscathed — in great part due to the new police chief, who made it a top priority to personally reach out to the community in an attempt to keep the peace.
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Communities nationwide braced for a day of demonstration, and possibly even dissent, as the public awoke Sunday to learn a six-person Florida jury had acquitted George Zimmerman of second-degree murder, overnight, in the February 2012 killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin.
Protesters on the West Coast massed, and in some cases marched, in four California cities, beneath the lingering sunshine that had already yielded to twilight and nightfall by the time the decision had been rendered shortly before 10 p.m. on the mostly quiescent East Coast.
Mostly, the California demonstrations proved peaceful, although matters were marred by sporadic reports of stray violence and vandalism, including the halt of a passenger train, the burning of American and California flags, the lighting of small fires in city roadways, shattered storefront windows and the spray painting of a courthouse, as well as the damaging of a police squad car.
In San Francisco, raucous, yet peaceful protesters marched on the city’s Mission District neighborhood; while about 200 in Los Angeles convened for a vigil in Leimart Park, or the city’s historically black neighborhood. City News Service in Los Angeles said, at one point, a smaller group halted an Expo Line train, somewhere within the city, but police could not immediately confirm details of that account.
Los Angeles Police Department Lt. Andy Neiman said another group of 50 to 100 demonstrators marched around midnight.
“There was a period where crowds were running among vehicles, but police dissuaded them,” he reportedly said, although he added that he knew of no arrests.
Meanwhile, in Oakland, police reported about 100 people protested, with some among the crowd breaking windows and starting fires in the streets. As the protest eventually fizzled, the office of police information added that it had no word of any arrests as of 2 a.m., PST.
However, some Oakland marchers reportedly vandalized a police squad car, and police were — at one point – forced to form a line to block the protesters’ path.
The Oakland Tribune reported some downtown office windows had been shattered, and footage from a television helicopter portrayed people starting fires in the street and spray painting anti-police graffiti. Protesters, there, also reportedly burned an American, and California state flag and spray painted Alameda County’s Davidson courthouse.
In Sacramento, more than 40 people gathered at City Hall, and the Sacramento Bee reported protesters riotously chanting: “What do we want? Justice. When do you we want it? Now. For who? Trayvon.” Meanwhile, a banner unfurled behind the speakers read, “No justice, no peace!” as the crowd cried out in unison.
Meanwhile, in Florida, media outlets reported mostly subdued sadness, and no violence or large gatherings.
“I’m sad,” was the only response Miami Gardens barber Steve Bass could muster to the Miami Herald, when asked for his opinion regarding the verdict. Bass had reportedly cut Trayvon Martin’s hair since the teen was a toddler.
Outside the Seminole County courthouse, where the trial took place, the Orlando Sentinel reported that a bewildered crowd of about 150 received the not-guilty verdict with chants of, “No justice, no peace.”
“He …read more
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Here are some details about the six women on the jury in George Zimmerman’s second-degree murder trial, as they shared during two weeks of jury selection in June. Their names will be released sometime after the trial. Judge Debra Nelson has said she’ll decide the timeline after a verdict. They began deliberations Friday afternoon.
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B-51 is retired, not married and doesn’t have kids. She has lived in Seminole County for nine years. She has worked in real estate and run a call center where she said she had experience resolving conflicts. When asked if Zimmerman did something wrong by following Martin instead of waiting for police, she said: “Yeah, I guess he did do something wrong.”
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B-29 recently moved to central Florida from Chicago. She enjoys watching the “Real Housewives” on television and works as a nurse on an Alzheimer’s section of a nursing home. She said she hadn’t paid much attention to the shooting. She said she has been arrested, but her case was disposed of. It’s not clear why she was arrested or exactly what happened to her case, though she said she was treated fairly. She is married and has several children. A prosecutor described her as “black or Hispanic” during jury selection.
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B-76 is a white woman who has lived in central Florida for 18 years. She manages rental properties with her husband of 30 years. She has two adult children, including one who is an attorney. She is involved with rescuing animals in her free time. During jury selection, she said she had been the victim of a nonviolent crime. “Everyone deserves a fair trial,” she said.
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B-37 is a white woman who volunteers rescuing animals. She is married to an attorney and has two adult children. She said she and her husband used to have concealed weapons permits. During the last round of questioning, she said she had an issue with the type of weapons people are allowed to carry. She also thought weapons’ training was inadequate for people seeking permits. “It should become harder,” she said.
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E-6 is a white woman who is married and has two children. She has worked in financial services and has lived in …read more
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Trayvon Martin’s parents have settled a wrongful-death claim against the homeowners association of the Florida subdivision where their teenage son was killed.
The Orlando Sentinel (http://thesent.nl/YYnBB7 ) reports that Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin’s attorney, Benjamin Crump, filed that paperwork in Seminole County. Crump told The Associated Press that the filing was confidential.
The newspaper reports that the settlement amount was marked out in five pages made available for public review. In the agreement, the parties specify that they will keep the amount confidential.
Martin was fatally shot by then-neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman during a confrontation in a Sanford subdivision a year ago. Zimmerman is pleading not guilty to second-degree murder, claiming self-defense. His trial is set for June.
A month-and-a-half delay in Zimmerman’s arrest led to nationwide protests.
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Two teachers and two other school employees were among 50 people arrested as part of an online child-sex sting in central Florida, MyFoxOrlando.com reports.
“Operation Cardea” targeted people who use the Internet to sexually exploit children, the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office said, and the suspects were arrested over the past week, including four men arrested late Sunday night.
The list of those arrested includes two local school teachers and two other employees at local schools.
Jorge Daniel Ferreira, a science teacher at Ocoee Middle School, was one of those arrested. Orange County Schools officials tell Fox 35 that Ferreira has been with the school district since 2002 and passed a Florida Department of Law Enforcement background check when he was hired.
Also arrested were David Miller, a translator with Orange County Schools; Duncan St. Gelais, a teacher at New Smyrna Beach High School in Volusia County; and Anthony Wilks, a janitor with Seminole County Schools.
Investigators posed online as teens or parents and had communications with the suspects. Several suspects sent photos of a sexual nature. Detectives say all 50 men traveled to a home in Seminole County thinking they were going to have sex with teens between the ages of 11 and 15.
All suspects will be charged with traveling to meet a minor for sex and soliciting a minor for sex.
The Seminole County Sheriff’s Office used 200 investigators and worked with more than a dozen law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and FDLE, to make the arrests.
“Operation Cardea” was named after a Roman goddess who protected homes.
Click for more from MyFoxOrlando.com.
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