Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Anthony Weiner Is Tweetin' Dirty - AGAIN!!!


It appears that former Senator Anthony Weiner is back to his online hanky-panky this time going by the name: Carlos Dangerous.


Is this an example of the "Democrat's War Against Women" or just another case of perverts behaving badly?  


At a press conference today with his wife Huma by his side, Weiner responded to the new tweets saying, "I said tat other texts and photos were likely to come out and today they have.  This behavior is behind me.  I've apologized to Human and am grateful that she has worked through these issues with me and for her forgiveness.  I want to say that I am very sorry to anyone who was on the receiving end of these messages and the disruption that this has caused.  As my wife and I have said, we are focused and moving forward" 

Huma is still standing by her Weiner despite the fact that her husband's tawdry virtual affair involved exchanging naked images and phone sex.  

Isn't it ironic that Weiner's great reveal comes on "National Hot Dog day"?  




Monday, July 22, 2013

It's A Royal Baby!


A royal baby boy was born Monday to Prince William and his wife, the former Kate Middleton

The child was born at 4:24 p.m. London time, about 10½ hours after Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, entered St. Mary’s Hospital in central London in the early stages of labor. Palace officials said the infant weighed 8 pounds, 6 ounces.

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Free Treats, Special Activities -- Fernbank's Last Blast of Summer

ExcExperiments 78

Summer has been extreme at Fernbank, and now the museum is celebrating with the Last Blast of Summer series. Each day through August 8, Fernbank will offer special activities guided by the Museum’s scientists, educators and youth volunteers. To beat the summer heat, Fernbank will also host Popsicles on the Patio on select days with free popsicles.

Special activities are posted every week at the greeter station and offer a variety of offerings, including Live Animal Encounters, Nature Walks, Weekend Wonders, Discovery Carts, Excellent Experiments, Tadpole Tales, and Popsicles on the Patio.

•  Live Animal Encounters

Get up close and personal with a member of Fernbank’s live animal collection.

•  Nature Walks

Go on an adventure with Fernbank Museum Educators as we delve into the wild world of Fernbank’s own backyard. Strollers will not be permitted on this walk. *weather permitting

•  Weekend Wonders

Enjoy a variety of hands-on learning fun!

•  Discovery Carts

Visit special interactive carts around the Museum where Fernbank’s youth volunteers engage with visitors to discuss dinosaurs, ancient sea life and archaeology with hands-on activities.

•  Excellent Experiments

Explore the amazing world of chemistry through fun experiments in a live presentation!

•  Tadpole Tales

Preschoolers can enjoy story time with a Fernbank educator, along with a special activity or song.

•  Popsicles on the Patio

Join Fernbank on the back patio from 1-3 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays from July 23 through August 8 for a free popsicle while supplies last. (Available to the first 500 visitors who show their Museum ticket.)

Visitors will also want to explore the most amazing mammals of all time in the special exhibition Extreme Mammals, on view through August 18. More extreme experiences are offered through daily IMAX® screenings of Under the Sea and Titans of the Ice Age. Other highlights include the world’s largest dinosaurs, fossil-filled floors, hands-on learning, artifacts, fossils, and the award-winning children’s exhibition, Fernbank NatureQuest.

Fernbank’s Extreme Summer of Fun runs through August 8. All activities are included with Museum admission (separate ticket required for IMAX films). Tickets are $17.50 for adults, $16.50 for students and seniors, $15.50 for children ages 3 to 12, free for children ages 2 and younger, and free for Fernbank Members.

For tickets and more information visit fernbankmuseum.org or call 404.929.6300.

Fernbank is located at 767 Clifton Road NE in Atlanta. The museum is accessible by Marta and offers free parking

Friday, July 19, 2013

Not Only Is Trayvon My Son, I COULD Have Been Trayvon


Back in March of 2012, President Obama leaped into the Zimmerman case proclaiming that if he had a son he would look like Trayvon.  Today, less than a week after George Zimmerman was found not-guilty Obama announced that he could actually could have been Trayvon 35-years ago.

You will find the text of Obama's speech below:

President Obama:  I wanted to come out here, first of all to tell you that Jay is prepared for all of your questions and is very much looking forward to the session.  The second thing is I wanted to let you know that over the next couple of weeks, there's going to obviously be a whole range of issues-immigration,economics, et cetera--we'll try to arrange a fuller press conference to address your questions.

The reason I actually wanted to come out today is not to take questions, bt to speak to an issue that obviously has gotten a lot of attention over the course of the last wee--the issue of the Trayvon Martin ruling.  I gave a preliminary statement right after the rule on Sunday.  But watching the debate over the course of last week, I thought it might be useful for me to expand on my thoughts a little bit.

First of all I want to make sure that, once again, I send my thoughts and prayers as well as michelle's to the family of Trayvon Martin, and to remark on the incredible grace and dignity with which they've dealt withthe entire situation.  I can only imagine what they're going through and it's rearkaable how they've handled it.

The second thing I want to say is to reiterate what I said on Sunday, which is there's going to be a lot of arguments about the legal issues in the case--I'll let all the legal analysts and talking heads address those issues.  The judge conduced the trial in a professional manner.  The prosecution and the defense made their arguments.  The juries were properly instructed that in a case such as this reasonable doubt was relevant, and they rendered a verdict.  And once the jury has spoken, that's how our system works.  But I did want to just talk a little bit about context and how people have responded to it and how people are feeling.

You know, when Trayvon Martin was first shot i said that this could have been my son.  Another wy of saying that is Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago.  And when you think about why, in the African American community at least, there's a lot of pain around what happened here.  I think its important to recognize that the African American community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and history that doesn't go away.

There are very view African American men in this country who haven't had the experience of being followed when they were shopping in a department store.  That includes me.  There are very few African American men who haven't had the experience of walking across the street and hearing the locks click on the doors of cars.  That happens to me--at least before I was a senator.  There are very few African Americans who haven't had the experience of getting on an elevator and a woman clutching her purse nervously and holding her breath until she has a chance to get off.  That happens often.

And I don't want to exaggerate this, but those sets of experiences inform how the African American community interprets what happens one night in Florida.  And it's inescapable for those people to bring those experiences to bear.  The African American community is also knowledgeable that there is a history of racial disparities in the application of our criminal laws--everything from the death penalty to enforcement of our drug laws.  And tat ends up having an impact in terms of how people interpret the case.

Now this isn't to say that the African American community is naive about the fact that African American young men are disproportionately involved in the criminal justice system ; that they're disproportionately both victims and perpetrators of violence.  It's not to make excuses for that fact--although black folks do interpret the reasons for that in a historical context.  They understand that some of the violence that takes place in poor black neighborhoods around the country is born out of a very violent past in tis country and that the poverty and dysfunction that we see in those communities can be traced to a very difficult history.

And so the fact that sometimes that's unacknowledged adds to the frustration.  And the fact that a lot of African American boys are painted with a broad brush and the excuse is given well, there are these statistics out there that show that African American boys are more violent--using that as an excuse to see sons treated differently causes pain.

I think the African American community is also not naive in understanding that statistically somebody like Trayvon Martin was statistically more likely to be shot by a peer than he was by somebody else.  So folks understand the challenges that exist for African American boys.  But they get frustrated, I think they feel that there's no context for it and that context is being denied.  And that all contributes I think to a sense that if a white male was involved in the same kind of scenario, that from top to bottom both the outcome and the aftermath might have been different.

Now the question for me at least, and I think for a lot of folks, is where do we take this?  How do we learn some lessons from this and move in a positive direction?  I think it's understandable that there have been demonstrations and vigils and protests, and some of that stuff is going to have to work its way through, as long as it remains nonviolent.  if I see any violence, the I will remind folks that that dishonors what happened to Trayvon Martin and his family.  But beyond protests or vigils, the question is are there some concrete things that we might be able to do.

I know Eric Holder is reviewing what happened down there, but I think it's important for people to have some clear expectations here.  Traditionally, these are issues of state and local government, the criminal code.  And law enforcement is traditionally done at the state and local levels, not at the federal levels.

That doesn't mean though that as a nation we can't do some things that I think would be productive.  So let me just give a couple of specifics that I'm still bouncing around with my staff, so we're not rolling out some five-point plan, but some areas where I think all of us could potentially focus.

Number one, precisely because law enforcement is often determined at the state and local level, I think it would be productive for the Justice Department, governors, mayors to work with law enforcement about training at the state and local level in order to reduce the kind of mistrust in the system that sometimes currently exists.

When i was in Illionois, I passed racial profiling legislation, and it actually did just two simple things.  One, it collected data on traffic stops and the race of the person who was stopped.  But the other thing was it resourced us training police departments across the state on how to think about potential racial bias and ways to further professionalize what they were doing.

And initially, the police departments across the state were resistant, but actually they came to recognize that if it was done in a fair, straightforward way that it would allow them to do their jobs better and the communities would have more confidence in them and, in turn be more helpful in applying the law.  And obviously law enforcement has a got a very tough job.

So that's one area where I think there are a lot of resources and best practices that could be brought to bear if state and local governments are receptive.  And I think a lot of them would be.  And let's figure out are there ways for us to push out that kind of training.

Along the same lines, I think it would be useful for us to examine some state and local laws to see if it--if they are designed in such a way that they may encourage the kinds of altercations and confrontations and tragedies that we saw in the Florida case, rather than diffuse potential altercations.

I know that there's been a commentary about the fact that the "stand your ground" laws in Florida were not used as a defense in the case.  On te other hand, if we're sending a message as a society in our communities that someone who is armed potentially has the right to use those firearms even if there's a way for them to exit from a situation, is that really going to be contributing to the kind of peace an security and order that we'd like to see?

And for those who resist that idea that were would think about something like these "stand your ground"  laws.  I'd just ask people to consider, if Trayvon martin was of age and armed, could he have stood his ground on that sidewalk?  And do we actually think he would have bee justified in shooting Mr. Zimmerman who had followed him in a car because he felt threatened?  And if the answer to the question is at least ambiguous, then it seem to me that we might want to examine those kinds of laws.

Number three--and this a long-term project--we need to spend some time in thinking about how do we bolster and reinforce our African American boys.  and this is something that Michelle and I talk about.  There are a lot of kids out there who need help who are getting a lot of negative reinforcement.  And is there more that we can do to give them the sense that their country cares about them and values them and is willing to invest in them?

I'm not naive about the prospects of some grand, new federal program.  I'm not sure that that's what we're talking about here.  But I do recognize that as President, I've got some convening power, and there are a lot of programs hat are being done across the country on this front.  And for us to be able to gather together business leaders and local elected officials and clergy and celebrities and athletes and figure out how are we doing a better job helping young African American men feel that they're a full part of this society and that they've got pathways and avenues to succeed--I think that would be a pretty good outcome from what was obliviously a tragic situation.  And we're going to spend some time working on that and thinking about that.

And then finally, I think it's going to be important for all of us to do some soul-search.  There has been talk about should we convene a conversation on race.  I haven't seen that be particularly productive when politicians try to organize conversations.  They end up being stilted and politicized, and folks are locked into the positions they already have.  On the other hand, in families and churches and workplaces, there's the possibility that people are a little bit more honest and at least you ask yourself your own questions about, am I  wringing as much bias out of myself as I can?  Am I judging people as much as I can, based not on the color of their skin but the content of their character?  That would, I think be an appropriate exercise in the wake of this tragedy.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

I Believe Trayvon Hit (Zimmerman) First - Rachel Jeantel






Rachel Jeantel, star witness for the prosecution, said that Trayvon threw the first punch when Zimmerman and he met face-to-face.

There was much debate as to who initiated the fight that lead to Trayvon's death and whether Zimmerman shot Trayvon in self-defense but it is interesting to learn now that Jeantel believes that Martin struck the first blow.

Remember the media has continuously fed the masses the story that Zimmerman attacked Martin when in fact the opposite is true.  In the end Trayvon paid the ultimate price for his decision to go "whoop ass" on George Zimmerman.

Despite the aggressive push to paint Zimmerman as a card-carrying-KKK-racist, this case was NEVER about the color of Martin's skin.  Even the Martin family's attorneys announced that this case was NEVER about race.

In other news, Gabe Finger, a high school intern, asked Jay Carney a very relevant question considering the multiple death threats that have been made against George Zimmerman in the wake of the not guilty verdict.

Finger asked, "Because of the death threats received by George Zimmerman and his parents, is the president going to take any action for THEIR security or are they on their own."  Good question Gabe considering the fact that the DOJ has recently begun soliciting email tips in the Zimmerman civil rights probe.



Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Jimmy Carter & I Agree On Something - UNPRECEDENTED!!!!


Probably no one is more surprised at this moment than I am to learn that Jimmy Carter & I are actually in agreement about ANYTHING.

After the George Zimmerman trial it seemed that politicians and celebrities were quick to announce their disappointment in the verdict of Not Guilty in the Zimmerman trial.

Hillary Clinton said that told an African-American sorority about her "deep heartache after hearing the Zimmerman verdict." Alec Baldwin (yeah the one who said he'd never tweet again) tweeted "Florida is a parallel universe. A (expletive) one" Liberal talk show host, Tom Heartmann announced that "Zimmerman was on slave patrol and he got away with it..."

I suppose that's why I was shocked to learn that former President Jimmy Carter actually acknowledged that the jury's decision to acquit Zimmerman was correct.

Carter said, "I think the jury made the right decision based on the evidence presented because the prosecution inadvertently set the standard so high that the jury had be be convinced that it was a deliberate act by Zimmerman and that he was not defending himself and so forth."

Carter also explained that the the jury listens to the evidence presented and then they come to a verdict that answers a legal question rather than a moral question.

When asked if he race was a factor in the Zimmerman case, Carter said that this was not necessarily true.  He pointed out that the prosecution did NOT bring up any alleged racial motivation during the trial.

I absolutely believe that this trial was politically motivated, fraudulent, and warrants a special investigation.   The case was clearly one of self-defense.

Bill Lee, ex-Sanford Sheriff, admitted that the investigation into the Zimmerman case was high-jacked in a number of ways.  Lee admits that he felt pressured from city officials to arrest Zimmerman in order to placate the public rather than as a matter of justice.

As a matter of fact, the case against George Zimmerman was so weak that the local Sanford District Attorney REFUSED to bring charges against Zimmerman. This is why, on the orders of Governor Rick Scott, an outside District Attorney, Angela Corey, had to be brought in to handle the case.

 Just as frightening, there is evidence that the State withheld material evidence that supported Zimmerman's self-defense claims.  This includes withholding photographs of Zimmerman's injuries.



Sunday, July 14, 2013

We Are A Nation of Laws And The Jury Has Spoken


President Obama has made the following statement concerning the "NOT GUILTY" verdict in the murder trial of George Zimmerman:

The death of Trayvon Martin was a tragedy.  Not just for his family, or for any one community, but for America.  I know this case has elicited strong passions.  And in the wake of the verdict, I know those passions may be running even higher.  But we are a nation of laws, and a jury has spoken.  I now ask every American to respect the call for calm reflection from two parents who lost their young son.  And as we do, we should ask ourselves if we’re doing all we can to widen the circle of compassion and understanding in our own communities.  We should ask ourselves if we’re doing all we can to stem the tide of gun violence that claims too many lives across this country on a daily basis.  We should ask ourselves, as individuals and as a society, how we can prevent future tragedies like this.  As citizens, that’s a job for all of us.  That’s the way to honor Trayvon Martin.

I am so glad that Obama is concerned about gun violence and preventing tragedies that he addressed the 1.5 murders a day that occur in Chicago. It is estimated that about 80% of the homicides in Chicago are gang related.

It broke my heart when Obama talked about the tragic death of Jonylah Watkins who was only six-months old.  She died when Koman Willis tried to shoot her father Jonathan Watkins.  Don't wait for Al Sharpton, et all to tell you that the alleged motive for this shooting was that Willis believed that Watkins had stolen a video game system and drugs from him.

Surely you remember the protest marches with people chanting "No justice. No peace."  You don't?  Well maybe you remember how there was a bounty put out on Willis.  You're right, that didn't happen either.  Surely you remember when the President said, "If I had another daughter, she would look just like Jonylah Watkins." I didn't hear that either.  

I also NEVER heard Obama express concern about the violence that occurs on a daily basis in his adopted hometown of Chicago using the public platform that is afforded a President.

Last night, defense attorney Mark O'Mara was asked if George Zimmerman had been black and Trayvon had been white how would the case have been different.  I was kind of surprised when he articulated what many people suspect.

Mr. O'Mara said, "I think that things would have been different if George Zimmerman was black for this reason.  He never would have been charged with a crime."

O'Mara also acknowledged the racial elements of the case and blamed the media and civil rights group attention on this case for twisting the course of justice.

Now today, the President of the United States speaks out about this case asking people to honor the decision of the court.  This may be laudable until one realizes that the Attorney General Eric Holder continue this circus by bringing forth civil rights charges against Zimmerman.

I for one would NOT be surprised in the least since we already know that the Department of Justice under the direction of Eric Holder joined the NAACP, Al Sharpton, and others in creating pressure to prosecute Zimerman despite the fact that the investigating officers did not feel they had the evidence to go forward in the case.

We have also been assured by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) that this isn't over and he has asked the Justice Department to prosecute George Zimmerman.

This despite the fact that the Justice Department has already conducted an exhaustive investigation to determine whether Zimmerman killed Martin out of racial animus  Yes I said NO EVIDENCE.

But don't worry, Obama has assured us that we are a nation of laws, and a jury has spoken.


Saturday, July 13, 2013

The Verdict Is In - Zimmerman Is Found Not Guilty


Like millions of others I awaited the verdict in the George Zimmerman case with the realization that regardless of the outcome there are no winners.  On that rainy night on February 26, 2012 two lives collided and resulted not just in the death of an unarmed teenager but also unleashed a media storm that morphed a neighborhood watch volunteer into a fearsome creature.

In the media, social and otherwise, some questioned why there was a trial when it was "obvious" that George was guilty.  Still others wondered the need for a trial for different reasons.  Those people saw this case as a textbook case of self-defense.

All day I listened as HLN replayed the "highlights" of the case and I wondered again and again just how we got here.  Of course I knew the answer.  Former Sheriff Bill Lee had admitted that he felt pressure from cit officials to arrest Zimmerman to placate the public rather than as a matter of justice.

Lee insisted that based on the evidence at hand, arresting Zimmerman would have been a violation of his Fourth Amendment rights.  Protests and petitions for arrest only managed to prevent the department a chance to complete their investigation.  Lee still takes issue with the media portraying his department as apathetic or lackadaisical in this case.

Ultimately Lee was given a vote of no confidence and asked to step down due to these same outside pressures.

I think this case has been confusing to many who watched as prosecution witnesses were called to the stand only to shred the case for the prosecution.  Even the lead investigator stated under oath that he did not think Zimmerman was guilty.

Still Judge Debora Nelson refused three times to dismiss the case against Zimmerman insisting that there was "substantial evidence and circumstantial evidence to merit that the case be sent before the jury.

On Friday the jury was given the case to deliberate and they did so for three and a half hours before retiring for the evening.  Only one question had been sent to the court and that was actually a request for an itemized list of evidence exhibits.  Some media commentators saw this as a positive sign for the prosecution.

The jury came back today and worked straight through lunch,

When asked how I thought the case would be decided an vacillated.  I looked upon the question that the jury sent to the court today as saying that the charge of Second Degree was off the table and that the jury was considering a verdict of manslaughter either as a compromise verdict.  I was not convinced yet that the jury would find George Zimmerman not guilty.

I told my husband, "If the jury plans to find Zimmerman not guilty they will make that decision tonight before they leave.  If the jury plans to vote for manslaughter, I believed that they would sleep on the decision before coming forward with the verdict the next day."

Finally the jury came back with the verdict and my husband and I said a prayer for the families of Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman.  We prayed that each family could eventually find peace and healing.

After sixteen and a half hours of deliberation the jury came back with a verdict of "NOT GUILTY".

After  the verdict was read, George Zimmerman hugged his family.

“(George Zimmerman) A man who believes in the system… A man whose dad was a judge, who maybe wanted to be a cop or a prosecutor and then gets a system… Two systems went against George Zimmerman that he CAN’T understand. You guys, the media, he was like a patient on an operating table where mad scientists were committing experiments on him and he had no anesthesia. He didn’t know why he was turned into this monster, but quite honestly you guys had a lot to do with it, you just did, because you took a story that was fed to you and you ran with it and you ran right over him and that was HORRID to him.

Then, he comes into a system that he trusts… Let’s not forget SIX voluntary statements, voluntary surrender, and he believes in a system that he really wanted to be a part of, right? And then he gets prosecutors that charge him with a crime that they could never ever prove. It’s not like they… they didn’t lose evidence along the way, right? So, I don’t think anyone would argue with me in this room, that they had evidence of 2nd degree murder. This “in your heart” kind of stuff, that’s not what we’re supposed to do and it’s not what they’re supposed to do. SO, those 2 systems failed him!”

Friday, July 12, 2013

The Waiting Game - The Jury In the Zimmerman Case Deliberate




The prosecution often appealed to emotion and asked the jurors to listen to their “heart” when deliberating

The prosecution used their final comments in an attempt to appeal to the emotions of the jurors.  He asked jurors to listen to their "heart" when deliberating.

This case should be decided based on the facts and the evidence, not emotion. Not simply because a seventeen year old was unarmed and not simply because a twenty-eight year old was armed. The jury needs to look the the circumstances, look at the facts and evidence then come to a decision.

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Charge Of Child Abuse Against George Zimmerman A Leap Too Far?



In another watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat moment, the prosecution in the George Zimmerman case tried to add a lesser charge of of Aggravated Child Abuse to the jury instructions.

The state argued that since Trayvon was seventeen at the time of the shooting.  In such cases the fact that the perpetrator did not know the victim's age is not considered a defense.

According to Don West, the defense was not notified until 7:30 a.m. this morning.  I'm sure there were many who viewed this as a Hail Mary pass to get a conviction, any conviction, at any cost.  Frankly after learning of this charge I wondered why the state didn't toss in a parking violation or a charge of jay walking.

Thankfully these charges were tossed by the judge.

In yet another WTF moment in the trial sideshow, Bejamin Crump, the lawyer for the Martin family lets us know that 'who" screamed doesn't matter when asked about the state's concession that Trayvon Martin was probably on top of George Zimmerman during the struggle.

Then again this is the SAME Benjamin Crump who said that this case was never about racism despite repeatedly stating publicly that this case was absolutely about racism.

We only need to look as far as the former police chief, Bill Lee who testified Monday in this case to see that the arrest of George Zimmerman was indeed racially motivated.

Lee admitted to CNN's George Howell in an exclusive interview that he was pressured by city officials to arrest Zimmerman to placate the public rather than a matter of justice.

He claims that "It was (relayed) to me that they just wanted an arrest.  They didn't care if it got dismissed later.






Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Raise Your Voice! And Not Your Hands


The "twitter-verse" is rife with threats of riots looting, and racial violence if George Zimmerman is acquitted.  As a matter of fact, the New Black Panthers have promised to oversee a "rebellion" if Zimmerman is acquitted.

Around noon, dozens of Miami Police officers lined up for riot training.  Police were armed with batons and horses and ran through various formations preparing for the worst.  The fact that this "training" happened at a time when the jury will soon be deliberating the fate of George Zimmerman is purely coincidental we are told.

In Broward County the sheriff’s has released a series of public service announcements to preempt any possible violence.  In one video a group of teens are lined up in front of the camera.  Two teenagers shout out lines such “Raise your voice!  And not your hands.  We need to stand together as one, no cuss, no guns.  Let’s give violence a rest because we can easily end up arrested.”

Sheriff Scott Israel then comes in behind the teenagers and wraps up the video with the line, “I’m Sheriff Scott Israel and law enforcement does have your back.”

Sheriff Israel is quick to reassure citizens that they have no concrete reason to believe that a specific violent incident will happen if Zimmerman walks free.  He does argue that it's better safe than sorry and encourages everyone to keep any protest peaceful.

Friday, July 5, 2013

I Cannot Remember Anything On The Day Of Autopsy



In viewing the testimony of Dr. Shiping Bao I'm having a Sergeant Schultz. moment.  For those not familiar with Hogan's Heroes, I'm referencing the bumbling who would often claim that he "Saw nothing!"

In this case, Dr. Bao could remember nothing much of the time.  He couldn't even remember the conversation he had with the lead prosecutor the day before he testified.

One of the more what the hey moments was when we notice that Dr. Bao actually was actually reading his answers off personal notes during his testimony.  When the defense requested copies Dr. Bao's notes he appeared to be very frustrated and told West that he'd rather not.

Judge Nelson then instructed him that attorneys on both sides were entitled to view his notes.

Here is an example of Dr. Bao's testimony:

 Bao:  "No one knows the autopsy better than me."

Don West: "And you don't remember anything about the autopsy, correct?"

Bao:  "Correct."

In my opinion Dr. Bao was ultimately a disaster of a witness for the state.




Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Objection Your honor. My Witness Is Detrimental To My Case


Can you un-ring a bell?  Most would say no and that's why it was pretty powerful that court ended with a statement from Detective Chris Serino saying that he found Zimmerman's account of the events leading up to the death of Trayvon Martin credible.

Today, before the jury was lead back into the courtroom, prosecuting attorney Bernie de la Rionda asked the judge to strike Detective's Serino statement arguing that the statement was improper.  De la Rionda's position is that one witness isn't allowed to give an opinion on the credibility of another witness.

Defense attorney Mark O'Mara argued it was proper because Serino was vetting Zimmerman's veracity in his probe.

After hearing arguments, Judge Debra Nelson told jurors to disregard the statement made by Detective Serino.  While technically this can be seen as a plus for the state the jurors have already heard this testimony from Detective Seriono as to his professional opinion as to Zimmerman's veracity.

Dr. Valerie Rao was called by the prosecution to provide her assessment of Zimmerman's injuries based on PHOTOS.  Dr. Rao said that Zimmerman's injuries were insignificant and could have been the result of a single blow.

On cross, Dr. Rao acknowledged she was appointed by state attorney Angela Corey, who is overseeing the prosecution of Zimmerman.  She also conceded that while Zimmerman's injuries were consistent with one punch it was possible that he may have been hit repeatedly.

It's interesting to note here that Dr. Rao has been the subject of recurring complaints from coworkers dating back to 2009.  The complaints include:  touching cadavers with her bare hands, washing her feet in the autopsy sink, and performing autopsies on inmates to create a revenue stream.

Prosecutors asked a judge to allow them to introduce school records indicating that Zimmerman took a class that addressed Florida's self-defense law.  Prosecutors claim that this will prove that he had knowledge of the law, even though he claimed he didn't in an interview with talk show host Sean Hannity.