I had plenty to say on Twitter about the trial of Michael Dunn for killing Jordan Davis. Many others were vocal on the topic as well. Below is a series of tweets, most but not all by me, written as the verdict drew near and then after Dunn was found guilty on 4 of the 5 charges levied against him. As we all know now, there was a hung jury on the 5th and most damning of the charges. No verdict was rendered for the murder of Jordan Davis. Nine jurors voted GUILTY but three felt there was reasonable room for doubt, or rather, for belief that Michael Dunn was acting in self defense rather than indignation and rage and bigotry. There may be a second trial and eventually full closure. For now, knowledge that Michael Dunn resides in a prison cell where he will likely be for the remainder of his days serves as cold comfort.
R.I.P. Jordan Davis
RT @lucymcbath Day 11. Verdict comes today. I am at peace in
knowing the truth has been told no matter what the outcome. In the end God will
judge.
If Dunn is acquitted it will demonstrate that many fixes to our
criminal justice system are needed. But IMHO, even more than changes to Stand
Your Ground laws or gun regulations, in greatest need of reform is our jury
selection process. Yet I have no answer for how we can omit those who base
decisions on preconceived notions and lifelong prejudices rather than the facts
of the case.
Comparing Dunn to Zimmerman is easy. Both needlessly instigated. But the cases
are very different. No evidence AT ALL that Dunn feared for his life.
Zimmerman, in addition to eliminating the one person who could
provide testimony that contradicted him, earned do gooder props by being a
neighborhood watchman. What was Dunn protecting? His eardrums from "thug
music"?
In the #DunnTrial only one side has made a cogent argument. Dunn contradicts himself from one minute to the next. Only consistency is his sweaters.
If the jury screws this up I say that at the very least, all trials for murders committed
in Florida
Since it doesn't seem to already be a law, I feel there should be one in place that
penalizes for instigating fights
while carrying concealed weapons. You can't claim
self defense if you aren't being attacked. If you went out of your way to bring about a fight,
WHILE ARMED, that should be a crime.
If you're carrying a gun, shouldn't you be extra cautions to AVOID confrontation?
Unless you desire a confrontation because you WANT TO FIRE IT.
#JordanDavis &/or other kids in car having a long rap
sheet of violent priors would be only reason to maybe consider Dunn's story to possibly be
non-fiction.
Responsible gun ownership/carrying is legal. But if you don't call
911 immediately after firing 10 times at 4 kids, how are you a law abiding
citizen?
RT @tjholmes Compared to other "famous" trials, this
jury has already deliberated longer than the Casey Anthony, Conrad Murray,
& OJ juries. #DunnTrial
RT @BelleVie73 self defense cases should have a legal requirement
that you notify police or you can't claim it way after the fact or at trial #onthecase
RT @EdHull8 There's Probably a Battle
RT @AmeshiaCross It always baffles me how someone with no criminal
history can be criminalized by the color of his skin alone #WhatIsAThug #DunnTrial
shoot at will yet? It's bigots WITH GUNS who worry me.
had an imaginary gun? #DunnTrial
Sidewalk possession is not protected by law. Neither is imaginary gun possession.
Real gun possession and usage IS protected.
In our legal system, perception trumps reality. If you fear a large black man who
happens to be a pacifist Reverend, only your fear matters.
You can shoot because you were frightened, provided you claim he made a
menacing move. No penalty for being unfortunately mistaken. Only the fear matters.
That's why I want an unarmed populace. Fear is too easily manufactured. Requires
no effort. Erased by pull of a trigger, until next time.
bothered Michael Dunn in deciding if he was justified in murdering a boy
RT @FrenchieGlobal FL
court strikes down law that banned loud music from cars http://hrld.us/1ca3JCb in case u need more reason to find Dunn guilty #Dunntrial
Clearly all people in Florida
defined in it. "Self" and "Defense".
overturned. A jury can never know how a defendant "felt" #DunnTrial
Black folk in timeline are surprised that Don Lemon passionately feels
Dunn should be convicted. Tweeps, even Ann friggin Coulter thinks Dunn is
guilty as hell. There's a difference between not having a militant "black is always right,
white is always wrong" mindset and being a major league sell out. So it's not especially surprising (at least not to me) that Don Lemon has a pull yourself up by own bootstraps philosophy and ALSO THINKS Dunn is guilty.
Had Dunn shot just the first 3 or 4 bullets into car & held off on continuing fire as
the boys fled, he would have walked free. The result we got is much more just, but still,
the verdict in the #DunnTrial shows that laws in FL are set up in favor of killers who claim fear as motive. He will serve time in jail because of his excess, not his initial evil.
the verdict in the #DunnTrial shows that laws in FL are set up in favor of killers who claim fear as motive. He will serve time in jail because of his excess, not his initial evil.
RT @KBDPHD Everytime I see Angela Corey smile after a bad verdict I feel she's more concerned w/ getting a network analyst gig than justice #DunnTrial
white neighbors, friends and allies.
I wouldn't mind seeing more of a mixed racial bag of reaction to Dunn verdict. You can
stop leisure tweeting for a tweet or two to express dismay. I know many don't like to
leave their topic comfort zones. I call them 1-note tweeters. But injustice should matter to everybody.
Certainly hard to figure out how these murdered boys in Florida
such thugs when alive supposedly after seeing classiness of their families. Unless to you brown skin automatically = thug.
scared in jail.
What exactly must one do to be convicted of murder by a jury in Florida
RT @JoyceCarolOates Have there been contributions to a "defense fund" for Dunn as there had been for Zimmerman? If not, this is an encouraging sign of change.
Three of the juror's believed Michael Dunn, presumably able to see Dunn's humanity
while perhaps not able to see Jordan Davis as being one of them.
Were the jurors who refused to vote "guilty as charged" racist? I don't know. I do
know that most acts of racism today aren't dramatic like a lynching. It transpires
quietly in who a person chooses to include/exclude.
I often implore folks on Twitter to stop calling EVERYTHING racist.
Otherwise it lessens impact of outrage when a complaint is legitimate.
In order for Michael Dunn to evade a guilty
verdict for the murder of Jordan Davis,
there needed to be jurors who saw Jordan
this without any evidence. Jordan
violence, was not the one who had
been drinking. No eyewitnesses corroborated
Dunn's wildly inconsistent
self defense, phantom gun story, not even his fiancee.
And yet to not be
convicted on ALL CHARGES, the man who was clearly lying to
save his life needed
to be found more credible than an unarmed kid who was shot down
because he was
playing loud music and it never occurred to his killer to simply park
a little
farther away.
Why did Dunn's inconsistently made claim that he was under attack outweigh what
but it also needs to be addressed for the sake of future Stand Your Ground tainted trials.
Based on the testimony I heard, the only menace to society that day was Michael Dunn.
I breathe easier knowing he's in jail where he belongs.
If the parents of Jordan Davis are at peace with the result of the #DunnTrial - that matters a great deal. Such sad satisfaction has not always been guaranteed. Yet it's understandable
that more was desired - total justice.
that more was desired - total justice.
Trayvon could have been Obama's son. Ditto for heartless kid killing other brown kids
on bloody streets of Chicago
RT @atticalocke Juror a reminder that we can't judge all white folks any more than
they can judge all of us. After the verdict there were many people, myself
included, making blanket statements about how white people view black life. #dunntrial #michaeldunn http://gawker.com/loud-music-
Of all Twitter reactions to highly publicized court cases, response to Casey Anthony's acquittal was most baffling http://lineaday.blogspot.com/
Of all Twitter reactions to highly publicized court cases, response to Casey Anthony's acquittal was most baffling http://lineaday.blogspot.com/
If/when Michael Dunn is retried I believe he'll be convicted on murder charge.
Evidence like letters/calls from jail will come into play.
In the meantime Dunn will already be in prison and not leaving any time soon, so not
an especially loud roar of outrage to come from me. Nevertheless, IMHO 3 of the
jurors were boneheaded to put it kindly.
jurors were boneheaded to put it kindly.
The hung jury may even be ultimately for the best because it's more ammunition in fight
against dangerous Stand Your Ground laws dotting this nation.
I suspect at least 1 of the 3 jurors who bought Dunn's self defense story will say
upon learning more about the killer after the trial - "if I had known that I'd have
voted differently". What they did already know should have been enough though.
As for those who persist in saying our focus needs to remain on Black On Black
crime rather than zeroing in on the untimely deaths of young black men such as
Trayvon Martin and Michael Dunn, I respond that comparing apples to oranges
is a waste of time...and fruit.
I do agree that rampant, violent crime in our inner cities should be a top priority,
though I call it Poor On Poor crime as I feel poverty is the determining factor,
not race. I believe guns need to taken out of more hands period. Poor, middle
class & rich hands. Black and White. Gang bangers and freelance vigilantes.
RT @elonjames I'm not amused by some folks constant attempts to defuse
righteous anger, hurt and frustration. Our humanity is ignored yet we should chill?
There are many monsters out there. Some seem easier to spot than others.
Some look hideous to you. Some look like reflection in mirror.
Black on Black / Poor on Poor crime is awful. Injustice in our courtrooms is awful. The Holocaust was awful. American slavery was awful. SEPARATELY
Connections are there to be made of course. Slavery's impact continues to be felt on
race relations & exclusively within the African American community.
But different forms of tragedy deserve to be examined individually, independently.
One tree drops many seeds that each take on lives of their own.
I know people who own guns and this knowledge doesn't bother me at all. The odds
of it leading to tragic results
are pretty low. I also know some people for whom I am
grateful of their decision
not to be gun owners because the very last thing they need
is a gun. A good
person can still have a fast temper or be prone to panicking under
pressure.
Such a person will needlessly ruin lives with immediate access to a trigger.
Let them yell that road rage out instead. Irresponsible gun owners make responsible ones
look bad and weaken 'right to bear arms' argument.
How can you tell the differences in temperament & purpose between the responsible and irresponsible people who apply for gun licences? I don't know, but somebody smarter than me needs to figure it out. Better case by case evaluation needs to take place, followed by stricter regulations in cases where gun ownership is allowed.
(repeatedly) Called Oprah a 'N*gger' http://www.mediaite.
Below is an image for you to contemplate. It shows a police office protecting a member of the KKK from angry protesters
because regardless of our beliefs (but not regardless of our actions) all Americans deserve
equal protection and equal justice courtesy of our laws.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment