Hammerdown77
Member
Yep. To me this whole case hinges on what he did after after that statement by the dispatcher. If he continued to pursue Martin and precipitated the confrontation, then the prosecution can use that to show intent. If he stood down and was walking back to his car when "jumped" by Martin, or even just confronted in a hostile manner, then he's got a good argument for being justified in using lethal force once Martin had him on the ground.There have been so many press reports that have said, "[I]Zimmerman was ordered by the police not to follow..." And this is also included in the Florida afidavid which says, "...[when] the police dispatcher realized that Z was pursuing M, he instructed Z not to do that...."
The transcripts of the 911 call, however, indicate that the dispatcher says, "We don't need you to do that...." and many here could conclude that this statement is not an instruction (e.g., an order) to Z by the 911 dispatcher.
It has also been assumed that Z ignored the dispatcher advice which has yet to be proven. Frankly, we don't know what Z did AFTER this advice from the dispatcher was given... he may have been walking back to his car...
Problem is, I don't think either side has any real evidence that shows what happened during that window of time.