1. Trayvon Martin updates
Enhanced video of Zimmerman being brought into custody shows a wound on the back of his head, but no blood on his shirt or nose - ambulance for him was canceled because his injuries were not life threatening
Forensics experts have confirmed the screams you hear in the 911 calls were not Zimmerman’s - they had no audio recording of Trayvon’s voice to test it
There have been marches and rallies across the country and in London in support of Trayvon and his family
Lead homicide investigator Chris Serino recommended that Zimmerman be charged with manslaughter - he was advised by the prosecutor not to file charges because there is not enough evidence for a conviction
Stinks of a police cover-up
1. Trayvon Martin updates
911 calls have been released - you can hear Trayvon screaming for help and then a gunshot and his screams stop
Father of Zimmerman wrote a letter to an Orlando newspaper - his son is not a racist, he is Hispanic and grew up in a multi-racial family, would never do something like this (Kate: well he did do it, so…)
Witnesses:
- Mary Cutcher believes the confrontation ended before they (Trayvon and Zimmerman) got to her back yard (which is where Trayvon was killed). She believes Zimmerman continued to chase Trayvon while he was trying to get home
- Austin McLendon was less than 20 yards from Trayvon when he was shot - his mother said police and some media have twisted his account to fit a self-defense theory
Many witnesses say police and investigators attempted to lead them in their questioning, or did not do a thorough job during the interviews (Cutcher says she contacted them several times before they interviewed her again)
Sheryl Brown (Austin’s mother) said the night of the shooting, one investigator told her flat out, it wasn’t self-defense and there was racial stereotyping going on
3. Election News
Tuesday - Republican presidential primary in AZ and MI
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Santorum accused Obama administration of weakness for apologizing about the Korans being burned
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Romney is focusing on economic issues rather than social issues (possibly in reaction to Santorum focusing on them)
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MI poll shows Romney and Santorum as front-runners and Gingrich and Paul trailing
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Santorum: “[President Obama] is now trying to tell people of faith that you will do what the government says, we are going to impose our values on you.”
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Mitt Romney has Secret Service protection; Santorum will get S.S. starting Tuesday; Gingrich requested it last week; Paul has not requested protection, saying it is a waste of taxpayer money
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Santorum defends his anti-contraception stance by citing a racist author (Charles Murray) when asked about promising to address the dangers of contraception in our country
Santorum cites increase in number of kids born out of wedlock and sexually active teens, impact on society - economically, drug use and “host of other things”
Charles Murray wrote Bell Curve - argues that black people score lower on IQ tests because they are genetically inferior to whites
1. Billy Crystal hosting Oscars
Opening montage did a bit where Crystal played Sammy Davis Jr. - in black face
Crystal had played Davis the same way on SNL in the ’80s
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Viola Davis on the red carpet
