Despite its poor quality, the video above, originally released Wednesday evening by ABC News but appearing here in an extended version and confirmed by police as authentic, has added to accusations that self-appointed neighborhood patroller George Zimmerman's account of his Feb. 26 shooting of Trayvon Martin is bogus.
Zimmerman has claimed, according to police and newspaper reports, that Martin attacked him, knocking him to the ground with a single punch that broke his nose, then slammed his head into the sidewalk, prompting him to pull his pistol and fire the bullet that killed the unarmed teenager. But in the video, there are no obvious signs that Zimmerman has been in a fight.
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A partial police report leaked two days ago states that Zimmerman received first-aid attention at the scene of the shooting from paramedics of the Sanford Fire Department. That might account for the lack of blood on Zimmerman's face, but a broken nose typically causes significant swelling, and there is no sign of that.
In the video, an officer briefly checks the back of Zimmerman's head, but what he can see at close range is not clear to viewers.
A lawyer for the Martin family indicated the video supports the version of the story in which Zimmerman attacked Trayvon, not the other way around:
"Thank God for surveillance video," said [Ben] Crump, "because obviously there was a conspiracy to cover up the truth and sweep Trayvon Martin's death under the rug, and as (Martin's mother) Sybrina Fulton said yesterday upon seeing this video, 'This is the icing on the cake.'"
Meanwhile, Richard Kurtz, the funeral director who prepared Martin's body for burial
said:
"The only thing that I was able to see was the gunshot wound," Kurtz told The Last Word. "I could not see evidence like he had been punching somebody as the news media say he was punching ... It just did not add up to me."
Additional questions have been raised by comments made to the Washington Post's Sari Horwitz by Trayvon's father, Tracy Martin. A detective with the Sanford Police Department told him two days after the shooting that his son had initiated the fight. Martin said he did not believe that account.
The detective told him, he said, that Trayvon had approached Zimmerman's SUV and asked why he was following him. Zimmerman said he wasn't doing so and rolled up his window. After Trayvon walked away, Zimmerman got out of the vehicle.
Then came the second encounter, according to Tracy Martin’s recollection of the detective’s account. Trayvon Martin appeared from behind a building in Zimmerman’s gated community, approached him and demanded, “What’s your problem, homie?”
When Zimmerman replied that he didn’t have a problem, Martin said, “You do now.” The unarmed teenager hit Zimmerman, knocked him to the ground, pinned him down and told him to “shut the [expletive] up.”
During the beating, Zimmerman pulled his gun and fired one shot at close range into Martin’s chest. “You got me,” the teenager said, falling backward.
Tracy Martin said he knew that was "bull."
Indeed, it doesn't jibe with the recording of the call Zimmerman made to police regarding Trayvon. Nor with statements by Trayvon's girlfriend "DeeDee" who has said she was talking to him while he was being followed and heard Zimmerman confront him.
While leaks may continue to flow, the Sanford Police Department said in a statement Wednesday that it may finally be making an arrest in the case: of reporters.
Some city employees have been "followed or approached at their home or in settings outside of working hours," according to the statement, released late Wednesday.
The city further asked that reporters not approach, call or email city employees at home.
"Law enforcement officials will not hesitate to make an arrest for stalking," the press release stated.
With the media scrambling for the tiniest scrap of new information in the case, a hungry reporter might take the risk. Exactly what statute the SPD would choose to charge a reporter under was not announced.
Related stories of interest:
• Florida shooter's race a complicated matter
• Supporters of Fla. shooter fearful of speaking out
• In absence of facts, Trayvon Martin case becomes a war of images and reputations online
• Joe Klein talks about the need for more gun control in Trayvon Martin: The Debate We’re Not Having
• Gail Collins talks about how worn out she is by the guns debate in More Guns, Fewer Hoodies
• Melissa Harris-Perry writes Trayvon Martin: What It's Like to Be a Problem
