State Senator Geraldine Thompson (Florida’s 12th District) at a media briefing on Tuesday, called on Governor Rick Scott to address the underlying problems which allowed for a not-guilty verdict to be rendered in the State vs. George Zimmerman.
Thompson, who was surrounded by several members of the Orange County Legislative Delegation, as well as representatives of various community groups said, the Zimmerman verdict was a direct result of Florida’s expansion of the use of its deadly force laws.
“The verdict that came down in the State vs. Zimmerman case rests squarely on the shoulders of the Florida Legislature,” she said.
Noting that Florida was the first state in the nation to expand the use of deadly force beyond the Castle doctrine in 2005, Thompson said, it is the Legislature that will have to “amend or repeal this flawed law so that we don’t have this vigilantism that we saw in the Zimmerman case.”
According to Thompson, statistics show that since 2005, if an individual kills someone who is black or brown, that person is 73 times more likely to be acquitted than if the person murders someone who is not black or brown.
“Since 2005 we have seen an escalation in the number of justifiable homicides and we have seen a significant increase in claims of self-defense,” Thompson said. Citing a Tampa Bay Times study, she added that justifiable homicides have tripled to 35 per year since the Castle doctrine was expanded.
“So we know we have a problem and I have called on Governor Rick Scott to have the Florida Commission on Human Relations come into Central Florida to deal with polarization, inter-group tensions and mistrust of the judicial system that we have found since the Zimmerman verdict,” she said.
Rep. Victor Torres (District 48), describing the Zimmerman verdict as a “travesty” said, there is a similar worry and concern in the Hispanic community regarding issues of justice and equality and lack thereof. He joined Thompson in calling on Scott to repeal or rectify the law.
Rep. Randolph Bracy (District 45), a young African-American legislator, who also addressed the media, told a personal story and the fear he felt leaving his house to go jogging wearing a hoodie, early on mornings.
“After Trayvon Martin’s shooting I was afraid to go out of my house, I didn’t want to be profiled,” he said. “This concerns me and it’s a scary thought.”
“I call on Florida to revisit the law, repeal it. We have to change it because what’s going on in Florida is pretty scary,” he said.
Rep. Joe Saunders (District 49) said, the gay community has long felt the heart-break of being targeted for who they are and who they love. He suggested that there is no one solution to addressing the underlying issues, but a good first step would be to acknowledge that, “Trayvon Martin is gone because of bigotry and hate.”
Directly speaking to his colleagues in the Florida Legislature, Saunders said, “To my colleagues in the Legislature, let’s just admit that we have a life altering problem in Florida, then maybe we can work together to find the right solution or solutions for the people of Florida.”
Rep. Linda Stewart, who represents District 47 in Orange County, was absent from the media briefing.
