George Zimmerman, the man found not guilty of second-degree murder and manslaughter charges in the wake of the shooting death of unarmed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in 2012, was arrested Friday on suspicion of aggravated assault and domestic violence with a weapon.
Zimmerman, 31, was arrested at about 10 p.m. in Lake Mary, Fla. and was booked on those charges at the John E. Polk Correctional Facility.
This episode is merely the latest in Zimmerman's checkered history with the law ever since his trial and the events leading up to it gained national attention. He was pulled over in Texas on July 31, 2013, just two weeks after his acquittal in the Martin case. A few months later, he was suspected of getting into an altercation with his then-girlfriend in November 2013. He was arrested on domestic violence battery, aggravated assault, and criminal mischief charges, which he denied. He posted $9,000 bail and his then-girlfriend opted not to press charges.
On top of those charges, a man said in September that Zimmerman threatened to kill him during a road rage incident.
Clearly, Zimmerman's track record is a spotty one. Even if he weren't guilty of any of the charges against him, the fact that he's been in police crosshairs so frequently ever since he first shot Martin casts an even longer shadow of doubt over the verdict. Let's be clear. Zimmerman has been charged with crimes, but has not been convicted. With that said, each incident that causes his name to appear in national headlines casts the verdict in even worse relief.
This particular incident in and of itself may or may not be directly related to recent tragedies that have increased racial tensions to their highest level in 22 years, but justice and race relations do not operate in a vacuum. Not only that, but questions about the neighborhood watch coordinator who continually runs afoul of the law don't paint a rosy picture for Lake Mary.
Recent events have made it clear that a major overhaul is needed in the justice system and in how those who are sworn to protect our communities operate. However, laws alone won't bring the change that's needed. Citizen panels who advise the police but don't have teeth in being able to keep them in line won't get the job done.
Both those who oppose police brutality and those who say they support the police make valid points, but when New York City police officers turn their backs on New York Mayor Bill de Blasio in obvious mutiny and an Indiana officer prints T-shirts with the sloan "Breathe Easy, Don't Break The Law" in an obvious slam on those who wore T-shirts with the slogan "I can't breathe," it only aggravates the us vs. them atmosphere that exists between police and citizens.
It's going to take the community and police working together to ensure that people don't live in fear of police and the police can do their jobs without fear that a 12-year-old will wield a pellet gun, as Tamir Rice did on Dec. 5 when he was shot dead. It's also going to take a much more careful evaluation of other things such as racial profiling.
The justice system was put in place with safeguards that are meant to protect the innocent. When those safeguards result in juries getting it wrong, the problems make the system look worse than it is, regardless of whether Zimmerman is not guilty of these latest charges.
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