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Be vigilant, but do not become a vigilante (Hurl, you will)
The Fayetteville Observer ^ | July 12, 2013 | Bill Kirby

Posted on 07/12/2013 5:24:33 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

After all of the evidence, six women in a Florida courtroom will decide if a Community Watch volunteer went too far in taking the life of a teenager walking through a neighborhood on a rainy evening.

It happened there.

It could happen here.

"I really encourage neighborhoods to get involved and report suspicious activities," says Harold Medlock, the Fayetteville police chief. "But that is where it needs to stop."

Be vigilant, he says, but do not become a vigilante, else you may become another George Zimmerman, 29, whose confrontation with Trayvon Martin left the 17-year-old with a bullet through the heart.

"We absolutely have to have people engaged in assuring our community is safe," Medlock says. "But we don't want folks intervening.

"When something strikes them as not being right, they need to call 911.

"We have the training and the expertise," the 58-year-old chief says. "We know how to approach folks. That's what the good people of Fayetteville, North Carolina, pay police to do."

Medlock says Community Watch groups are there to partner with police, and the chief says he takes pride in the 130 or so neighborhood watch groups throughout the city.

"That's one of the most encouraging things for me as a police chief," Medlock says. "Because of that interaction, we can positively impact crime."

And there is little question that this is a city with its share of vehicular and home invasions and property crimes.

It's frustrating.

Apparently, it was frustrating for Zimmerman on Feb. 26, 2012, when he witnessed what he described as a suspicious figure in the gated-neighborhood that had been plagued with criminal activity.

He called 911.

"This guy looks like he's up to no good, or he's on drugs or something," Zimmerman, who was armed with a 9mm semi-automatic pistol, is quoted as telling a police dispatcher. "It's raining and he's just walking around, looking about" and "looking at all the houses."

The dispatcher, according to court testimony and police recordings, instructed Zimmerman not to follow Martin.

But Zimmerman says the teenager confronted him, beat him, and in the fray, the watch captain shot Martin to death.

Self defense, Zimmerman's lawyers say.

Murder, prosecutors contend, adding that the Hispanic vigilante profiled and targeted a young black man innocently returning to the neighborhood home where Martin was visiting with his father and his father's fiancee.

A racist and unjust murder, Martin advocates cry, and now Sanford, Fla., fears that an acquittal could lead to civil discord.

"As Sanford goes, other cities will go," Medlock says. "I think people in Sanford will act responsibly. That's why we have lawyers, juries and people have their day in court."


TOPICS: Heated Discussion
KEYWORDS: banglist; riots; selfdefense; trayvon; vigilantes; zimmerman
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What happened to North Carolina?
1 posted on 07/12/2013 5:24:33 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

The commie libs have infested the whole country. With all the abortions the libs have, I don’t know where the heck they are all coming from. “Colleges” I guess.


2 posted on 07/12/2013 5:29:47 PM PDT by FlingWingFlyer (If America is a nation of immigrants, where's my free stuff?)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

The author has to completely accept the prosecution’s story that Zimmerman threw the first punch for Zimmerman to be a vigilante. It’s clear to see the author (who wasn’t there) is so confident that he knows for sure what happened.

The even sadder part is that many Liberals say that even if Trayvon threw the first punch he was justified because Zimmerman was following him. So, if you’re keeping track at home, it’s vigilantism and wrong to inquire of someone why they are in your neighborhood because you should just call the police instead. But if you think someone is following you, you have no duty to call the police but instead can hit them and that’s not vigilantism. This Liberal double standard is, of course, subject to change based on the race of the participants.


3 posted on 07/12/2013 5:36:23 PM PDT by NotYourAverageDhimmi
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

My sympathies to the good people of Fayetteville, North Carolina wasting their money on a clown like you, Medlock.


4 posted on 07/12/2013 5:36:53 PM PDT by TigersEye ("No man left behind" is more than an Army Ranger credo it's the character of America.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I stopped reading at “police chief.”


5 posted on 07/12/2013 5:37:49 PM PDT by SteveH (First they ignore you. Then they laugh at you. Then they fight you. Then you win.)
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To: NotYourAverageDhimmi

Tell them that Mr. Zimmerman is 1/4 black and watch their heads explode. Oh, wait, Traydmark is probably 80-100% black, so that trumps George, right? I can’t always keep track....


6 posted on 07/12/2013 5:40:48 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet (I'll raise $2million for Sarah Palin's next run. What'll you do?)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Meanwhile 23 blacks died last weekend in Chicago. Not a peep.


7 posted on 07/12/2013 5:46:46 PM PDT by Dallas59 (Q: The worst president in US history?)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

IF, a really BIG IF Zimmerman is found guilty of ANYTHING, it’s all over for the rest of this country.

The corrupt, black supported system has won. You think things have gotten out of hand before, just wait till they have the gubmint covering their back be it honestly or otherwise.

The “black Panthers” and the other “brothers of whatever” will take control of all the major city areas. They have lots of flash mobs already in training for their next promotion to the “Panthers”, etc. Their ranks will explode.


8 posted on 07/12/2013 5:50:05 PM PDT by DaveA37 (I'm for SMALLER , HONEST government)
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To: SteveH

The continuation of g high pay and pensions for “emergency responders” and every other unionized job are dependent on a population trained never to actuall do for themselves,but always to call 9-1-1.


9 posted on 07/12/2013 5:50:11 PM PDT by hoosierham (Freedom isn't free)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

George Zimmerman is guilty, guilty, guilty.......of failing to double-tap. Anything worth shooting once is worth shooting twice.


10 posted on 07/12/2013 5:50:59 PM PDT by Repeat Offender (What good are conservative principles if we don't stand by them?)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Notice how police chiefs always wear 4 stars .... inflated egos not supported by inflated intelligence or common sense!


11 posted on 07/12/2013 5:51:40 PM PDT by RetiredTexasVet (The short list would be the list of all administration officials that are NOT pathological liars!)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
... if a Community Watch volunteer went too far in taking the life of a teenager walking through a neighborhood on a rainy evening.

A Community Watch volunteer didn't take the life of a teenager walking through a neighborhood on a rainy evening.

A Community Watch volunteer took the life of a teenager sitting on top of him trying to beat him to death.

12 posted on 07/12/2013 5:54:05 PM PDT by DuncanWaring (The Lord uses the good ones; the bad ones use the Lord.)
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To: Dallas59
Meanwhile 23 blacks died last weekend in Chicago. Not a peep

A black caller on Hannity today said he wasn't troubled by this "cuz dats just what we do" (kill each other, apparently).

I gave him points for honesty.

13 posted on 07/12/2013 5:56:06 PM PDT by Drew68
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To: DuncanWaring

Poor old GZ didn’t do anything Mr GG2 and several of our neighbors have not done a dozen times. We have a bad crime problem in our area. They have actually gotten in their vehicles and chased people out of the neighborhood. They don’t give a perp an even break to have the chance to jump them. :-)


14 posted on 07/12/2013 6:11:09 PM PDT by Georgia Girl 2 (The only purpose of a pistol is to fight your way back to the rifle you should never have dropped.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I get the feeling this is all set up to make us fear protecting ourselves, our family, our neighborhoods.

They would have us believe that an isolated incident in Florida, applies in every state, county and town.


15 posted on 07/12/2013 6:12:11 PM PDT by KittenClaws ( You may have to fight a battle more than once in order to win it." - Margaret Thatcher)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

My rant Part One just posted at the site. Join me there and it will mean at least three people, including the author’s mother, will have visited the site.

“This case was a political lynching from the start. One of many to keep us “poor folk” of all colors at each others throats while the ruling classes loot the country. The misery pimps led by Sharpton, the DC noblisse led by our Prez Commander Zero (”If I had a son, he would have looked like Trayvon”), and a sneering media were all trolling for a case just like this.

The media launched a pre-planned and coordinated barrage attacking “stand your ground” laws, concealed carry and basically anything that was white, male, carried an NRA card, or went bang. They consciously and maliciously altered timelines, edited tapes, spread lies and spun fables with perfidy. They are as shameless, depraved and fallen as Sharpton.

But alas, problems started when they got burned by the name Zimmerman. They jumped the gun (pun intended) and blew off their foot. Old Al “not so” Sharpton thought had another 1984 Bernie Goetz hate fest handed to him it with yet.
another “rich” Jew killing more “innocent” black youth. What a perverse racist bastard Howling Al is.

The media came to his aid by creating a new oppressor class....the dastardly “white Hispanic”. This moronic nonsense pejorative applied to a gentle faced 50% Incan descended labradoodle of a man who helped black kids learn to read.

North Carolinians should remember well the Sharpton Duke lacrosse lynching this same crew tried to gin up with the same lies. The same spin. And the same low information mobs who believe what they are told to believe.”


16 posted on 07/12/2013 6:35:10 PM PDT by Lowell1775
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

He’s a police chief, not a cop. Real cops love it when the public helps them catch a crook. Police agencies will almost always tell you to disengage for liability reasons. If you continue and help the cops, great. But if you get your butt kicked and try to place blame, they will fall back on their warning.


17 posted on 07/12/2013 7:50:49 PM PDT by Yogafist
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To: Dallas59

reporting black on black murders would be bringing up negative portrayals of the black community, which certain blacks say is racist. it identifies a epidemic problem that blacks have no desire to acknhowledge, address, and correct themselves.


18 posted on 07/12/2013 7:59:02 PM PDT by Secret Agent Man (Gone Galt; Not averse to Going Bronson.)
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To: Repeat Offender
George Zimmerman is guilty, guilty, guilty.......of failing to double-tap. Anything worth shooting once is worth shooting twice.

Gun supposedly jammed - likely interference with motion of slide. I say we go ahead and exonerate him on all charges...

He may not be guilty, but the premise is correct - anything worth doing...

19 posted on 07/13/2013 3:10:36 AM PDT by trebb (Where in the the hell has my country gone?)
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To: Drew68; Dallas59

>>>>Meanwhile 23 blacks died last weekend in Chicago. Not a peep

>>A black caller on Hannity today said he wasn’t troubled by this “cuz dats just what we do” (kill each other, apparently).

Another interesting aspect of this is that now black leaders in Chicago are calling for the National Guard to be brought in to control things. So the city with extreme gun control, which keeps guns out of the hands of law-abiding men, wants men with guns to come rescue them.

Classic Liberal Logic.


20 posted on 07/13/2013 4:11:58 AM PDT by FreedomPoster (Islam delenda est)
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