Posted on 04/30/2012 4:07:25 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
George Zimmerman's attorney has launched an all-out social media campaign on behalf of his client, accused of second-degree murder in the killing of Trayvon Martin.
That social media effort includes a Facebook page, a website and a Twitter account on behalf of Zimmerman.
"We understand that it is unusual for a legal defense to maintain a social media presence on behalf of a defendant, but we also acknowledge that this is a very unusual case," says Zimmerman attorney Mark O'Mara on the new site, George Zimmerman Legal Case.
The American Bar Association's standards of professional conduct does not deal with social media, a spokesman for the ABA told msnbc.com, but "it's certainly going to be on everyone's radar screen" now.
Stephen A. Saltzburg, a member of the ABA's governing body, the House of Delegates, and former chairman of the ABA's criminal justice section, said "generally speaking, lawyers are not supposed to be making public statements that could compromise a fair trial."
Whether the Zimmerman social media effort will do that would be up to a judge, Saltzburg said....
(Excerpt) Read more at technolog.msnbc.msn.com ...
They’re upset because he hasn’t turned the other cheek, but IS holding his ground.
Time for the NAACP to request a gag order. Like the NC NAACP did in the Duke lacrosse case.
I thought Alan Gura and his firm did a great job with the DC gun case and updating us with that, but that's whole different matter than a criminal trial with freedom in the balance.
For GZ, having this over as quickly & quietly as possible should be the goal.
For O’Mara, not so. Dragging this out for months to enhance his career is his probable plan.
I wish Alan Dershowitz (sp?), needing no additional fame, would take over this case & end it in a quick immunity hearing, which I believe GZ would win, hands down.
When the DA has already convicted you in the press,
and the press is going along with the lynch mob,
then the defendant MUST come out swinging in his
own defense;
because the media isn’t going to report accurately
or do that job on its own.
Alan is an appeals attorney, and this is going to move as fast as the court schedule dictates.
And, pardon my cynicism, but there are times when you can’t just wait for the legal system to “work”.
The Scottsboro boys did that, and got convicted, and absent a courageous judge (a rare breed) would have been hanged for a crime which never happened. They needed all the help they could get—in the form of outside publicity and protests.
And the Duke lacrosse team would have almost certainly been convicted by a biased and/or intimidated jury (17% of potential jurors, when poled, said they would vote to convict them even if they were innocent).
If the system isn’t going to stop a Nifong or a Corey,
then the usual rules have to be tossed.
Very shrewd strategic move. Probably the only way to get out the real story past the "main slime prejudiced media".
“this is going to move as fast as the court schedule dictates.”
Speedy trial law is an option if they want to invoke it.
I posted a few days ago that this guy made me nervous. And a few reassured me he’s great,so i said okay.
The only thing that is unusual about this case is the publicity Its a self defense case. Not that unusual.
Yet he seems obsessed by the publicity aspect.
Continued good luck and prayers,George.
I do not believe a delay is in GZ’s best interests. A strong lawyer, acting on those best interests, would insist on a speedy immunity hearing, where he would destroy the Corey indictment. Court schedules can & are altered.
O’Mara seems to understand that this is a political trial. I see this as a good move.
criminal trials are supposed to be unfair to the prosecution. The prosecution has the overwhelming burded to exclude EVERY REASONABLE doubt. period.
that is unfair to the state. the way it is supposed to be.
I believe arraignment will be next, then a plea, then such motions can be made if I am not mistaken.
unless there is a motion regarding the arrest, arraignments are next and can be done by written plea. Not MSM media circus.
I wonder if PayPal has ever seen money come in that fast before.
The concept of armed self defense is being tried, poor George Zimmerman just got caught in the middle. If it wasn’t George it would be someone else.
I think this could be a shrewd move however I remember hearing the term “Pro Bono” in regards to this case.
“We do intend to raise funds on behalf of our client, and when we are approved to do so, we will accept funds online.”
...yes, and be very careful as to how these funds are appropriated.
I'll bet they haven't been laughing, either. That seems like an extraordinary amount of money in such a short time, especially since there was virtually no publicity and it was apparently a pretty half-assed sight.
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