Posted on 06/01/2012 11:50:10 AM PDT by Lurker
ORLANDO, Fla. (WLS) - Prosecutors asked a judge Friday to revoke the bond of the neighborhood watch volunteer charged with killing 17-year-old Trayvon Martin.
Prosecutors said in a motion that 28-year-old George Zimmerman and his family misled them about his finances when testifying during a bail hearing that allowed him to be released from jail on a $150,000 bond. Prosecutor Bernie De la Rionda asked for the revocation during a hearing to help determine if prosecutors and the defense can stop the public release of certain documents in the case.
During the bond hearing in April, Zimmerman's relatives testified they had limited funds. Zimmerman's attorney said several days later that he had discovered his client had raised more than $200,000 from a website. At the time of the hearing, about $135,000 had been raised, and that money wasn't disclosed at the bond hearing.
"This court was led to believe they didn't have a single penny," said Prosecutor Bernie De la Rionda. "It was misleading and I don't know what words to use other than it was a blatant lie."
Defense attorney Mark O'Mara said it was an innocent misunderstanding and that Zimmerman wasn't using that money for his expenses and wasn't sure what he could use the money for. He said Zimmerman used the houses of his parents and grandmother as collateral for the bond.
Prosecutors also said in the motion that Zimmerman didn't disclose he had a second passport. Zimmerman turned his passport over to the court at the bond hearing as a measure that would prevent him from fleeing the country.
Zimmerman is pleading not guilty to second-degree murder and claims self-defense. Zimmerman shot Martin last February during a confrontation at a gated community of townhouses in Sanford, Fla., where Zimmerman lived and where Martin was visiting his father's fiancee.
The delay in an arrest for 44 days prompted protests nationwide and led to Sanford's police chief stepping aside so emotions could cool down.
At Friday's hearing, De la Rionda and O'Mara also asked a judge to stop the public release of witness names and statements made by Zimmerman to police officers. Those documents normally are part of the public record under Florida law.
"What's occurring, unfortunately, are cases are being tried in the public sector as opposed to in the courtroom," De La Rionda told Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester. "We are in a new age with Twitter, Facebook, and all these things I've never heard of before in my career.
Everybody gets to find out intimate details about witnesses that never occurred before. Witnesses are going to be reluctant to get involved."
A consortium of more than a dozen media groups, including The Associated Press, asked the judge to ignore the request, saying such records are presumed to be publicly available under Florida law.
Rachel Fugate, an attorney for the Orlando Sentinel, cited the Casey Anthony trial as an example of a highly publicized case in which a jury was able to be seated despite intense media coverage. The Florida mother was acquitted last year of killing her 2-year-old daughter.
"Discovery in Florida has traditionally been open ... and Florida hasn't encountered problems seating juries and giving defendants fair trials," Fugate said.
O'Mara said Friday on a website that he doesn't expect the case to be ready for trial until next year.
O'Mara said he expects to call on 50 witnesses who need to be deposed before he decides whether to file a "stand your ground" motion which would ask for a hearing before a judge without a jury. At the hearing, Zimmerman would argue self-defense under the Florida law which gives wide latitude to use deadly force rather than retreat in a fight if people believe they are in danger of being killed or seriously injured.
The Associated Press Contributed To This Report
Don’t you think we should wait until all the information is available and not relying solely on the msm before making a decision? I will wait for all the facts to come out as they will with time before jumping to any conclusions.
You got it Revolting cat, they’ll create a crime if need be to get Zimmerman—just as was done to Scooter Libby.
” Oh, you mean it’s ok to lie to the court then?”
Of course not.
According to Rush, some BS excuse for not telling his wife about some extra money in his paypal account and having an extra passport.
I'm not relying on the MSM. Everything's in the public record, and Zimmerman's own lawyer acknowledged that Zimmerman did not disclose the money or the second passport. What other information are you looking for?
And on a Friday...so he can’t have another hearing before Monday. I expect there will be an “Accident” in the jail this weekend..... Zimmerman should have run for Mexico or South America before he was charged! I believe there is little chance of a “fair” trial.
It's not clear if he lied to the court. The money in question might not be under his control. I don't know how the defense fund is set up. He obviously thought that putting up TWO houses to guarantee bail was his best option.
As for the passport, perhaps the original order was for him to turn in his US passport, and he had another.
There's not enough information for me to say that he lied to the court.
“This is what happens when you displease the State lie in a court of law”
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Oh, it’s YOU again—here to defend the actions of oppressive governmental statists.
That’s a cheesy and lame excuse.
He's been trolling for quite awhile here under the radar, but he's been on mine for years.
Lame excuse for what?
While Zimmerman is out on bail his lawyer can delay the trial until after the election. The prosecutor doesn’t want that to happen.
How am I defending the actions of oppressive governmental statists? The guy lied to the court in his bond hearing. The court revoked his bond. In all likelihood, when he surrenders himself, he will have another bond hearing, and will be released again, (a) on a higher bond (taking into consideration the extra money that Zimmerman failed to disclose last time) and (b) having turned over the second passport.
So let me get this straight. His lawyer has this money from his paypal account and has had it all along. Crump should be sanctioned by the judge for lying to him.
What's wrong Con Con you don't like it?
Is this guy really going to skip out and run to where ever when he is really innocent? Yes, he is innocent - it was clearly self-defense. You think he's guilty? I'll bet you jumped with glee that the race hustler Al Sharpton got Florida to jump through hoops to railroad Zimmerman in this fiasco. His paypal account for his defense and his bail is likely accumulating money as I type this. the donations for his defense are not static. That's why this is lame and cheesy to revoke his bail Con Con. The judge has other options.
I don't like what? The guy lied to the court. Now, he's going to face the consequences of lying (probably in the form of a higher bond and an admonishment from the judge).
Is this guy really going to skip out and run to where ever when he is really innocent? Yes, he is innocent - it was clearly self-defense. You think he's guilty? I'll bet you jumped with glee that the race hustler Al Sharpton got Florida to jump through hoops to railroad Zimmerman in this fiasco. His paypal account for his defense and his bail is likely accumulating money as I type this. the donations for his defense are not static. That's why this is lame and cheesy to revoke his bail Con Con. The judge has other options.
I don't know if he's innocent or guilty. No one other than Zimmerman knows exactly what happened, and we don't know what Zimmerman told the cops/prosecutors.
In any event, his innocence/guilt is irrelevant to his bond hearing. Even an innocent person who has been arrested should not lie in court.
Zimmerman doesn’t stand a chance.
This will be OJ in reverse.
IOW, they didn't want a bond approved if there was any chance at all he might be able to meet it. Isn't there something in the Bill of Rights about that?
Ah, here it is. Amendment VIII: "Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted."
The race hustlers want the punishment before the trial.
If Obama had a son... he'd use drugs like "innocent" Trevon?
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