DOJ Announces No Civil Rights Charges Against George Zimmerman in Shooting Death of Trayvon Martin

In the end, Eric Holder’s Department of Justice will not file civil rights charges against George Zimmerman.

The Department of Justice will not be filing charges against George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. Try as they might to to charge Zimmerman in this politically motivated sham of a DOJ investigation, it turns out they had nothing. Zimmerman was originally charged with the first degree murder of Trayvon Martin as many irresponsible individuals stated it was racially motivated and a hate crime. The “white” Hispanic killed a black teen.  Even though the feds had intimated that there would be no charges filed, federal officials have insisted their civil-rights probe would be thorough and complete as it went on for nearly three years. After all is said and done, after the liberal MSM and Obama/Holder Justice Department tried to railroad Zimmerman, he walks away with an acquittal and no civil rights charges. That usually occurs when one kills another in a self defense shooting. As Legal Insurrection opined, “This decision comes as no surprise to anyone familiar with the actual facts of the case.” Imagine that Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Barack Obama, Eric Holder, NBPP, NAACP and the rest of the race-baiters, George Zimmerman did not violate Trayvon Martin’s civil rights or kill him because of his color.

Local prosecutors initially did not feel there was enough evidence to prosecute the case. They were replaced and a politically motivated prosecution was conducted to get their pound of flesh from George Zimmerman. The murder prosecution failed, not the federal investigation into civil rights charges against Zimmerman has failed. One has to wonder if a civil law suit is next? However, I would have to agree with Robert Zimmerman,  a wrongful death trial, could be very troubling to the family of Trayvon Martin and could lead to very unpleasant facts that were never a part of the criminal trial.

VIDEO – CNN

ABC News – Trayvon Martin: DOJ Announces No Charges Against George Zimmerman.

Justice Department officials met with Martin’s family today, and were told that they will not be filing charges against George Zimmerman, who shot the 17-year-old after a confrontation in 2012. Thursday marks three years to the day since Martin was killed.

Federal prosecutors concluded there is not sufficient evidence to prove Zimmerman, a neighborhood watchman in Sanford, Fla., intentionally violated Martin’s civil rights.

“Although the department has determined that this matter cannot be prosecuted federally, it is important to remember that this incident resulted in the tragic loss of a teenager’s life,” Acting Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division said. “Our decision not to pursue federal charges does not condone the shooting that resulted in the death of Trayvon Martin and is based solely on the high legal standard applicable to these cases.” The case sparked intense discussions over race in America because Martin was walking to his home with only Skittles and an iced tea in his hands.

Florida prosecutors tried to convict Zimmerman of state-level murder and manslaughter charges, but in July 2013 a jury acquitted him, saying prosecutors didn’t have enough evidence to prove their case.

UPDATE I: Federal Officials Close Investigation Into Death of Trayvon Martin.

Shortly after Zimmerman’s acquittal in state court on July 13, 2013, federal investigators resumed active investigation.  Federal investigators reviewed all of the material and evidence generated by the state of Florida in connection with its investigation and prosecution of Zimmerman, including witness statements, crime scene evidence, cell phone data, ballistics reports, reconstruction analysis, medical and autopsy reports, depositions, and the trial record.  Federal investigators also independently conducted 75 witness interviews and obtained and reviewed the contents of relevant electronic devices.  The investigation included an examination of police reports and additional evidence that was generated related to encounters Zimmerman has had with law enforcement in Florida since the state trial acquittal.  In addition, federal authorities retained an independent biomechanical expert who assessed Zimmerman’s descriptions of the struggle and the shooting.

The federal investigation sought to determine whether the evidence of the events that led to Martin’s death were sufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Zimmerman’s actions violated the federal criminal civil rights statutes, specifically Section 3631 of Title 42 of the U.S. Code or Section 249 of Title 18 of the U.S. Code, as well as other relevant federal criminal statutes.  Section 3631 criminalizes willfully using force or threat of force to interfere with a person’s federally protected housing rights on account of that person’s race or color.  Section 249 criminalizes willfully causing bodily injury to a person because of that person’s actual or perceived race.  Courts define “willfully” to require proof that a defendant knew his acts were unlawful, and committed those acts in open defiance of the law.  It is one of the highest standards of intent imposed by law.

The federal investigation examined whether Zimmerman violated civil rights statutes at any point during his interaction with Martin, from their initial encounter through the fatal shooting.  This included investigating whether there is evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that Zimmerman violated Section 3631 by approaching Martin in a threatening manner before the fatal shooting because of Martin’s race and because he was using the residential neighborhood.  Investigators also looked at whether there is evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that Zimmerman violated Section 3631 or Section 249, by using force against Martin either during their struggle or when shooting Martin, because of Martin’s race.

“Although the department has determined that this matter cannot be prosecuted federally, it is important to remember that this incident resulted in the tragic loss of a teenager’s life,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division.  “Our decision not to pursue federal charges does not condone the shooting that resulted in the death of Trayvon Martin and is based solely on the high legal standard applicable to these cases.”