Is a Mentally Challenged George Zimmerman Carrying A Firearm?

By: Tim From LAApr. 8th, 2012more from Tim From LA

They are either grasping for straws or it may be true, but attorneys for a man who shot and killed a teenager in a small town in Florida may use Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) as a defense if the the grand jury finds that the adult did in fact break the law and use Stand Your Ground inappropriately.

According to George Zimmerman’s attorney, Hal Ulrig, and a former police officer, he compared what happened to Zimmerman after Travon Martin bashed Zimmerman’s head into the concrete may be comparable to that of SBS. Yet according to the National Institute of Health, SBS’ symptoms:

In comparison with accidental traumatic brain injury in infants, shaken baby injuries have a much worse prognosis. Damage to the retina of the eye can cause blindness. The majority of infants who survive severe shaking will have some form of neurological or mental disability, such as cerebral palsy or mental retardation, which may not be fully apparent before 6 years of age. Children with shaken baby syndrome may require lifelong medical care.

Therefore, if Ulrig is going to use the SBS defense, does it mean his parents abused him as a child and cannot be held accountable, or is the attorney claiming that the head-bashing by Martin caused the SBS in Zimmerman. Or in either case, does Zimmerman, though not arrested still have right to carry his firearm? Federal law states that you cannot own a firearm if you are a convicted felon, convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence or if a judge orders a person to seek mental therapy against the will of the person.

Currently, Zimmerman does not fall into any of the categories, but a Federal Firearm License dealer is questioning whether he would sell a firearm to Zimmerman. The dealer said that if a person is first of all is mentally challenged but passes the basic firearm test, he would have no real problem selling a firearm, so long as they pass the test and the background check and sign for the DROS (Dealer Record Of Sales). Yet if Zimmerman were to come into the dealer’s store wishing to buy a firearm, he might have second thoughts.

The dealer explained that just because Zimmerman may not have been convicted, dealers would still fear that he may have the propensity for violence and they may not wish to sell to him…convicted or not. They would rather err on the side of caution.

Florida laws, according to the dealer, tend to be a lot more relaxed than California and unlike Florida, it takes a lot more to justify getting a concealed permit or to buy a firearm than it does in the Sunshine State. The dealer finally said that he would not want to lose his license just because he wants to make a buck. To him, the sale wasn’t worth risking a lawsuit.

Is a Mentally Challenged George Zimmerman Carrying A Firearm? was written by Tim From LA for PoliticusUSA.

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18 Responses to Is a Mentally Challenged George Zimmerman Carrying A Firearm?

Leo Soderman

Apr. 8th, 2012 at 1:24 pm

I think this is jumping the gun. The SBS isn’t a defense against him firing inappropriately. They will use it to bolster the self-defense angle. Remember, they have been hard pressed to show that Zimmerman had any substantive injuries, including the head gash. This is an attempt to say that he was in danger even if the injuries were not visible.

They know his story is falling apart. They have to stop this case a the self-defense claim. If they lose that, they will have no defense, and Zimmerman is going to jail. So they are trying to put the story out that it was self-defense despite a lack of serious visible injury.
What do you think? 0 0
- Tim From LA
  
  Apr. 8th, 2012 at 3:50 pm
  
  Jumping the gun? No. In California, if a person is mentally challenged and can pass the basic handgun test, as I have written, the gun dealer will sell the person the pistol. But the dealer would be leery to sell a firearm and now, if the attorney is trying to use the SBS as a defense, and that he doesn’t have the mental capacity to to know what is right or wrong, should then Zimmerman have a pistol? Gun dealers in California say no.
  What do you think? 0 0
  - Jon
    
    Apr. 8th, 2012 at 7:59 pm
    
    The lawyer never said Zimmerman suffered or might suffer from SBS. He simply used SBS as an example of the dangers of brain trauma from minimal physical damage to the head and how receiving ANY damage to the head could be construed as life-threatening, justifying his use of lethal force. He also mentioned Liam Neeson’s wife dying from a single blow to the head in a skiing accident but that certainly doesn’t imply their defense will be that Zimmerman couldn’t kill Martin because he was away skiing.
    What do you think? 0 0
    - Elizabeth
      
      Apr. 10th, 2012 at 6:34 pm
      
      Thank you for clarifying the SBS comment from the lawyers. I’ve only been half following the case and missed the fact it was only an example. I was thinking that proving SBS with a 28yo unless documented a lot earlier was virtually impossible. We are now recognizing that minimal brain trauma is much more serious than we’ve thought. Proving any of the examples might be difficult.
      What do you think? 0 0
Anne

Apr. 8th, 2012 at 1:39 pm

The more they try to spin events in Zimmerman’s favor, the more and more ridiculous they look and sound. Yes, they are trying to say that Trayvon Martin was pounding George Zimmerman’s head on the sidewalk, and that if he hadn’t shot this kid in “self-defense,” he would have been brain-damaged in the way that infants subjected to being shaken end up being. It really looks like they are grasping for straws, and the spectacle of Robert Zimmerman claiming that the president, the NAACP, and others are stoking racial hatred is equally sickening. They are transparent attempts to defend the indefensible. They don’t even have the common decency to give their condolences to Trayvon Martin’s family for their loss, and that also speaks volumes about them.
What do you think? 0 0
- Leo Soderman
  
  Apr. 8th, 2012 at 2:23 pm
  
  Frankly, I can’t blame the lawyers. Their job is to do their best to get the client off. Plain and simple. They see that there is mounting evidence, and that the story leaks like a sieve.
  
  The tragedy and most infuriating part of this is that there are enough holes in Zimmerman’s version to justify an arrest. And it hasn’t happened. I expect lawyers to protect their clients. And I expect murder/manslaughter suspects to lie. I also expect law enforcement to do a competent job. And that hasn’t come close to happening.
  What do you think? 0 0
Karen R

Apr. 8th, 2012 at 8:02 pm

It is because is father is a retired supreme court judge in Florida. His father has connections of course. But I think this sucks, arrest the guy already so it can stop being tried in the public arena. People are begging for his arrest!
What do you think? 0 0
- Elizabeth
  
  Apr. 10th, 2012 at 6:37 pm
  
  I think the father being a state Supreme Court justice has been refuted. It seems he was a magistrate which is the lowest level of judges in the state.
  What do you think? 0 0
Conservative Heart

Apr. 8th, 2012 at 8:20 pm

Carrying a gun is a natural human, God-given right!

There’s nothing wrong with the human condition that can’t be fixed with the ownership of a gun.

Liberals are idiots and a disgrace to God and Christianity for wanting to do away with guns.

Especially on this holy day, you should be showing understanding that God is about love and peace, instead of spending it whining like you usually do.

Stupid libtards, try honoring God and the Constitution he wrote for once in our life.

You communists can keep the hope and change; I’ll keep my guns, my God and my freedom!
What do you think? 0 0
- SheilaToomey
  
  Apr. 8th, 2012 at 8:25 pm
  
  That is the funniest thing I’ve read today. God wrote the Constitution? Hahahahahahaa!
  What do you think? 0 0
- moles
  
  Apr. 9th, 2012 at 1:08 am
  
  Rolls eyes, collapses on the floor in hysterics after coffee went up my nose.
  What do you think? 0 0
- Tim From LA
  
  Apr. 9th, 2012 at 3:23 am
  
  So you like your guns. Cool. I’m a liberal and I’m with Liberal Gun Club. I have a 91/30 Mosin Nagant, a WWII Soviet bolt-action which five round in a clip and one in the chamber. The rouns are non-corrosive 7.62X54R. It has a kill range of 1,000 yards in one second. I also have a scope with a weaver-type scope-mount, a red-light reticle. It’s a good rifle. But I do have a question, as stringent as California regarding firearms, name me a time a Democratic representative took away any firearms? I know a Republican who did and it was George W. Bush after Katrina. Now wait, before you start saying that the Democratic governor took away the firearms, remember this, the FEMA was in charge and they ordered all firearms confiscated. How so? It was a national emergency and Blackwater was called in, along with the National Guard to do the bidding of the FEMA. So under the Bush Administration, the good people of New Orleans had their Second Amendment taken away. And lets not forget:
  
  Patriot Act
  TARP
  Continuity of Government
  CAFTA
  Texas Highway Corridor
  9/11
  
  I can go on and on, and even conservatives were in horror when Bush implemented these executive orders and laws, only to give to Obama, who BTW allowed firearms in national parks, something Bush did not do. Oh, I cherish my rights to have my firearm, but I don’t like it when the conservatives take them away.
  What do you think? 0 0
- A Walkaway
  
  Apr. 10th, 2012 at 6:52 pm
  
  LOL. You even got a typo in there… good for you!
  
  A few misspelled words and some awful grammar would have been even better!!!
  What do you think? 0 0
SheilaToomey

Apr. 8th, 2012 at 8:23 pm

The article reads as if it’s a fact that Martin banged Zimmerman’s head on the sidewalk/curb. I thought that was disproved by the photos showing no marks and no blood on Zimmerman. Did I miss something or was the article just poorly written?
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- Shiva (Moderator)
  
  Apr. 8th, 2012 at 8:25 pm
  
  The videos up close show something on the back of his head. the results are inconclusive. However the article is from the view of the lawyers and how they will present the defense
  What do you think? 0 0
MsAdventure

Apr. 8th, 2012 at 9:10 pm

I wasn’t gonna comment on this, but then I read “ConservativeHeart’s” comments and couldn’t resist..please step away from the FOXTV.. I am absolutely positively sure without a shadow of a doubt that your GOD did NOT write the constitution..but that was funny as hell tho. thanks for the laugh
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MsAdventure

Apr. 8th, 2012 at 9:12 pm

and I am also sure that GOD did not give you a right to carry a gun, that would be the umm, guys who wrote the Constitution AND..If Jesus was alive today he would be one of your libtards.. HALLELUJAR!
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Reynardine

Apr. 9th, 2012 at 11:24 am

Frontal lobe damage is one of the factors in psychopathy, but psychopathy is not a defense under even a modified McNaughton, because a psychopath knows right from wrong: he just doesn’t give a shot.
What do you think? 0 0