Bobby Rush
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 1st district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 1993
Preceded by	Charles Hayes
Personal details
Born	(1946-11-23) November 23, 1946 (age 65) Albany, Georgia
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Carolyn Thomas
Residence	Chicago, Illinois
Alma mater	Roosevelt University University of Illinois at Chicago McCormick Theological Seminary
Occupation	elected official, insurance agent, civil rights leader
Religion	Christianity (Baptist)
Military service
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1963-1968

Bobby Lee Rush (born November 23, 1946) is the U.S. Representative for Illinois's 1st congressional district, serving since 1993. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

The district is located principally on the South Side of Chicago. It is a minority-majority district and has a higher percentage of African Americans (65%) than any other congressional district in the nation. Rush has the distinction of being the only person to defeat President Barack Obama in an election for public office, when Obama challenged him in a primary election in 2000.^[1] Rush is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Early life, education, and political activism[link]

After dropping out of high school, Rush joined the U.S. Army in 1963 but went AWOL and yet, somehow received an honorable discharge in 1968.^[2] Throughout the 1960s Rush was involved in the civil-rights movement. He worked in civil-disobedience campaigns in the South, and co-founded the Illinois chapter of the Black Panthers in 1968 and was made its "defense minister". His son, Huey, was named after Panther leader Huey Newton. "We were reacting to police brutality, to the historical relationship between African-Americans and recalcitrant racist whites," Rush later told People magazine. "We needed to arm ourselves." Rush was present when fellow Black Panther Fred Hampton was killed in a police raid and later made an official statement that the police, referred only to as "pigs" by Rush, had murdered Hampton. Rush's own apartment was raided in December 1969 where police discovered an unregistered pistol, rifle, shotgun and pistol ammunition, training manuals on explosives and booby traps, a small amount of marijuana and an assortment of communist literature.^[3] Earlier that same year Rush stated the philosophy behind his membership in the Black Panthers saying, "Black people have been on the defensive for all these years. The trend now is not to wait to be attacked. We advocate offensive violence against the power structure."^[4]

Imprisoned for six months in 1972 on a weapons charge after carrying a gun into a police station, Rush nonetheless worked on several non-violent projects that built support for the Black Panthers in African American communities. He coordinated a medical clinic that offered sickle-cell anemia testing on an unprecedented scale. Rush graduated with honors from Chicago's Roosevelt University in 1973. A year later he left the Panthers, who were already in decline. "We started glorifying thuggery and drugs," he told People. That was distasteful to the deeply religious Rush, who is a born-again Christian. He went on to say that "I don't repudiate any of my involvement in the Panther party—it was part of my maturing."^[5] He subsequently resumed his education in the early 1990s at the McCormick Seminary and received a master's degree in theology.

After leaving the Panther Party, Rush sold insurance for a time in the early 1970s.

Early political career[link]

Rush ran for a seat on Chicago's city council in 1974. The first of several black militants who later sought political office, he was defeated. In the early 1980s, however, Chicago's political life was transformed by the ascendancy of U.S. Representative Harold Washington, a noted orator and a charismatic figure who helped unite the city's African American community. Washington was elected mayor of Chicago in 1983, the first African-American to ever hold the office. That same year, Rush was elected alderman from the Second Ward on Chicago's South Side. He was one of the pro-Harold Washington faction on the Council during the "Council Wars" that began in 1983 following Washington's election as Mayor of Chicago in a racially-polarized contest.

U.S. House of Representatives[link]

Elections[link]

1992

After redistricting, Rush decided to run in the newly redrawn Illinois' 1st congressional district. He defeated incumbent U.S. Congressman Charles Hayes and six other candidates.^[6] He won the general election with 83% of the vote.^[7]

1994-1998

He won re-election in 1994 (76%), 1996 (86%), and 1998 (87%). In 1999, he ran for Mayor of Chicago and lost.

2000

In the 2000 Democratic primary for the U.S. House of Representatives (IL-01), Rush was challenged by State Senator Barack Obama.^[8] During the primary, Rush said: "Barack Obama went to Harvard and became an educated fool. Barack is a person who read about the civil-rights protests and thinks he knows all about it."^[9] During the campaign, Rush charged that Obama was not sufficiently rooted in Chicago's black neighborhoods to represent constituents' concerns, and also benefitted from an outpouring of sympathy when his son was shot to death shortly before the election.^[10] Obama said Rush was a part of "a politics that is rooted in the past" and said he himself could build bridges with whites to get things done. But while Obama did well in his own Hyde Park base, he didn't get enough support from the surrounding black neighborhoods.^[11] Starting with just 10% name recognition, Obama went on to get only 31% of the votes, losing by a more than 2-to-1 margin despite winning among white voters.^{[12][13][14][15]} Rush defeated him 61%-30%.^[16] He then won the general election with 88% of the vote.^[17]

2002

He won re-election with 81% of the vote.^[18]

2004

He won re-election with 85% of the vote.^[19]

2006

In the Democratic primary, he defeated Phillip Jackson 82%-18%.^[20] He won re-election with 84% of the vote.^[21]

2008

He won re-election with 86% of the vote.^[22]

2010

In the 2010 Democratic primary, he was challenged by three people. However, he won with 80% of the vote.^[23] He won re-election with 80%.^[24]

Tenure[link]

• Rush is the sponsor of the Melanie Blocker-Stokes Postpartum Depression Research and Care Act, named for Melanie Blocker-Stokes, a Chicago native who jumped to her death from a 12th story window due to postpartum depression. The bill would provide for research on postpartum depression and psychosis and services for individuals suffering from these disorders.
• He sponsored legislation re-designating two United States Postal Service facilities in Illinois' 1st district as the James E. Worsham Post Office and the James E. Worsham Carrier Annex Building.
• Rush sponsored the Nursing Relief for Disadvantaged Areas Act passed in 1999. The law temporarily addressed the nursing shortage by providing non-immigrant visas for qualified foreign nurses in the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago and was reauthorized in 2005.
• The Children's Health Act passed in 2000 incorporated Rush's Urban Asthma Reduction Act of 1999, amending the Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant program and includes an integrated approach to asthma management.
• Rush initiated the Chicago Partnership for the Earned Income Tax Credit, an ongoing program designed to help low-income working Chicagoans receive the Earned Income Tax Credit, a federal income tax credits.
• Rush has brought close to $2 billion^{[dubious – discuss]} of federal funding since his election, including a $1 million federal grant from the Office of Naval Research to the Illinois Institute of Technology to develop better ways to assess the presence of chemical and biological agents.
• Rush introduced the Blair Holt's Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act of 2009 on January 6, 2009. This bill, if signed into law would require all owners of hand guns and semiautomatic firearms to register for a federal firearms license. All sales of the subject firearms would have to go through a licensed dealer. The bill would also make it a criminal act not to register as an owner of a firearm. H.R. 45 was referred to the judiciary committee in 2009.^[25]

On July 15, 2004, Rush became the second sitting member of Congress (following Charles Rangel and preceding Joe Hoeffel) to be arrested for trespassing while protesting the genocide in Darfur and other violations of human rights in Sudan in front of the Sudanese Embassy.^[26][27]

Though a very close friend to Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton, Rush announced early on that he would support Barack Obama in the 2008 primaries, and later his presidential campaign.^[28]

Rush proposed that an African-American should be appointed to fill Obama's vacant seat in the U.S. Senate.^[29] During a press conference, Rush said, "With the resignation of President-elect Obama, we now have no African American in the United States Senate, and we believe it will be a national disgrace to not have this seat filled by one of the many capable African American Illinois politicians."^[30] Rush said he did not support any one individual in particular for Senate, and was not interested in being appointed himself.^[29][30] On December 30, 2008, Governor Rod Blagojevich announced his appointment of Roland Burris, a former African-American Attorney General of Illinois. Rush was present at the press conference and spoke in support of Burris.^[31] Rush has since commented further on Senate Democrats not seating Burris, telling them not to "hang or lynch" Burris.^[32]

On February 13, 2007, Rush opposed President George W. Bush's proposed 20,000 serviceman troop surge in Iraq. He said the presence of the troops in Iraq is the greatest catalyst of violence in Iraq, and advocated a political resolution of the Iraq situation. Towards the close of his speech, Rep. Rush stated that the troop surge would only serve to make the Iraqi situation more volatile.^[33]

In 2011, Rush was one of only two congressmen (with Dennis Kucinich) to vote against H.R. 2715 which corrected a law passed in 2008 that unintentionally banned the sale of motorcycles and ATV's for children.^[34]

On March 28, 2012, Rush addressed the House while wearing a hoodie in honor of Trayvon Martin, a teenager who was shot in Florida,^[35] and spoke against racial profiling. As the House forbids its members from wearing hats, Rush was called out of order and escorted from the chamber.^[36]

Committee assignments[link]

• Committee on Energy and Commerce
  • Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade
  • Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Power

1999 run for Chicago mayor[link]

Rush ran for mayor of Chicago in 1999 but was defeated by the incumbent Richard M. Daley.^[37]

Personal life[link]

The nation's first mass sickle cell anemia testing program was created by a clinic run by Rush.^[38]

In 2008, Bobby Rush had a rare type of malignant tumor removed from his salivary gland.^[39]

Rush is a member of Iota Phi Theta.^[40]

References[link]

External links[link]

Biography portal

• U.S. Representative Bobby Rush official U.S. House site
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Current Bills Sponsored at StateSurge.com
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• My Hopes and Dreams for the People of Cuba, Rep. Bobby Rush, The Huffington Post, April 22, 2009

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2010)

Johnnie Taylor
Chicago, 1973
Background information
Birth name	Johnnie Harrison Taylor
Born	(1934-05-05)May 5, 1934 Crawfordsville, Arkansas, United States
Died	May 31, 2000(2000-05-31) (aged 66) Dallas, Texas, United States
Genres	R&B, soul, gospel, blues, pop, doo-wop, disco
Occupations	Singer
Years active	1953–2000
Labels	Chance Records SAR Records Stax Records Columbia Records Beverly Glen Records Malaco Records

Johnnie Harrison Taylor (May 5, 1934 – May 31, 2000)^[1] was an American vocalist in a wide variety of genres, from rhythm and blues, soul, blues and gospel to pop, doo-wop and disco.

Biography[link]

Early years[link]

Johnnie Taylor was born in Crawfordsville, Arkansas. As a child, he grew up in West Memphis, Arkansas and performed in gospel groups as a youngster. As an adult, he had one release, "Somewhere to Lay My Head", on Chicago's Chance Records label in the 1950s, as part of the gospel group Highway QCs, which had been founded by a young Sam Cooke. His singing was strikingly close to that of Sam Cooke, and he was hired to take Cooke's place in the latter's gospel group, the Soul Stirrers, in 1957.

A few years later, after Cooke had established his independent SAR Records, Taylor signed on as one of the label's first acts and recorded "Rome Wasn't Built In A Day" in 1962. However, SAR Records quickly became defunct after Cooke's death in 1964.

In 1966, Taylor moved to Stax Records in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was dubbed "The Philosopher of Soul". Whilst there he recorded with the label's house band, Booker T. & the MGs. His hits included "I Had a Dream", "I've Got to Love Somebody's Baby" (both written by the team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter) and most notably "Who's Making Love", which reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 1 on the R&B chart in 1968. "Who's Making Love" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.^[2]

During his tenure at Stax, he became an R&B star, with over a dozen chart successes, such as "Jody's Got Your Girl and Gone", which reached No. 23 on the Hot 100 chart, "Cheaper to Keep Her" (Mack Rice) and record producer Don Davis's penned "I Believe in You (You Believe in Me)", which reached No. 11 on the Hot 100 chart. "I Believe in You (You Believe in Me)" also sold in excess of one million units, and was awarded gold disc status by the R.I.A.A. in October 1973.^[2] Taylor, along with Isaac Hayes and The Staple Singers was one of the label's flagship artists. He appeared in the documentary film, Wattstax, which was released in 1973.^[3]

Columbia Records[link]

After Stax folded in the mid 1970s, Taylor switched to Columbia Records, where he made his best known hit, "Disco Lady", in 1976. It spent four weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and six weeks on the Billboard R&B chart in the U.S. It peaked at #25 in the UK Singles Chart in May 1976.^[4] "Disco Lady" was the first certified platinum single (two million copies sold) by the RIAA.

Malaco Records[link]

After a brief stint at Beverly Glen Records, Taylor signed with Malaco Records after the label's founder Tommy Couch and producing partner Wolf Stephenson heard him sing at blues singer Z. Z. Hill's funeral in the spring of 1984.

Backed by members of The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section as well as in-house veterans like former Stax keyboardist Carson Whitsett and guitarist/bandleader Bernard Jenkins, Malaco gave Taylor the type of recording freedom that Stax had given him in the late 1960s and early 1970s, enabling him to record ten albums for the label in his sixteen year stint.

In 1996, Taylor's eighth album for Malaco, Good Love!, made it to Number One on Billboard's Blues chart (#15 R&B), and was the biggest record in Malaco's history. With this success, Malaco recorded a live video of Taylor at the Longhorn Ballroom in Dallas, Texas in the summer of 1997. The club portion of the "Good Love" video was recorded at 1001 Nightclub in Jackson, Mississippi.

Taylor's final song was "Soul Heaven", in which he dreamed of being at a concert featuring deceased soul music icons Otis Redding, Jackie Wilson, Marvin Gaye, Sam Cooke, and MGs drummer Al Jackson, Jr., among others. In one verse, Taylor sang, "I didn't want to wake up/I was havin' such a good time".

Radio[link]

In the 1980s Johnnie Taylor was a DJ on KKDA-FM, a Dallas/Fort Worth radio station. The station's format is mostly R&B and Soul oldies and their on-the-air personalities are often local R&B, Soul, blues, and jazz musicians. Mr. Taylor was billed as "The Wailer, Johnnie Taylor".

Death[link]

Taylor died of a heart attack at Charlton Methodist Hospital in Dallas, Texas, on May 31, 2000, aged 66.^[5] Stax billed Johnnie Taylor as "The Philosopher of Soul". He was also known as "the Blues Wailer". He was buried beside his mother, Ida Mae Taylor, in Arkansas.

Awards[link]

Taylor was given a Pioneer Award by the Rhythm and Blues Foundation in 1999.

Musical influence[link]

In 2004, the UK's Shapeshifters sampled Taylor's 1982 "What About My Love?", for their #1 hit single, "Lola's Theme".

Personal life[link]

Taylor has four children who have been recording artists. Johnnie Taylor Jr., Floyd Taylor, Latasha "Tasha" Taylor and T.J. Hooker-Taylor. The best known is Floyd Taylor, who has recorded three albums for Malaco Records. Other children include Fonda Bryant, Schiffon Taylor-Brown, Sabrina Taylor, Jonathan Taylor, and Anthony Arnold.

Chart singles[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Complete Discography
• Allmusic.com bio
• Find A Grave bio

The fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman took place on February 26, 2012, in Sanford, Florida, United States. Trayvon Martin was a 17-year-old African American male who was unarmed.^[2] George Zimmerman was a 28-year-old multi-racial Hispanic American,^{[3][Note 1]} who was the community watch coordinator for the gated community where the shooting took place.^{[5][6][7][8][9]}

While on a private errand, Zimmerman saw Martin walking inside the gated community where Martin and his father were visiting his father's fiancée. Zimmerman called the Sanford Police Department to report Martin's behavior as suspicious.^[10] Shortly afterwards, there was an altercation, which ended with Zimmerman fatally shooting Martin once in the chest at close range.^{[11][12][13][14][15]}

When police arrived on the scene Zimmerman told them that Martin had attacked him and that he had shot Martin in self-defense.^[2][16] Zimmerman was bleeding from the nose and two vertical lacerations on the back of his head.^[17][18] EMTs treated Zimmerman at the scene, after which he was taken to the Sanford Police Department. Zimmerman was detained and questioned for approximately five hours.^[19][18] A statement was videotaped, and he was then released without being charged.^[17] Police said that they had not found evidence to contradict his assertion of self-defense.^{[20][21][22][23][24]}

The circumstances of Martin's death, the initial decision not to charge Zimmerman, and questions about Florida's Stand Your Ground law received national and international attention. Allegations of racist motivation for the shooting and police conduct contributed to public demands for Zimmerman's arrest.^[25][26][27] A Special Prosecutor was appointed to take over the investigation and on April 11, 2012, she chose to file charges of murder in the second degree against Zimmerman.^[28][29] Zimmerman then turned himself in and was placed in custody.^[30][31] On April 20, the judge approved Zimmerman's bail on a $150,000 bond.^[32] He was released from jail on April 23 and is required to wear an electronic monitoring device until trial.

People involved in the case[link]

George Zimmerman

Trayvon Martin[link]

Trayvon ( /treɪˈvɔːn/ tray-VAWN) Benjamin Martin (February 5, 1995 – February 26, 2012) was the son of Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin, who were divorced in 1999.^[33] The autopsy report stated he was 5 feet 11 inches and 158 pounds.^[34]

He was a high school junior in the Miami, Florida, area and had recently turned 17.^[35][36] Martin lived with his mother and older brother in Miami Gardens, Florida. He had been taken by his father to Sanford, Florida, following a ten-day suspension from high school.^{[37][38] [39]} They were visiting his father's fiancée and her son at her townhome in The Retreat at Twin Lakes in Sanford on the day Martin was fatally shot.^[40]

George Zimmerman[link]

George Michael Zimmerman^[41] was born on October 5, 1983, in Manassas, Virginia,^[42] and is the son of Robert Zimmerman, Sr., a retired Virginia magistrate,^[43] and Peruvian-born Gladys (née Mesa) Zimmerman.^[5][8] He grew up in what his father has described as a "multiracial family" (one of his maternal great-grandfathers was of Afro-Peruvian background),^[44] and was raised in his mother's Catholic religion (his father was Baptist).^[4] Zimmerman's voter registration record lists him as Hispanic and a Democrat.^[45][46]

Zimmerman's height is shown as 5'8" and his weight as 185 pounds on his Seminole County Sheriff's Office Inmate Booking Information dated 4/11/2012.^[47] Zimmerman's height is shown as 5'7" and his weight at 200 pounds on the Sanford Police Department Offense Report for 2/26/2012.^[48]

In 2009, he moved with his wife to The Retreat at Twin Lakes in Sanford, Florida, a multi-ethnic^[49] gated community, where the shooting occurred.^[50][51] He was employed as an insurance underwriter prior to the shooting^[52] and was in his final semester at Seminole State College for an Associates degree in Criminal Justice.^[53] His goal was to become a police officer.^[54]

Zimmerman's role in the neighborhood watch[link]

As the only person to volunteer when the homeowners association wanted to organize a community watch,^[55] Zimmerman was appointed coordinator by his neighbors, according to Wendy Dorival, Neighborhood Watch organizer for the Sanford Police Department.^[56] The homeowner's association told residents who saw suspicious activity to call Zimmerman if they could not contact the police.^[57] "[Zimmerman] once caught a thief and an arrest was made," said Cynthia Wibker, secretary of the homeowners association.^[55]

Police had been called to The Retreat at Twin Lakes 402 times from January 1, 2011, to February 26, 2012.^[55] Zimmerman was the caller on 11 of those calls in that time frame. Crimes committed at The Retreat in the year prior to Martin's death included eight burglaries, nine thefts, dozens of break-ins (at least one with a woman and infant upstairs) and one shooting. In September, Zimmerman was asked to head up a neighborhood watch.^[55] The City of Sanford posted a "George Zimmerman 911 Call History" listing 46 calls by him between 2004 and the 2012 shooting.^{[58][59][60][Note 2]}

Zimmerman had been licensed to carry a firearm since November 2009. An officer with Seminole County Animal Services had told Zimmerman not to rely on pepper spray to fend off a loose pit bull in the neighborhood; he told Zimmerman to "get a gun." Zimmerman had called the owner to complain about the dog after it had cornered his wife, and then called animal services on two other occasions to report that the dog was running loose.^[53]

Sanford police chief Bill Lee stated that neighborhood watch volunteers are not encouraged to carry a gun but have a Constitutional right to do so.^[55] Lee further stated, "Mr. Zimmerman was not acting outside the legal boundaries of Florida Statute by carrying his weapon when this incident occurred."^[64]

Sanford Police volunteer program coordinator Wendy Dorival, told the Miami Herald that she met Zimmerman in September, 2011 at a community neighborhood watch presentation. “I said, ‘If it’s someone you don’t recognize, call us. We’ll figure it out,’  ‘Observe from a safe location.’ Dorival said.”^[55]

Police[link]

According to ABC News and other media organizations, multiple sources had indicated to them that Chris Serino, the lead investigator for the Sanford Police on the night of the shooting, stated in a February 26, 2012 affidavit that he was unconvinced by Zimmerman's version of events.^[65] Based on Serino's February 26 affidavit, police sought an arrest warrant for Zimmerman, however that request was denied by the Office of the State Attorney for insufficient evidence.^{[65][66][67][21][22][23][68]}

On March 13, 2012, Chris Serino sent a capias request to the state's attorney asking for George Zimmerman to be charged with manslaughter.^[69][70] Serino stated in the request that "the encounter between George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin was ultimately avoidable by Zimmerman, if Zimmerman had remained in his vehicle and waited the arrival of law enforcement or conversely if he had identified himself to Martin as a concerned citizen and initiated dialog (sic) in an effort to dispel each party's concern". "There is no indication that Trayvon Martin was involved in any criminal activity at the time of the encounter."^[71] The state attorney's office initially did not act on the request for an arrest warrant.^[70]

On March 16, 2012, Serino told the Orlando Sentinel that his investigation had turned up no reliable evidence that cast doubt on Zimmerman's account, that he had acted in self-defense. "The best evidence we have is the testimony of George Zimmerman, and he says the decedent was the primary aggressor in the whole event, everything I have is adding up to what he says."^[67]

When special prosecutor Angela Corey was asked by the Miami Herald to confirm that the Sanford Police had initially recommended a manslaughter charge, she stated, "I don't know about that, but as far as the process, I can tell you that the police went to the state attorney with a capias request, meaning; We're through with our investigation and here it is for you." A capias is a request for charges to be filed. A source in the Seminole County State Attorney's office told the Miami Herald, "We get capias warrants all the time. That doesn't mean we file charges right away. We investigate to see if it's appropriate. That's the responsible thing to do.^[72]

Bill Lee, Chief of Police at the time of the shooting, received criticism for his role in the case. The Sanford city commission, including the Mayor, passed a motion of no confidence in regards to Chief Lee, and his handling of the case^[73] although the vote was advisory only.^[74] On March 22, 2012, Lee announced that he had temporarily stepped down from his position as chief of police, stating "my involvement in this matter is overshadowing the process."^[75] On April 23, 2012, the city of Sanford announced that Police Chief Bill Lee would resign but city commissioners voted to reject the resignation. Some commissioners had concerns about the fairness of Lee losing his job and the mayor stated he preferred to wait for the results of an investigation into Lee and his department. Lee was to remain on paid leave.^[76]

State Attorneys[link]

Norm Wolfinger was the state's attorney initially responsible for the case.^[77] He is responsible for prosecutions in Brevard and Seminole counties, where the shooting occurred.^[78]

On March 22, 2012, Florida Governor Rick Scott announced that he was appointing Angela Corey to be Special Prosecutor and that she would be investigating the case instead of Wolfinger.^[79] She is the State attorney for Duval, Clay and Nassau counties.^[80] After several weeks of investigation, Corey announced on April 11, 2012, that Zimmerman had been charged with second-degree murder.^[28][81]

George Zimmerman's attorneys[link]

Craig Sonner and Hal Uhrig were the first lawyers to represent George Zimmerman.^[82][83] On April 10, 2012, they announced at a news conference that they were withdrawing from the case as Zimmerman was no longer returning their calls and had been acting against their advice.^[84] According to Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz, Sonner and Uhrig should not have disclosed those details and other information about Zimmerman after they had stopped representing him, because of considerations of attorney-client privileged information.^[85]

On April 11, 2012, it was announced that Zimmerman was represented by a new attorney, Mark M. O'Mara,^[30] who is board-certified as a criminal trial specialist.^[86] O'Mara pointed out that a small number of murder cases actually go to trial, with many cases resulting in a plea bargain. "We're not taking any possibilities off the table how this case gets resolved," he said. O'Mara described the intensely debated encounter between Martin and Zimmerman as resulting in "a deceased child," and also said, "Obviously, it was a horrible intersection of two young men's lives and it ended in tragedy."^[87][88] George Zimmerman's defense team has set up a Twitter account, a Facebook page and a website with a defense fund registered with the Florida Division of Consumer Services. O'Mara stated on the website that "Using social media in a high-profile lawsuit is new, and relatively unprecedented, but that is only because social media itself is relatively new. We feel it would be irresponsible to ignore the robust online conversation, and we feel equally as strong about establishing a professional, responsible, and ethical approach to new media."^[89][90][91]

Martin family attorneys[link]

Benjamin Crump, the lawyer representing the interests of the Martin family, operates a law firm in Tallahassee, Florida, with his partner Daryl Parks. The firm has eight lawyers who focus on wrongful death, malpractice, personal injury and civil rights.^[92][93] In 2006, Crump sued to have the video released in the case of Martin Anderson, a teenager who died at a boot camp run by the Bay County, Florida, Sheriff's Office.^[92][94][95] The Martin family is also represented by Natalie Jackson, an Orlando civil rights attorney.^[96][97]

Shooting[link]

Martin was staying with his father at the home of his father's fiancée.^[40] On his return from a convenience store,^[98][99] he was observed by Zimmerman,^[100] who was driving in his vehicle on a personal errand.^[101] At the end of their interaction, Martin was shot 70 yards (64 meters) from the rear door of the fiancée's townhouse.^{[102][Note 3]}

Zimmerman's early February, 2012, cell phone call to police[link]

Three weeks prior to the shooting, on February 2, 2012, Zimmerman placed a call to the Sanford Police Department to report a young man peering into the windows of an empty Twin Lakes home. Zimmerman was told a police car was on the way, and he followed protocol, awaiting their arrival. By the time police showed up, the suspect had fled. On February 6, 2012, workers witnessed two young black men lingering in the yard of a Twin Lakes resident around the same time her home was burglarized. A new laptop and some gold jewelry were stolen. The next day police discovered the stolen laptop in the backpack of a young black man, which led to his arrest. Zimmerman identified this young man as the same person he had spotted peering into windows on February 2.^[53]

Zimmerman's February 26, 2012, call to police[link]

While driving through the Twin Lakes neighborhood, at approximately 7:09:34 PM, February 26, 2012, Zimmerman used his cell phone to call the non-emergency number of the Sanford Police Department^[104] to report what he considered suspicious behavior by Martin. "We've had some break-ins in my neighborhood, and there's a real suspicious guy."^[53] He described Martin as "just walking around looking about" in the rain.^[105] The police dispatcher tape recorded him saying, "This guy looks like he is up to no good or he is on drugs or something." He further stated that the person he was observing had his hand in his waistband, was holding something in his other hand, and was walking around slowly in the rain "looking at all the houses."^[106] On the recording of the call, Zimmerman is heard commenting "these assholes, they always get away."^{[107][108][109]}

At 2:07 minutes into his call to the police, Zimmerman says, "he's running." At 2:37 minutes, Zimmerman tells the dispatcher, "he ran." The sound of an "open door" chime, a change in Zimmerman's voice and the sound of wind indicate that Zimmerman has left his vehicle, prompting the dispatcher to ask if Zimmerman is following Martin. When Zimmerman confirms that he is, the dispatcher says, "We don't need you to do that."^[110] Zimmerman says "OK." Asked if he "want(s) to meet with the officer," Zimmerman says "yeah" and gives directions to where his vehicle is parked but is unable to provide an address. He also tells the dispatcher the numbers of his street address, and then at 3:35 adds, "Oh crap, I don't want to give it all out. I don't know where this kid is." The dispatcher asks him if he wants to meet the police at the mailboxes,^{[Note 3, 4th picture]} and he at first agrees but then says, "Actually, could you have him call me, and I'll tell him where I'm at?" to which the dispatcher replies, "No problem."^[111] Zimmerman appears to hang up at the 4:05 mark. The recording ends at the 4:11 mark, approximately 7:13:41 PM.

Martin cell phone call from girlfriend[link]

Around the time of the incident, Martin was talking on his cellphone to his girlfriend, according to Attorney Benjamin Crump and State Prosecutor's, which was confirmed by phone company records.^[113][114] She called at 7:12 PM, although phone company records round down call times. Hence, the actual call was between 7:12:00 and 7:12:59 PM.^[115][116] She was interviewed by Crump who made a statement for her, as her parents requested her anonymity, and gave a sworn interview recorded by a state prosecutor.^[113][114]

Martin's girlfriend said that he described a man as "crazy and creepy," who was on the phone watching him from a vehicle, before the man started following him.^[114] The friend said that she told Martin to run to the townhouse, where he was staying with his father and the father's girlfriend.^[114] She said that Martin told her that he had lost the man and then noticed he was being pursued again.^[113][114] She then heard Martin say "What are you following me for?" followed by a man's voice responding, "What are you doing around here?"^[113][114] She said that she heard the sound of pushing^[113] and then heard Martin say what sounded like "get off, get off," and the call ended.^[114] She attempted to call him back immediately, but was unable to reach him.^[117]

Sanford Police arrival and initial investigation[link]

Police officer Timothy Smith arrived at the scene at approximately 7:17 PM. He reported finding Zimmerman standing near Martin, who was lying face down in the grass and unresponsive.^[14][17] At that time, Zimmerman stated to Smith that he had shot Martin and was still armed. Smith handcuffed Zimmerman and removed his weapon from him. Smith observed that Zimmerman's back was wet and covered with grass and he was bleeding from the nose and the back of his head.^[14][118]