Today they not only asked the judge to let the jury consider the lesser charge of manslaughter in the shooting death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin, they also asked for jurors to consider a charge of child abuse.
Why they didn't charge Zimmerman with these earlier remains a mystery. Hey, how about littering for the spent bullet?
The case has been mishandled by both sides, but because the burden of proof is on the government, a tie in mishandling usually goes to the runner, who in this case is the defendant.
The judge didn't allow the child abuse charge to be presented to the jury, but she did allow the manslaughter, which may indeed save the case for the prosecution unless Mr. Zimmerman's defense team has managed to prove he shot young Mr. Martin in self-defense.
Closing arguments this afternoon, with the case headed to the jury perhaps tomorrow. We'll have the latest, tonight at 11.
Also at 11, we're following the tawdry story of a NJ Transit bus driver caught on camera by a horrified passenger as he ….. masturbated …. while driving his bus through the Lincoln Tunnel. Say what? Can't make this stuff up, really.
We're also thinking tonight and sending condolences to folk singing legend Pete Seeger, whose wife of nearly 70 years has died. Toshi Seeger, 91, was as much of a peace and environmental activist as Pete. She died last night at their home in the Hudson Valley in the town of Beacon.
We'll also have any breaking news of the night, plus Meteorologist Amy Freeze (in for Lee Goldberg) with her AccuWeather forecast, and Rob Powers with the night's sports. I hope you can join Diana Williams (in for Sade Baderinwa) and me, tonight at 11.
And one other note: I'll be off tomorrow, so this column will resume on Monday. Have a great weekend.
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