LIVE BLOG: George Zimmerman trial in the Trayvon Martin case

LIVE BLOG - George Zimmerman trial in the death of Trayvon Martin...

Luther Vandross was outed as gay after his death.

[Read Day 3 Blogging of Jury Selection Below]

UPDATE, 5:16 p.m.: The court will be in recess until 9 a.m. tomorrow.

UPDATE, 5:09 p.m.: E28 works in an operating room, but would have no issue if she could not work for the duration of the trial.

UPDATE, 5:03 p.m.: West is questioning E28. She admits to watching Law & Order, but not much news. On her morning commute she said that she listens to the radio.

UPDATE, 4:59 p.m.: E28 said that she does not watch the news because she works odd hours and admits to being “old school” in reference to her social media use.

UPDATE, 4:57 p.m.: Bernie de la Rionda is questioning a new potential juror, E28.

UPDATE, 4:51 p.m.: When asked to quantify how many times she has heard or talked about the case, E13 says 3 or 4.

UPDATE, 4:45 p.m.: She referenced the incident being a “racial thing” and then said she did not have an opinion because she did not pay attention. She said that she has a brother that is African American.

UPDATE, 4:40 p.m.: O’Mara is now questioning E13.

UPDATE, 4:34 p.m.: E13 said that her friends had  “diverse” opinions about the case but she does not know many details other than Zimmerman killing Martin.

UPDATE, 4:30 p.m.: Potential juror E13 is being questioned by De la Rionda, of the state. She said that she does not watch the news very much but remembers pictures of Martin.

UPDATE, 4:27 p.m.: Judge Nelson is asked E7 to confirm one of his postings on Facebook.

UPDATE, 4:15 p.m.: E7 said that he is “underemployed”, but sees no issues being sequestered.

UPDATE, 4:07 p.m.: “When he finally was arrested, I thought— well what took so long,” said E7.

UPDATE, 3:52 p.m.: Don West is questioning E7.

UPDATE, 3:50 p.m.: E7 calls himself a “devil’s advocate”

UPDATE, 3:40 p.m.: E7 said he has been involved with the entertainment industry. He has heard strong opinions from both sides of the argument.

UPDATE, 3:34 p.m.: After a 10 minute recess the court has resumed. Potential juror E7 is being questioned by De la Rionda.

UPDATE, 3:13 p.m.: B87 does not think he has heard the 911 recording. B87 does not have a newspaper subscription or cable television. He explains that he does not have an opinion about Zimmerman’s guilt or innocence, but he does hold an opinion about how the altercation began.

UPDATE, 3:05 p.m.: “At some point they came face to face… Who followed who–I don’t know,” said B87.

UPDATE, 3:01 p.m.: “The news sometimes takes these things and turns it into entertainment,” said B87.

UPDATE, 3:00 p.m.: Don West is now questioning the potential juror, B87.

UPDATE, 2:56 p.m.: B87 is concerned about his two children and full-time position at work if he were to be sequestered for the duration of the trial.

UPDATE, 2:46 p.m.: B87 said he remembers pictures of Mr. Zimmerman after the struggle with scratches on his head. He also remembers the mention of 911 recordings.

UPDATE, 2:40 p.m.: B87 said that “it would be hard to not form an opinion”  about the case, but he said that he could set his opinions aside if selected because he does not have all of the information.  He referred to the whole situation as a “tragedy”.

UPDATE, 2:34 p.m.: New potential juror, B87, is being questioned by Bernie de la Rionda.

UPDATE, 2:22 p.m.: E22 said thinks the media is not as “inflamed” as it was in the beginning. She also feels that the emotions surrounding the protests were “volatile”.

UPDATE, 2:17 p.m.: When asked how the media bias affected her opinions, E22 answered that she acknowledged the media but knew there had to be more information than what was shown.

UPDATE, 2:03 p.m.: E22 said that she consumes news from her subscription to the Orlando Sentinel, the “big 3” local TV stations, and some national news.

UPDATE, 2:01 p.m.: Defense attorney O’Mara is questioning E22.

UPDATE, 1:58 p.m.: E22 has discussed the case and her opinions with family and friends. She expressed that she thought the police should have been more proactive in their investigation, though she feels that she could set aside her opinions if selected for the jury.

UPDATE, 1:54 p.m.: E22 is a routine TV news and newspaper consumer and followed the case only as it appeared during her usual viewing. She remembers Mr. Zimmerman following Mr. Martin and that causing an altercation. She saw various pictures of Trayvon Martin, George Zimmerman, and the attorneys. E22 agrees that she can disregard opinions of the “experts” that would present their case in the media.

UPDATE, 1:52 p.m.: A new potential juror, E22, is being questioned by prosecutor De la Rionda.

UPDATE, 1:50 p.m.: The attorneys are having a more extensive sidebar with the judge.

UPDATE, 1:40 p.m.: B72 claims his “passionate” friend thinks that Zimmerman is guilty, but he is “the last person he would go to for advice”. B72 also has another friend that says Zimmerman was just protecting his area. B72 said he doesn’t have an opinion on the issue.

UPDATE, 1:29 p.m.: The prosecutor objected to the defense’s line of questioning and the attorneys paused to discuss with the judge.

UPDATE, 1:17 p.m.: Don West is now questioning B72.

UPDATE, 1:11 p.m.: B72 is being vaguely questioned about the occupation about one of his relatives, he said that his relatives will not affect his ability to be a juror.

UPDATE, 1:03 p.m.: B72 does not involve himself with the news because he finds it “pessimistic”. He says he will never forget the day of the incident, but he said he did not follow the case for very long because he got “sick of hearing about it”.

UPDATE, 1:00 p.m.: Court is back in session. Potential juror, B72, is now being questioned by Bernie de la Rionda, of the state.

UPDATE, 11:59 p.m.: The court has called for a recess for lunch. The jury selection will continue at 1 p.m.

UPDATE, 11:58 a.m.: B61 has expressed concern for her safety because of the high profile nature of the case. She said that she could put those concerns aside to focus on the case.

UPDATE, 11:49 a.m.: B61 thought it was “unique” that she heard Zimmerman asked for money to fund his defense.  She believes that media coverage has been slanted.

UPDATE, 11:40 a.m.: B61 said that she is aware that certain news outlets present information differently, which is why she watches Fox news and CNN in addition to Good Morning America.

UPDATE, 11:39 a.m.: O’Mara is now questioning B61.

UPDATE, 11:34 a.m.: B61 said that she believes that everyone has the right to express their opinions, but she doesn’t think she would participate in the protests.

UPDATE, 11:31 a.m.: “I don’t think it’s a racial issue,” said B61. She thinks that the race of Martin and Zimmerman are not very relevant.

UPDATE, 11:19 a.m.: B61 says that she remembered that there was a shooting in Central Florida and followed the case through broadcasts on Good Morning America. She participates in social media, but has not used it to discuss the case. She claims that she has not thoroughly discussed her opinions about the case with her family or friends.

UPDATE, 11:17 a.m.: The court is back in session. New potential juror, B61, is being questioned by prosecutor De la Rionda.

UPDATE, 11:06 a.m.: Potential juror R39 is being released without being questioned by the defense. The court has called for a 10 minute recess.

UPDATE, 11:03 a.m.: “I don’t have an opinion about this particular case, but I do have an opinion about murder… Even in self defense murder is still murder,” said R39.

UPDATE, 10:56 a.m.: R39 uses Facebook and Instagram and said that he gathers his news mainly from the radio. He has seen pictures of Trayvon Martin and the mugshot of  George Zimmerman, but the pictures made no lasting impression on him.

UPDATE, 10:53 a.m.: De la Rionda is now questioning new potential juror, R39.

UPDATE, 10:39 a.m.: M75 said there is a 60-40 split in her Facebook friends regarding their opinions on the case, 60 percent that have formed an opinion and 40 percent who have not. She said a majority of those who have formed an opinion align themselves with Trayvon Martin.

UPDATE, 10:26 a.m.: M75 watches Fox News and does not believe that they are swayed to broadcast one way or another pertaining to the case. She said she doesn’t think “black people were being targeted” and that she needs more facts to form an opinion. She claims to have been invited to protests by friends but has not participated.

UPDATE, 10:19 a.m.: Defense attorney O’Mara is now questioning M75. She said that initially the case peaked her interest because she heard that there was a “fatality” in Sanford and she has friends that live there.

UPDATE, 10:16 a.m.: M75 uses Facebook and Twitter, but said she does not really tweet or post about the case.

UPDATE, 10:13 a.m.: M75 said that she agrees speculation needs to be taken “out of the picture” and she needs to rely on the facts.

UPDATE, 10:05 a.m.: New potential juror, M75, is being questioned by state attorney De la Rionda about her source of news.  She said she has not formed an opinion about Zimmerman’s innocence or guilt pertaining to the case. She has been exposed to commentary about the case through Facebook.

UPDATE, 9:54 a.m.: E73 works with the community and had to form relationships with high ranking community members.

UPDATE, 9:46 a.m.: E73 says that she has not formed any opinion about the efforts to identify the voice on the 911 call.

UPDATE, 9:43 a.m.: She and her children have realized that there are differences in how events are reported by the media.

UPDATE, 9:35 a.m.: “I really like the city of Sanford and I don’t like to see any negative publicity surrounding it,” said E73. She admits that there is a racial element to the case but she doesn’t believe race was the reason that the incident happened. She does believe that the racial element drew out the press.

UPDATE, 9:30 a.m.: Don West, Zimmerman’s defense attorney, is now questioning E73.

UPDATE, 9:28 a.m.: She has two children, 15 and 18, and believes that she would have a hard time if the jury were to be sequestered. She has heard various opinions regarding the case from friends, though she hasn’t formed one herself.

UPDATE, 9:22 a.m.: “I have seen many instances where the press seems to sway things,” said E73. She said that she thought it was made to seem like a race issue when it may not have needed to be.

UPDATE, 9:14 a.m.: E73 says that she knows some details about the case through the news reports and local newspapers. She says that she has seen photographs of both Mr. Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin, and she had the impression of the case being “a tough concept” because of the struggle between an armed and unarmed person.

UPDATE, June 12, 9:11 a.m.: Court is now in session for day 3 of jury selection. Bernie de la Rionda is questioning potential juror, called E73.

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