By Deborah Simmons – The Washington Times

ANALYSIS/OPINION:

“The gun.”

Those two simple words flowed easily from the mouth of social commentator Bill Cosby during an exclusive interview Friday regarding the Trayvon Martin case, arguably the most high-profile, citizen-on-citizen U.S. slaying facing the Obama administration.

Trayvon was killed Feb. 26 in Sanford, Fla., by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman, who told police that a “confrontation” with the unarmed 17-year-old led him to shoot in self-defense.

Mr. Cosby, a Navy veteran, said “the gun” empowered Mr. Zimmerman, whose actions have stirred a firestorm of debate, protests and remarks from President Obama.

“We’ve got to get the gun out of the hands of people who are supposed to be on neighborhood watch,” said Mr. Cosby, whose remarks were the first he has made publicly about the case.

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Official Partner of Justice for Trayvon Martin Foundation

By CURT ANDERSON

MIAMI — The news media are taking on an increasingly police-like role in the Trayvon Martin slaying by using modern forensic techniques to analyze evidence, an approach some legal experts say can lead to a distorted view of the case because a lot of the key evidence is still under wraps.

The public has been whipsawed back and forth as new revelations emerge, appearing to support one version or the other.

Most recently, the Orlando Sentinel had a voice analysis expert examine a 911 call in which a person is heard screaming for help before the fatal gunshot. The shooter, neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, told police he was yelling, but the expert told the newspaper the voice most likely was not Zimmerman.

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Jennifer Bendery

jen.bendery@huffingtonpost.com

WASHINGTON — The Congressional Black Caucus unveiled a resolution on Wednesday that honors the life of Trayvon Martin and calls for the repeal of “Stand Your Ground” gun laws in every state that has one, including Florida, where Martin was killed.

“Florida’s misguided ‘Stand Your Ground’ law does not make our streets safer, rather it turns our streets into a showdown at the OK Corral,” Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.), a sponsor of the resolution, said in a statement. “But this is not the Wild West. We are supposed to be a civilized society. Let Trayvon’s death not be for naught. Let us honor his life by righting this wrong, and seeing that justice is served for Trayvon and his family. George Zimmerman must be prosecuted for his admitted shooting of Trayvon Martin and the ‘Stand Your Ground’ law must be repealed.”

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More than 1,000 raps, spoken word montages and rock songs in honor of slain teen

By Simone Weichselbaum / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Trayvon Martin tribute videos are flooding YouTube – with Brooklyn and Harlem contributing some of the loudest voices.

More than 1,000 raps, spoken word montages, and rock songs are up on the popular site featuring several dubbed as the “official” tune tied to the slain teen’s family.

“I don’t have a goal money wise, I just want to keep the conversation going,” said Crown Heights filmmaker Ethan Johnson, 34, whose “A Trayvon Martin Tribute” is on the family’s attorney’s website (parkscrump.com/justicetm/)along with “Trayvon Martin Tribute” by Chaka Khan and “We Are Trayvon” by the Florida rapper Piles.

Johnson’s video has images of blacks sporting hoodies, walking around Bedford-Stuyvesant in the dark, as sounds of people debating the details behind the February shooting play in the background.

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