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Zimmerman May Skate On Civil Rights Lawsuit: Feds Can’t Charge Him Unless He Was Using Public Facility
by Monica Davis
The last word hasn’t been said, as far as the George Zimmerman verdict is concerned. The Justice Department is looking into whether there are grounds for filing civil rights charges against George Zimmerman. There are several legal obstacles in the way, according to sources:
The Justice Department said today it is evaluating whether it will file criminal civil rights charges against George Zimmerman, now that he has been aquitted in the state case. Here is the AP on why the DoJ would have a tough time getting a conviction:
“On Sunday, NAACP President Benjamin Todd Jealous started a petition calling for the Justice Department to open a civil rights case against Zimmerman for the shooting death of 17-year-old Martin, but experience has shown it’s almost never easy getting convictions in such high-profile prosecutions.
“‘The Justice Department would face significant challenges in bringing a federal civil rights case against Mr. Zimmerman,’ said Alan Vinegrad, the former U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of New York. ‘There are several factual and legal hurdles that federal prosecutors would have to overcome: They’d have to show not only that the attack was unjustified, but that Mr. Zimmerman attacked Mr. Martin because of his race and because he was using a public facility, the street.’ MOREHERE
