If you have a gun and the other guy doesn't . . .

[anomiep]

125. It's only my opinion on the logical implications of the jury instruction as written

They could come back with manslaughter, they're going to come back with what they come back with.

All I'm saying is, the elements of Murder 2 in the jury instructions are this (these are the three things that need to be proven to come back with murder 2)

1. Trayvon Martin is dead.
2. The death was caused by the criminal act of George Zimmerman.
3. There was an unlawful killing of Trayvon Martin by an act imminently dangerous to another and demonstrating a depraved mind without regard for human life.

1 and 2 are a given, if 3 holds.

For 3 to hold, you have to have a) imminently dangerous (which I think is given) and b) demonstrating a depraved mind without regard for human life.

You also have to have c) unlawful killing.

The only way it was lawful is if it was excusable, or the defense of self defense applies.
The excusable bits, all require 'accident or misfortune' and I think it is a no-brainer that he intended to shoot when he shot.
That leaves self defense.

I don't see any other way for it to not be murder 2 - he either defended himself, or 1, 2, and 3 apply.
If he defended himself, manslaughter can't apply because self defense is also a defense to the manslaughter charge.

The instructions have the following in that regard: "It is a defense to the crime of Second Degree Murder, and the lesser included offense of Manslaughter, if the death of Trayvon Martin resulted from the justifiable use of deadly force"

This is partly me saying that I don't think it can possibly be considered as not 'demonstrating a depraved mind without regard for human life' if the self defense part is not met. The jury could possibly come back with manslaughter by saying it wasn't done with a depraved mind without regard for human life, and it wasn't self defense, but that makes no sense logically to me, unless the conclusion is that he shot with no ill will but it wasn't self defense (the depraved mind bit has to meet three things, but it boils down to ill will or not, and I don't know how you get to 'not self defense' and 'not ill will' at the same time when you're talking about an entirely intentional pull of the trigger and the evidence given)

http://www.flcourts18.org/PDF/Press_Releases/Zimmerman_Final_Jury_Instructions.pdf <-- it's all in there.