deepundergroundpoetry.com
Lay My Ground
Yes your honor, I had to lay my ground. You see, she started to get the best of me and then she threatened my life. What choice did I have but to snap her neck? I know I started it by attacking her, but that’s the law now. Look at the president set on the Zimmerman case. It’s ok for an adult to kill a teenager, as long as it is self-defense. Just look at all my injuries. She scratched me, bit me, slapped me, tried to gouge out my eyes and then she said she was gonna kill me. But I had to stand my ground. I had to show her who was boss. After all, I knew she was up to no good. She was standing on that corner, just like the rest of them do. They always get away, so I had to make sure she wasn’t gonna be breaking the law in my neighborhood again. She was actin all suspicious trying to seem like she was just waiting for a bus.
But I know what the girls do on that corner and it ain’t waiting for buses, it’s waiting for cars to come by and let `em in for five minutes. They all do the same thing. I could tell she was on drugs too. That’s why they do all that in them cars, so they can buy more drugs. And then she had the nerve to act like she had no idea what I was talking about when I walked over to her and asked he what she was doing on my street looking like she had something for sale. She started calling me nasty names like asshole and creep. She even said I was creepy. So I had to do something after an insult like that. I told her I was gonna show her how to do it the right way, for free. I told her I wasn’t gonna hurt her and I would be back for more next time I saw her on that corner, so she knew I wasn’t gonna kill her. She was never in fear for her life. But when she started fighting back and hurting me, I had to use more force. Every time she fought back harder, I stood my ground and fought her harder. But when she said she was gonna kill me, well, what was I to do but protect my very life? I started screaming for help. Before that I was screaming, but those were cries of joy. It all changed when she started hurting me and threatened my life. She didn’t have to do that. In five minutes it would have all been over and I’d have gone my way, till the next time.
Besides, what’s a 17 year old teenage girl doing out on that corner an hour before sundown? She shoulda called a taxi cab if she really wanted to go home. You know you can’t count on the buses around here. So I knew she was lying to me. I know my neighborhood. I watch these streets to make sure they are safe. But those girls come around here and spend all night breaking the law. So I had to do something about it. No your honor, she never should have fought back and escalated it so far. She’d still be alive. It’s not my fault she’s dead, she killed herself. I was just protecting myself. Indeed, this is a clear cut case of self-defense…
Thank God I have a right to stand my ground!
JJ
But I know what the girls do on that corner and it ain’t waiting for buses, it’s waiting for cars to come by and let `em in for five minutes. They all do the same thing. I could tell she was on drugs too. That’s why they do all that in them cars, so they can buy more drugs. And then she had the nerve to act like she had no idea what I was talking about when I walked over to her and asked he what she was doing on my street looking like she had something for sale. She started calling me nasty names like asshole and creep. She even said I was creepy. So I had to do something after an insult like that. I told her I was gonna show her how to do it the right way, for free. I told her I wasn’t gonna hurt her and I would be back for more next time I saw her on that corner, so she knew I wasn’t gonna kill her. She was never in fear for her life. But when she started fighting back and hurting me, I had to use more force. Every time she fought back harder, I stood my ground and fought her harder. But when she said she was gonna kill me, well, what was I to do but protect my very life? I started screaming for help. Before that I was screaming, but those were cries of joy. It all changed when she started hurting me and threatened my life. She didn’t have to do that. In five minutes it would have all been over and I’d have gone my way, till the next time.
Besides, what’s a 17 year old teenage girl doing out on that corner an hour before sundown? She shoulda called a taxi cab if she really wanted to go home. You know you can’t count on the buses around here. So I knew she was lying to me. I know my neighborhood. I watch these streets to make sure they are safe. But those girls come around here and spend all night breaking the law. So I had to do something about it. No your honor, she never should have fought back and escalated it so far. She’d still be alive. It’s not my fault she’s dead, she killed herself. I was just protecting myself. Indeed, this is a clear cut case of self-defense…
Thank God I have a right to stand my ground!
JJ
Published 17th Jul 2013
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17th Jul 2013 6:50pm
I was trying to think of a way I could make the jury members see the death of Trayvon Martin from a different perspective. I wish they could read this, but it will never reach their eyes, and even if it does, it will be too late for Trayvon. I hope a Federal Cicil Rights case can be made and a civil lawsuite will be brought for wrongful death. But likke Stand your Ground, which should not have been considered by the jury, Florida also has laws that will render a civil case moot. Still, there would be some small justice in a victory there.
JJ
JJ
Anonymous
- Edited 16th May 2018 7:35pm
17th Jul 2013 7:43pm
<< post removed >>
17th Jul 2013 8:39pm
Thank you for commenting Kitty! It was mind boggling to me that the jury did not at least find Zimmerman guilty of manslaughter. But in the words of another more famous Zimmerman, "How many times can a man turn his head and pretend that he just doesn't see?" And then I wondered if it was because they were women, so I decided to write something that a woman could understand more personally. Because according to the "stand your ground" law, which the juror made clear in the interview with CNN was a major factor in their decision, even though it should not have been considered at all, it is apparently legal for anyone to attack another person for any reason at all, and then kill them just by claiming it was self-defense, so long as there were no other witnesses. If this is the law, then we will have war on the streets of America in no time at all. People can start killing each other in Florida and other states that have "stand your ground" laws right now. Just have at it. There's nothing wrong with carrying weapons of al sorts, even if you can't get a gun. If there is someone you don't like, just go attack them and wait for the moment they get the better of you. Then pull out your weapon and kill them. Who cares who started it? As long as you are the one telling the story, it's self-defense.
JJ
JJ
Anonymous
18th Jul 2013 4:19am
Don't even get me started about this case! I've been glued to the t.v. for weeks and have cried silently a few days since the 'SHOW', because it damn sure wasn't a trial.
JJ, the way you wrote this was absolutely wonderful!
Sad that even in the scenario you've depicted, if the young girl was black, you would still get off because of your color! Even the stand your ground law caters to race. Florida is a red state ran by right-wing supporters. Only white on white crime is investigated fairly.
Nice ink! Really enjoyed reading your thoughts! Xo
JJ, the way you wrote this was absolutely wonderful!
Sad that even in the scenario you've depicted, if the young girl was black, you would still get off because of your color! Even the stand your ground law caters to race. Florida is a red state ran by right-wing supporters. Only white on white crime is investigated fairly.
Nice ink! Really enjoyed reading your thoughts! Xo
18th Jul 2013 5:47am
Thank you for commenting Rain! I also watched the trial and I was frustrated by the prosicution seeming to hold back on several issues. But even more than that frustration was the disgust over the defense. Then to make matters worse, the jurror who made comments during the CNN interview made it clear that the one jurror who was holding out for manslaughter was pressured into changing her vote to not guilty. I am not sure what the laws are on juries not following the rules set by the judge for deliberation and what to consider and not consider, but if ever a case needed a reversal of the verdict, it is this one.
And you are right, I would probably not have been charged in my scenario above if the girl was black, but I wanted to paint a picture that disgust the reader. White people would not have the same reaction if the girl was black. It would be, "oh well" instead of "you MONSTER!"
But I wanted to make the point that even if she was white, I could not have been charged, even if I went out wanting to kill someone because "stand your ground" law makes it legal to kill someone in self defense no matter who starts the fight, as long as the one who does the killing can claim they were in fear for their life.
If the only two people who know are me and a dead woman, I win. It's that simple. The issues of race in this case add a level of impossibility for a conviction, esspecially in such a lopsided jury.
JJ
And you are right, I would probably not have been charged in my scenario above if the girl was black, but I wanted to paint a picture that disgust the reader. White people would not have the same reaction if the girl was black. It would be, "oh well" instead of "you MONSTER!"
But I wanted to make the point that even if she was white, I could not have been charged, even if I went out wanting to kill someone because "stand your ground" law makes it legal to kill someone in self defense no matter who starts the fight, as long as the one who does the killing can claim they were in fear for their life.
If the only two people who know are me and a dead woman, I win. It's that simple. The issues of race in this case add a level of impossibility for a conviction, esspecially in such a lopsided jury.
JJ
Anonymous
18th Jul 2013 6:00am
Yes, I caught her interview and was SICK when she said Trayvon could have walked away, so basically because he TRIED to Stand HIS ground, he was wrong, and self defense comes into play! Highly pissed!
And yes, the prosecutors didn't do a good job! It wouldn't shock me if they were paid to half-ass do the job, via right-wingers. Like I said, it was merely a 'show' for the world because had it not gain national attention, the state would have NEVER brought charges. And the attorney general acted like she was elated over the not guilty verdict! I swear this whole thing reeks of bullshit!
Let me stop! Im getting pissed again! Xo
And yes, the prosecutors didn't do a good job! It wouldn't shock me if they were paid to half-ass do the job, via right-wingers. Like I said, it was merely a 'show' for the world because had it not gain national attention, the state would have NEVER brought charges. And the attorney general acted like she was elated over the not guilty verdict! I swear this whole thing reeks of bullshit!
Let me stop! Im getting pissed again! Xo
18th Jul 2013 6:41am
Well I don't blame you for getting pissed off. And i don't believe that Trayvon could have walked away even if he wanted to. He may have tried to, but we will never know that. Zimmerman said "they always get away", and to me that means he was never going to let Trayvon go home. That may have been when Zimmerman decided to kill him, or it may have been earlier, but I have no doubt that Zimmerman was never going to allow Trayvon to just walk away. And the fact that the jury could not see that, and that they did not allow Trayvon the right to stand his ground, along with the fact that Zimmerman got out of his car and followed Trayvon, even after being told not to, it clearly shows he was determined to kill Trayvon. None of his behavior was suspicous to me. If it seemed suspicous to Zimmerman it was because he had a mind set that told him, "any black kid walking through my neighborhood is up to no good". That's why I wrote that piece the way I did. If a person wants to see something they will. In the piece I decide the girl is a hooker because there are always hookers on that corner. That is based on my own personal experience by the way. I wrote a poem several years ago, can't think of the title right now, maybe "Unstately Swans" and one or two others about the hookers at the bus stop I used to see all the time in my neighborhood. I decided to use that as my mental backdrop while I was writing this piece of prose. The expectation of seeing hookers on the corner made the girl here one of "them", as Zimmerman decided that Trayvon was one of "them".
It makes me angry, so I cannot blame you for being angry. I only hope that there will still be some justice in Federal Court and Civil Court.
JJ
It makes me angry, so I cannot blame you for being angry. I only hope that there will still be some justice in Federal Court and Civil Court.
JJ