It's not often when a sitting criminal judge reminds me, even indirectly, of Dr. Evil - in fact it's never happened before - but now it has.
George Zimmerman was just released from jail after paying a bond of $1 Million - well - some of it anyway.
Money to pay the bond company’s $100,000 fee came from Zimmerman’s defense fund, which in-part led to his bond being set so high to begin with. A judge ruled last month that Zimmerman and his wife Shellie had conspired to deceive the court about their financial assets, hiding at least $135,000 that had been donated to him by online supporters in the weeks following Martin’s death.
Before learning of Zimmerman’s deception, the judge set a bond of $150,000 in April, which was quickly met with money from the secret fund. He later revoked that order and set a new bond at $1 million, once it was clear that Zimmerman had tried to cover up his assets. Zimmerman’s wife was also arrested for perjury after she lied to the court to help cover up the funds. She was released from jail the same day.
So now both the Zimmermans are out of jail pending trial, one for murder and one for perjury. I think they better enjoy this time together while they have it - it might not last.
There is however one true silver lining in all this. Besides the fact that George will be fitted with an eletronic monitor, be required to remain in his home from 6pm to 6am and will not be allowed any alcohol (and we know that worked so well for Lindsay Lohan) he also seemed to have reached the bottom of the well with his gaggle on cash enabled online supporters.
“While Mr. Zimmerman has been in jail awaiting his bond hearing, donations to the George Zimmerman Legal Defense fund have significantly decreased,” O’Mara added. “Supporters have told us they were concerned that the Court would set such a high bond that getting George out of jail could risk wiping out the entire defense account. It appears that they were right.”
Yeah, that's the idea - why give him money because he's only going to have to spend it if you give it to him, right?
And if you didn't give it to him, he'd still be in jail. But if you give him more he'll be able to pay for his defense, but they won't - because then he'd have a defense.
Shakes Head.
Certainly everyone deserve a fair trial. I would even go so far as to argue we should have laws requiring that the budgets for public defenders and prosecutors be equal, specifically to level that playing field and let the facts decide the cases - not the money. Far too many people have been wrongly sent to prison and death row because of overworked, underpaid, near incompetent public defenders.
However the logic - or rather complete and total lack of same - from the people that think George Fracking Zimmerman is some kind of victim, that's he's been unfairly demonized, and race carded - and have no doubts, that is what they think - is like peering through the looking glass from Oz and seeing Mordor.
Some of those people are truly Frelled in the membrane.
And now their latest Hero, along with Ted Piss-And-Poopy-Pants-Draft-Dodger-Chop-The-Presidents-Head-Off-I-Wish-The-South-Had-One-The-Civil-War-And-Set-This-Country-Straight Nugent is a Free man? Sigh.
Sometimes I think that if we're living in the midst of a New Civil Rights Struggle over Racial Justice, Economic Justice, the RIGHT to Health Care and Gender Equality where do we find today's Bull Connor?
Where is Today's George Wallace proclaiming "Pre-Existing Conditions Today, Pre-Existing Conditions Tomorrow - Pre-Existing Conditions FOREVER!"?
Is it with Mayor Bloomberg and Villaraigosa and Quan as they cower in their City Halls while thousands of their Jack Booted Cops Club, Pepper Spray and Bean Bag Shotgun a few hundred kids who don't like the Camping Laws?
Is it with Rush Limbaugh calling Sanda Fluke a Slut for 3 days straight?
Is that what we're going to remember in 20 years?
Or is it with the people that decided they really needed to put $100,000 in George Zimmerman's Paypal account after they heard the tapes of Trayvon Martin screaming "Help... NO, Don't!" just before the gun shot went off?
People who thought it was a great idea to scrawl this on the side of a Black studies Building since it would so obviously make the students there feel Right At Home (if their home was Mississippi circa 1950)
(Zimmerman featured this picture on his fund raising site)
It may be just me, but I think that's a real special kind of evil right there.
Vyan