Being a self defense teacher for over twenty three years gives you a viewpoint based in reality when it comes to physical altercations. The realities in the Zimmerman Martin case are there for those with specified intelligence who care to look past the noise being put forth to further one agenda or another. Each telling us that the case is a complicated one, when in fact this could not be more incorrect. The facts in the case are very simple for those in the self defense world who deal with fighting / confrontations in various forms.

First suspend your bias. No really suspend that bias.

Lets look at what we know factually and leave out all the emotional minutae. Emotions only cloud an issue and have nothing to do with reality.

1. Zimmerman sees a guy who fits the description of historical persons spreading ill will in the neighborhood.

2. Zimmerman calls cops (good thing).

3. Zimmerman follows guy relaying info to cops on location. (good thing, if everyone did this in their neighborhoods crime would be non excitant.)

4. Zimmerman confronts Martin asking what he is doing in his neighborhood. (stupid thing) When I was a kid I remember being asked this by neighbors where I was walking.

5. Martin does not like being asked (big surprise there, rebelious teens always go against any authority figures real or imagined).

6. Martin gives Zimmerman a beat down for his inquiry. (stupid)

7. Zimmerman wonders when beat down will cease.

Ok those elements are simple. Now lets dissect a few things from what we know about the fear and defensive mindsets.

1. Martin is not afraid of Zimmerman hence I am on top of you teaching you a lesson for jacking with me.

2. Zimmerman getting his ass handed to him wonders when it will stop and at some point our minds fear it will not or we physically sense our brains going foggy which is the first step to unconsciousness. The ultimate conclusion of a beating is death. It is up to the person doing the beating do decide if you live or die, or when they will stop beating you. Unfortunately we do not know if the other person intends to kill the person that is on the loosing end of the beating.

Ok this is the point where there are several options, all bad.

1. Zimmerman is in a rolling fight wearing a gun, and at some point Martin is going to find out he has a gun.

That is when the other person not carrying a gun are going to go for your gun. Ask any cop. That is just the way it goes. The other person is not really thinking about it they just go for it. Maybe they are afraid of being shot and dont want you to have it on you anymore. or they are going to shoot you with your gun. So someone is going to get shot as you cannot let the gun out of your control if you are carrying one.

2. Zimmerman decides the beating must stop as he cannot take anymore according to what his body is relaying back to his brain.

Now we ask what a reasonable person would have done. Would you have shot? Would a Police Officer have shot Martin in this situation? The Police Officer would have shot. The other question is up to you.

What I would have expected in this confrontation is that 1. Martin would have answered all the stupid questions and gone on his way, or 2. Martin would have punched Zimmerman in the nose and took off running.

If Zimmerman was just wanting to kill Martin he would have done so before he got his ass handed to him. Its all a sad situation that could have been avoided on many levels with just some common courtesy on both Zimmerman’s and Martins parts.

Race did not play a part in the confrontation, but played a major part due to the media and lawyer manipulating perceptions in the beginning.

How a Mexican man became white, and a seventeen year old became twelve is amazing. Zimmerman’s picture was shown with him in jail orange while Martin was an angelic twelve year old instead of his actual age. Calls that Martin were racially profiled were rebuffed by the evidence in court, and as it turned out Zimmerman was a volunteer for African American causes.

In the end those clamming race played a role are most likely racist themselves, especially those who espouse that this case was white on black when it was two minorities involved. Self defense does not have a color. Doing wrong does not have a color. Doing right does not have a color.  This was a tragic situation that could have been avoided if two people had not done a series of stupid things. There were no winners in this case, only loosers.

That day two lives as they knew them ended.