New Video, Audio Released Of Zimmerman's Account Of Fatal Fight
SANFORD (CBSMiami/AP) — A new video, audio, and a statement have been released in the shooting case of Trayvon Martin including a video that shows Florida neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman reenacting the fatal shooting and giving police a blow-by-blow account of his fight with the unarmed Miami teen.
The police recording, taken a day after the Feb. 26 shooting, was released by Zimmerman's attorney, about a week before Zimmerman's second bond hearing on second-degree murder charges. It was also made public on the heels of unflattering telephone calls capturing Zimmerman and his wife talking in code about using money collected for a defense fund to pay credit cards.
In the video, Zimmerman tells his side of the story to detectives, saying he grabbed his gun from a holster on his waist before Martin could get it, and shot the teenager once in the chest. After firing, Zimmerman said thought he missed because Martin didn't immediately fall over.
"He sat up and said, 'You got me. You got me, or something like that,'" Zimmerman said.
Zimmerman said Martin had been on top of him, slamming his head against the ground and smothering his mouth and nose with his hand and arm. The tape shows two butterfly bandages on the back of Zimmerman's head and another on his nose. There are red marks on the front of his head.
"It felt like my head was going to explode," he said.
WATCH CLIPS OF REENACTMENT VIDEO HERE:
- WEB EXTRA: Zimmerman Reenactment: "Something Off About Him"
- WEB EXTRA: Zimmerman Reenactment: "Send Police"
Other videos, taken during police interviews were also released.
WATCH CLIPS OF ZIMMERMAN POLICE INTERVIEWS HERE:
- WEB EXTRA: ZIMMERMAN: "I Had Blood All Over"
- WEB EXTRA: ZIMMERMAN: "He Kept Punching Me"
- WEB EXTRA: ZIMMERMAN: Trayvon "Was On Top Of Me"
- WEB EXTRA: ZIMMERMAN: "Then I Shot Him"
- WEB EXTRA: ZIMMERMAN: "He Said You Got Me"
Also released was an audio tape of an interview between Zimmerman and Sanford investigator D. Singleton at police headquarters.
On the tapes, Zimmerman said he was on his way out to the grocery store on Feb. 26th when he spotted a teen he didn't recognize walking along the street looking at houses in the gated Sanford community. Zimmerman said the teen looked suspicious so followed him in his car while he called police.
Zimmerman said Martin circled his car several times while he was on the phone with police dispatch and would then go between the houses. Zimmerman said at one point he got out of his car so he could tell the dispatch where the teen had gone.
Singleton: So after he circled you car he disappeared again?
Zimmerman: Yes, ma'am. Then dispatch told me 'where are you' and I said I'm trying to find out where he went and he said 'we don't need you to do that' and I said 'okay'. He said we already have an officer en route and I had gone through the dog walk, where I normally walk my dog, and walked back through to my street. He said we already have a police officer on the way and I said 'okay'. They said 'would you like a police officer to meet you' and I said 'yes'. I told them where my car was. So I was walking back through to where my car was and he jumped out from the bushes and he said 'what the f**k is your problem homie' and I got my cell phone out to call 911 this time. And I said 'hey man, I don't have a problem'. And he said 'no, now you have a problem' and he punched me in the nose. At that point I fell down. I tried to defend myself. He just started punching me in the face and I started screaming for help. I couldn't see, I couldn't breathe.
Singleton: And you're still standing at this point?
Zimmerman: No ma'am, I fell to the ground when he punched me the first time. It was dark, I didn't even see him getting ready to punch me. As soon as he punched me, I fell backward into the grass. He was wailing on my head. When I started yelling for help, he grabbed my head and started hitting my head. I tried to sit up and yell for help and he grabbed my head and started hitting it into the sidewalk. When he started doing that I slid into the grass so he'd stop hitting my head and I was still yelling for help. And I could see people looking and some guy yells out 'I'm calling 911' and I said 'help me, help me, he's killing me'.
Zimmerman: And he puts his hand on my nose and my mouth and says 'you're going to die tonight'. And I don't remember much after that. I couldn't breathe and he still kept trying to hit my head against the pavement or a sign or I don't know what it was.'
LISTEN TO CLIPS OF ZIMMERMAN AUDIO TAPES HERE:
- Zimmerman Serino Part 1
- Zimmerman Serino part 2
- Zimmerman Serino part 3
- Zimmerman Serino Part 4
- Zimmerman Phone Interview # 1
- Zimmerman Phone Interview #2
- Zimmerman's Handwritten Statement 2/27
Martin was reported missing by his father, Tracy Martin, the next morning.
Martin's parents have said Zimmerman was the aggressor. They said Martin was walking back from a convenience store when Zimmerman spotted the black teenager and started following him. They claim their son was racially profiled.
Zimmerman, who has pleaded not guilty to a charge of second degree murder, claims he shot Martin in self defense, under Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law.
Zimmerman's second bond hearing will be June 29. His $150,000 bond was revoked earlier this month after prosecutors said Zimmerman and his wife, Shellie, misled the court about how much money they had available for bail.
During the hearing, Shellie Zimmerman testified that they had limited funds since she was a fulltime student and Zimmerman wasn't working. Prosecutors say they had raised about $135,000 from a website set up for his legal defense at the time of the April hearing. Shellie Zimmerman was charged last week with making a false statement.
(TM and © Copyright 2012 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
