Witness testifies Trayvon Martin was on top of George Zimmerman in fight

[Barry Lynch]

SANFORD, Fla. – The state's only eyewitness to the scuffle that
preceded the shooting of Trayvon Martin wound up supporting George
Zimmerman's claim he was pinned to the ground, straddled by a man in
a position to harm him.

John Good confirmed Martin was atop Zimmerman during the crucial
seconds prior to the gunshot. Good was a neighbor in the complex who
saw some of the altercation and ran out during the struggle.
Previously known as Witness 6, Good says he saw the fight before the
gunshot with Martin was on top of Zimmerman. Other witnesses said
they saw Zimmerman on top of Martin after the gunshot.

Good said he first heard initial "faint" noises before they seemed
to get closer and closer. Good previously said he thought Martin was
on top hitting Zimmerman with MMA-style punches but later changed
his statement.

"It looked like a tussle," Good told prosecutor Bernie de la Rionda
describing the fight. Good said he then yelled out "what's going
on?" and told them to stop. He said he realized there were two
people and saw dark clothing on top and light or red color on
bottom.

Good said he never saw anyone being attacked that way during the
fight between Zimmerman and Martin. Good said one person was
straddling the other person, and the lighter-skinned person on the
bottom was face-up.

Good then said it "looked like" Martin was on top, as if he were
raining down blows on Zimmerman, but never saw one land. De la
Rionda made sounds simulating punches or slamming and Good said he
didn't hear those sounds, but heard someone saying "help." He then
told the people he was calling the police.

When asked who was saying "help," Good said he couldn't be 100
percent sure that it was the person on the bottom.

De la Rionda then played Good's 911 call after the shot was fired.
Records show Good called 911, connecting at 19:17:15, about 20
seconds after the gunshot. Good told de la Rionda that he heard the
gunshot while he was dialing 911.

"I'm pretty sure the guy's dead out there. Holy s***!" Good said on
the call.

Good said describing the fight as MMA-style first came to his mind
because of what he had seen on TV. The straddling position is a
common position you would see in mixed martial arts combat, Good
said, adding that he didn't see the person on top slamming the
person on the bottom's head on the concrete sidewalk, as Zimmerman
claims Martin did.

During cross-examination, defense attorney and former Local 6 legal
analyst Mark O'Mara had Good identify Martin and Zimmerman as the
people on the top and bottom, respectively.

"The person who you now know to be Trayvon Martin was on top
correct?" O'Mara asked. "Correct," Good answered.

"And he was the one reigning blows down on the person on the bottom,
George Zimmerman?" O'Mara asked.

"Right. That's what it looked like," Good said.

Good had only described the color of the clothing during the state's
questioning.

O'Mara showed Good a picture of Zimmerman's jacket to identify if it
was Zimmerman on the bottom. Good said he couldn't say for certain
that's what he saw, but says it was "definitely a redder color."
Good was then shown the 7-Eleven picture of Mrtin confirming the
outerwear was the same color as what was worn by the person on top
in the scuffle.

O'Mara also questioned Good about the timing of when he first heard
the altercation. O'Mara asked Good where the noises of the struggle
first originated, but Good refused to speculate.

"It was only a few seconds before that gun shot that you were
outside looking at the two individuals in the ground and pound
position?" O'Mara asked. "Correct," Good replied.

O'Mara then demonstrated how the straddle position would look in the
middle of the courtroom and had Good confirm the person on top
looked like that. He then had Good describe the movements by the
person on top.

"Arm movements were going downward," Good said. "Couldn't 100
percent say they were strikes."

O'Mara then asked what "ground and pound"-- what Good described the
position as-- means. Good said it meant the person on top was the
"dominant" position, but he didn't see punches being thrown.

Good then said it "looked like" Martin was on top, agreeing that he
was raining down blows on Zimmerman. As O'Mara asked about who Good
thought was screaming, Good said "rationally thinking, I would
think" the man on the bottom was screaming for help. Good's account
appears to be consistent with Zimmerman's account of what happened
during the altercation.

O'Mara played the 911 call with the screams after Good previously
said the screams on the recording sounded different than what he had
heard. O'Mara appears to be trying to show audio recording of the
scream isn't an accurate representation of sound.

Good said he couldn't verify the screams on the 911 call match up
with the exact same screams he heard. He later told O'Mara that he
thought the screams were Zimmerman but that was "his opinion."

On state redirect, de la Rionda asked Good about "ground and pound"
and about punches. Good said that he couldn't see punches, only
"downward movement."

De la Rionda asked if Good was lying during statements to get him to
concede any misstatements or inconsistencies weren't intentional, to
which Good said he wasn't.

O'Mara then wanted the jury to hear Good's written statements and
the differences but the judge would not allow the statement to be
read aloud. Good said he added things but didn't change things in
his statements.

O'Mara asked specifically about statements around the punches and
quoted Good's statements to Sanford Police Department, "Zimmerman
yelled out help." Trayvon was just throwing down blows MMA-style,
Good said according to the statements.

After the lunch break the state called the husband of a previous
witness that testified earlier this week. John Manalo was at his
Retreat at Twin Lakes home with his wife when they heard what
sounded like grunts outside.

Manalo said he told his wife to stay away from the window. He said
he heard a gunshot and exited through the garage and grabbed a
flashlight. Manalo said he went outside after the gunshot, he said
he saw Zimmerman walking around with blood streaming down his
nostrils onto his lips. He said he was the first person to encounter
Zimmerman after the shooting.

Manalo told de la Rionda he took pictures of Zimmerman's face with
his cellphone, using his flashlight as lighting aid. Manalo then
said the hands of Martin were under his body. Zimmerman told police
he stretched out Martin's arms. Manalo said he took a cellphone
picture showing Martin's hands tucked under his torso and said no
one moved the body.

Manalo said he asked Zimmerman what kind of caliber the gun was that
he used. As Zimmerman was handcuffed, he told Manalo to call his
wife, Shellie Zimmerman.

When de la Rionda asked what Zimmerman told Manalo to tell Shellie
Zimmerman, Manalo said Zimmerman told him "just tell her I shot
someone," impatiently. Manalo said he replied, 'OK' and then turned
back to the phone and said "he just shot someone."

Manalo described Zimmerman as "coherent ... responding to my
questions just like any other person."

In cross-examination, defense attorney Don West had Manalo agree
that Zimmerman was "staggering" and "looked like he just got his
butt beat." Manalo said Zimmerman told him "I was defending myself
so I shot him."

Manalo also said Zimmerman was compliant with authorities.

The state then called Sanford police officer Ricardo Ayala to
testify. Prosecutor John Guy questioned Ayala about what he saw as
he responded to the shooting.

Ayala said he did chest compressions on Martin upon arriving at the
scene. He said they found the gunshot wound right under the button
Martin was wearing on his sweatshirt.

After quick questioning, the state called Stacy Livingston of the
Sanford Fire Department, who discussed what the department did when
they arrived to the scene.

In cross-examination, O'Mara asked Livingston to weigh in on
Zimmerman's injuries and showed her a picture of Zimmerman's bloody
face and nose. When asked if Zimmerman's injuries were consistent
with a fist strike to the nose, Livingston said, "it's possible."

Another Sanford police officer then testified for the state as the
state's 20th witness. Tim Smith, who was the first officer on the
scene was questioned by Guy about what he saw when he responded to
the "suspicious person" call.

Guy then put up an aerial view picture of the complex and asked
Smith where he walked when he arrived on scene and where Martin and
Zimmerman were. Smith said Martin was face down and that he couldn't
see his hands.

Smith said he handcuffed Zimmerman behind his back and took
Zimmerman's gun away.

Testimony in the case entered its fifth day Friday with jurors
having already been exposed to some of the state's biggest pieces of
evidence, including the 911 call featuring cries for help
prosecutors believe came from Martin, as well as the sound of the
gunshot moments later which killed him.

Smith said that Zimmerman said he was light-headed and that the back
of his jacket was covered in grass and wet. The state then showed
surveillance video from Sanford Police Department of Smith leading
Zimmerman out of the patrol car.

O'Mara cross-examined Smith asking how Zimmerman's attitude was the
night of the shooting.

"Did Mr. Zimmerman seem angry? Did he seem spiteful?" O'Mara asked.
"No sir," Smith said. O'Mara then quoted the second-degree murder
charge by asking if Zimmerman showed "ill-will, hatred or spite," to
which Smith said Zimmerman didn't.

The state's 21st witness was Lindzee Folgate, a physician assistant
at Altamonte Family Practice--where Zimmerman went to get evaluated
the day after the shooting. Records show she measured 2-centimeter
lacerations and 0.5 centimeters in length. His height was 5 feet 7
inches and 204 pounds, records show.

The defense objected to portions of the medical records the state
was introducing with Folgate's testimony, questioning the relevance
of some of the records.

After a sidebar, the state showed Folgate a medical record from Aug.
19, 2011 when Zimmerman sought treatment after he "started to
exercise intensely with MMA." Another record from Sept. 23, 2011
states Zimmerman was involved in MMA three days per week.

The medical record from Feb. 27, 2012-the day after the shooting-
says Zimmerman was "assaulted and punched in the nose." The record
states Zimmerman said "EMT said his nose was broken" but an EMT has
not yet testified that Zimmerman's nose was broken. Zimmerman told
Folgate he needed a doctor's note for work.

According to the record, Folgate determined Zimmerman's nausea issue
was caused by psychological issue from previous night. Zimmerman
reportede no headache, vision change, dizziness, numbness, tingling,
staggering on the morning after the shooting. He reported having
nose pain, the report states, and reported have head trauma but no
severe symptoms.

Folgate said she determined no stitches were necessary for
Zimmerman's cuts and noted that he did have "black eyes" beneath
both eyes. His nose was swollen and bruised and Folgate said
Zimmerman's noise was "likely broken," black eyes, bruising, but
needed an X-ray to be sure.

During cross-examination, O'Mara asked if Zimmerman's head injuries
could have been caused by hitting concrete. Folgate said the head
injuries "could be" consistent with being hit on the concrete and
also that his injuries could be "consistent" with being punched in
the nose and thrown to the ground.

Folgate also mentioned Zimmerman was already seeing a psychologist
before the shooting but didn't elaborate.

The state first called Greg McKinney, an IT employee for United
Security Alliance, as its first witness of Friday's court
proceedings.

Prosecutor Richard Mantei questioned him about video surveillance
cameras in the Retreat at Twin Lakes subdivision where Martin was
shot and killed by Zimmerman in Feb. 2012.

McKinney showed video from the surveillance cameras, saying that two
of the nine the complex weren't working. He said the video is 18
minutes off, meaning you would have to add 18 minutes to the time
seen on the tape for the accurate timing.

Zimmerman was in court on Friday wearing a blue sport coat and dress
shirt and tie. He has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder,
claiming self-defense.

Friday's testimony comes after nearly 8 hours of testimony
consisting of testy exchanges between Zimmerman's defense attorney
and the young woman who was on the phone with Martin shortly before
he was fatally shot.

The defense insinuated that 19-year-old Rachel Jeantel wasn't
believable because of inconsistencies in her story.

But Jeantel held firm in her testimony about what she heard over the
phone while talking with Martin the night the teen was shot and
killed by Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer.

In her testimony, Jeantel contended that it was Zimmerman, 29, who
confronted the 17-year-old Martin.


Watch Local 6 News and stay with ClickOrlando.com for more on this
story.

https://www.clickorlando.com/news/2013/06/29/witness-testifies-
trayvon-martin-was-on-top-of-george-zimmerman-in-fight/

[Rudy Canoza]

On 4/21/2022 7:51 PM, Barry Lynch wrote:
> SANFORD, Fla. – The state's only eyewitness to the scuffle that
> preceded the shooting of Trayvon Martin wound up supporting George
> Zimmerman's claim he was pinned to the ground, straddled by a man in
> a position to harm him.

That was *after* Martin gained the upper hand following Zimmerman's *illegal*
attempt physically to detain him.

The racist cop wannabe Zimmerman was the aggressor.

https://reason.com/2012/03/22/was-george-zimmerman-the-aggressor/