On Saturday night, a Florida jury came back with a not guilty verdict for George Zimmerman, the Florida man who had been charged with second-degree murder for shooting unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin in 2012.
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Since then, it seems that the case and verdict have been all anyone has been talking about on social media. There were local protests in various Bay Area locations, including a small group in Oakland that became violent.
On our local Patch Facebook pages, most readers criticized the verdict.
"A man got away with murder in Florida yesterday while the whole world watched," said Brigham Thompson on Novato Patch Facebook, in an opinion largely representative of the response.
Other readers said guns were part of the problem.
"Guns give people a sense of invincibility," said Norma Dawson on Novato Patch Facebook. "Trayvon would still be alive if Zimmerman had not been carrying that gun."
To share your view, scroll up on this page, click in the box to the right that says, "Make an announcement, speak your mind, or sell something," and start typing.
Some individuals are declaring themselves allies to victims of racism and violence on the Tumblr page We Are Not Trayvon Martin.
Two days later, what are your feelings on the verdict? On the local response? Do you think policies, such as Florida's Stand Your Ground law, need to change? How can we prevent such a tragedy in the future? Or should we even try to?
To share your opinion on the Mill Valley Patch boards, click in the box on the top right-hand column of this page that says, "Make an announcement, speak your mind, or sell something," and start typing.
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