Jacksonville ready for Michael Dunn trial

rockin'robin

rockin'robin

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Case gaining international attention

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -
Come Monday, one of Jacksonville's highest-profile trials will be underway. The Michael Dunn murder case is garnering international attention.

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Police say in November 2012, Dunn shot and killed 17-year-old Jordan Davis during an argument over loud music outside a Southside gas station. Dunn claims self-defense.

Those involved in the case have been preparing for it for months. A unified command team has been assembled to make sure everyone is safe and the trial continues without a hitch.

"The city of Jacksonville is going to be in the national spotlight and we've done a lot of planning, and I'm confident that all of the groups and a representative here in the one set have been sitting down at the table with us, it is going to go off without a hitch," said Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Chief Michelle Cook, who is the head of the unified command team.

JSO, the Duval County Clerk of Courts, the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department and other agencies have plans in place for the biggest trial Duval County's seen in a very long time. Cook said police don't expect any trouble, but there's the potential anything could happen, so officers and emergency workers are ready.

"We have a contingency plan in place that if we do need personnel, we can easily put our hands on them," Cook said.

Media from across the world have requested credentials to cover the trial. CNN, NBC National, Fox News, CBS, the Associated Press and Al Jazeera are all expected to be in the River City.

Attorney Rhonda Peoples-Waters, who's not involved in the case, said it has sparked the interest of many.

"Everybody is waiting to see what is going to happen after we just finished seeing what happened in the George Zimmerman case. So that's No. 1," she said. "But you also have, obviously, some racial controversy with this case. You have a younger victim who brings a lot of sympathy with and within itself, when you're talking about a student."

Dunn's attorney is expected to make self-defense one of his main arguments. He's filed many motions, including one asking for a sequestered jury.

"They're saying that I don't want the jury to have any information that may taint their ability to hear these facts and be impartial once they hear the facts in this case," Peoples-Waters said.

Dunn's attorney is also asking the judge is to ban the word "victim" when referring to Davis. He thinks that could turn the jury against his client.

Jury selection starts at 9 a.m. Monday.

Cook said the public's requests for credentials will be taken Friday at the Prime Osborn Convention Center starting at 6 a.m. People can sign up and they'll be given access to get in the courtroom based on a daily lottery system.

Jacksonville ready for Michael Dunn trial | News - Home
 
Michael Dunn tells jury he was in fear for his life

47-year-old software engineer on trial for first-degree murder

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -
Michael Dunn testified Tuesday morning, telling the jury hearing his first-degree murder trial that he saw a teenager in the SUV parked next slam what looked like a shotgun against the door, then threatened to kill him.

"I'm going to f***ing kill you," Dunn said he heard the teenager yell at him over the loud music coming from the SUV parked next to him. He said that even though he feared for his life, he did not initially reach for the 9mm handgun he had in his glove compartment.

But he said the threats kept coming, quoting the boy as saying, "This s*** is going down now."

"Not having any doubt at all between his threats and his actions that it was a gun ... this was a clear and present danger," Dunn said he was thinking when he made the decision to pull out the handgun he has had since the early 1990s.

"I grabbed the gun and cocked and pointed it to my left," Dunn said. "I said, 'You're not going to kill me you son of a b****,' and I shot."

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He said he he could not remember how many times he fired his gun -- pointing, not aiming at his "target" in the back seat of the SUV. He said he had "tunnel vision" and didn't initially realize the vehicle was moving.

"I know they've got one weapon and at least three, four potential shooters," Dunn saying he stopped shooting when they were far enough away they no longer poised a threat.

Dunn said he was still panicked, "shaking like a leaf," and asked his fiancée to get in the car so they could "get to safety."

He said once they got back to the hotel, walked their dog and ordered a pizza, he remained "stunned and horrified" at what had happened. They went to bed around midnight, but he couldn't fall asleep. He said when he learned in a news story on his phone in the middle of night that there was a fatality in the incident on Southside Boulevard, he went into the bathroom and threw up.

Guided by defense attorney Cory Strolla, Dunn described the drive back to their Brevard County home the next morning. He had placed a call to a friend who was a federal law enforcement officer to get advice about how to turn himself in.

Dunn may be the defense's only witness and perhaps the most compelling testimony of the murder trial in the death of 17-year-old Jordan Davis.

After nearly 90 minutes of testimony, Assistant State Attorney John Guy began cross examination. Dunn said Davis was outside the SUV when he began firing, "at least his feet were outside" as the teenager was driving back inside the vehicle. Guy accused him of lying, contradicting some of the information he gave to Brevard County deputies the day he was arrested.

Dunn said that having only two hours of sleep, he "mis-characterized" some of the information he gave to police that day.

Dunn admitted he didn't like rap music, and said he asked for a common courtesy when he asked them nicely to turn it down, which initially they initially did; but then it became "painfully" loud.

"It was Jordan Davis that kept escalating it to the point I had to defend myself; it was life or death," Dunn said.

Asked why he didn't call 911 from the store after the SUV pulled away or from the safety of the hotel, where they spent the night, Dunn said he did call police once he got back to Brevard County. Asked why he waited Dunn admitted: "You're right, it sounds crazy. I can't tell you what I was thinking, but that's what I did."

The state rests; defense begins

Prosecutors rested their case at midday Monday, the defense called a series of character witnesses and family members say they never knew him to be violent.

Dunn pleaded not guilty to murder, saying he acted in self-defense when fired shots outside a Southside Gate station the day after Thanksgiving 2012.

The 47-year-old had been at his son's wedding before he pulled up to the convenience store where Davis was with his friends. Dunn's ex-wife, Phyllis Molinaro, and son, Chris Dunn, told jurors Monday that Dunn didn't appear drunk and was in good spirits at the wedding.

Michael Dunn tells jury he was in fear for his life | News - Home
 
Wirelessly posted (BB Curve 9300)

I'm watching it on HLN off and on.
 
I heard that kid had no gun , that the cops did not find one. I do not believe Dunn's story
 
I'm going give my opinion about comparative between George Zimmerman's murder trial and Michael Dunn's trial.

Both of them are not same.

Big difference:

- Zimmerman got physically attacked by Trayvon and his head was slammed on concrete. Dunn wasn't attacked by anyone and he was just arguing with teens over loud music.

- Zimmerman carried gun concealed but Dunn walked back to his SUV to retrieve the gun from glove compartment to shoot teen's SUV with multiple shots.

- Zimmerman didn't flee away after killed Trayvon and he was wait for police officers to arrive to explain about incident, but Dunn did flee away after shoot teen's SUV with multiple shots and his wife was in panic over incident, so he took her to hotel for comfort with pizza.

Dunn will likely to be guilty with first or second degree murder, but Zimmerman wasn't. The prosecutor overcharged on Zimmerman because Trayvon attacked him so enabled Zimmerman to use gun to shot at Trayvon in self-defense.

Now, Dunn found guilty on 3 murder attempts - that's not going well for him. He's software developer and it is sad to see him lost the career over incident with teens. I think Dunn should simply walk away or move his SUV to different parking spot, or stay away from bad part of city.

I usually stay away from bad area and I don't want deal with immature black teens.
 
Update:

I know its few days ago, and I am glad Justice is working for Michael Dunn and his Victims.

The sentence given to Michael Dunn is appropriate and glad it is not death penalty. Its life sentence without possibility of parole plus 90 years, and glad that SYG didn't apply on his case. I don't see how its SYG after he, Mr. Dunn emptied 10 rounds, then gone home and walk his dog, ordered pizza, watched TV then gone bed for the night. If its truly SYG, he would have contact cops before going home, or even better outcome, he should have just gone home without shooting to begin with. Good riddance, now he have to deal with screaming and annoying sounds inside prison and there is no escape for him for rest of his life.

Good job, Judge, and 12 jurors!
 
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