Experts debate whether shouts are Trayvon Martin's

May 14, 2013 @ 10:35 am

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Audio experts differ on whether screams for help captured on 911 calls are those of defendant George Zimmerman or of shooting victim 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, according to reports released Tuesday.

One New Jersey-based audio expert said in a report that the screams came from Martin, while another Florida-based audio expert said the shouts were a mix of Martin and Zimmerman.

Attorneys prosecuting Zimmerman on a charge of second-degree murder hired the audio experts to compare samples of Zimmerman's and Martin's voices with the shouts from the 911 calls phoned in by neighbors of Zimmerman. The residents of the gated community heard the neighborhood watch leader struggling with the South Florida teen during a confrontation last year. Determining whose voice was calling for help could aid a jury in deciding whether Zimmerman's claims of self-defense were justified.

Zimmerman is pleading not guilty and his trial starts next month.

Martin's family claims the voice is that of the South Florida teen, while Zimmerman's father has said in court he believes the cries are from his son.

Zimmerman's defense attorney, Mark O'Mara, has asked a judge to determine whether the audio analysis can be used at trial. O'Mara said in a filing that he was concerned the analysis of the 911 calls would prejudice jurors.

"Counsel has significant and legitimate concerns that such evidence will confuse the issues for this jury to decide, and it may well mislead the jury in this area of inquiry," O'Mara said in the filing.

___

Follow Mike Schneider at http://twitter.com/MikeSchneiderAP


(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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Comments (9)


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  • C"mon Man wrote...
    Here we go
    October 18, 2012 11:14 pm
    No win here,just like every other time two wrong elements in the same place,martin could have ignored Zimmerman,Zimmerman could have ignored martin, but they chose to engage each other, and re-visit the race issue.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • CH wrote...
    get the rope
    January 30, 2013 6:30 pm
    get it over with.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • shark75 wrote...
    Trayvon Martin was a violent criminal
    April 13, 2013 5:17 pm
    The world is a better place without his dope-smoking thug a.ss,
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • coreybob123 wrote...
    Violent criminal?
    April 13, 2013 5:49 pm
    What violent crime was he ever charged or convicted off?
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • shark75 wrote...
    coreybob123 wrote...
    April 13, 2013 7:13 pm
    Justice was served before he could be arrested/charged/convicted.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Hayduke wrote...
    coreybob123, there's one of two possibilities here:
    April 27, 2013 8:13 pm
    As we know, Trayvon has never been charged, much less CONVICTED of a violent crime. (Unless you want to try to count that very night, where he was defending himself from some psycho who kept following him around and getting in his face.)

    Therefore, 1): shark75 is simply lying about Trayvon in order to justify his killing. That's pretty typical with RWNJ's here, pulling crap out of their bumhole and slandering people to justify their racist and bigoted views.

    Or, 2):He thinks we should just execute all pot smokers, regardless of their race.

    Either way you cut it, it ain't pretty.

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Rangerhawk wrote...
    Let this be a lesson to all you kids
    April 28, 2013 8:10 am
    Never assault a person who has a gun and a sense of self-preservation above yours.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Hayduke wrote...
    Yes, Rangerhawk. Especially when they're out trying to make a name for themselves.
    April 28, 2013 8:14 pm
    Zimmerman was itching for this confrontation. He's just a vigilante wanna-be loser who wouldn't leave the poor kid the fak alone.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • darthclown wrote...
    Waiving Stand Your Ground hearing
    April 30, 2013 7:21 am
    because his attorney knows he doesn't have a snowballs chance of winning. Stand Your Ground went right out the window when Zim got out of his car to confront Martin. Once he exited the vehicle, he was the aggressor, not Martin. Martin died standing his ground against an armed gunman, not the other way around.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }