US

Judge to consider allowing Martin’s texts in Zimmerman case

Chuck Ross Investigative Reporter
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SANFORD, Fla. – Judge Debra Nelson said late Tuesday night that she will rule Wednesday on whether cell phone data showing Trayvon Martin had a penchant for fighting — and was seeking to purchase a gun — will be allowed as evidence in the second-degree murder trial against George Zimmerman.

“This is absolutely compelling evidence and it’s highly relevant,” argued Zimmerman attorney Don West Tuesday evening.

Orlando-based computer forensics expert Richard Connor was able to unlock data contained in Martin’s cell phone. Connor used Cellebrite software to delve into Martin’s phone and access “secret text messages,” including .bin files which contain “all the data, all the files” in a cell phone’s memory. That data was not reported in the analysis of Martin’s cell phone turned over by the state.

Connor testified that according to the text messages, “Mr. Martin was either trying to purchase or sell a handgun.” Connor said that Martin was looking to purchase a gun between February 18 and February 22, days before he left to visit his father in the Sanford, Florida neighborhood where he was shot on February 26.

He said Martin was attempting to obtain a gun from a person going by the name “Diamond” — a known nickname for Rachel Jeantel, the young woman who was on the phone with Martin moments before he was shot.

West pointed out that Jeantel had made inconsistent statements about her knowledge of Martin’s interests in fighting. She initially said that she did not know about Martin’s past history of fighting but later changed her statements. Her text messages with Martin suggest that they had discussed his penchant for fighting.

Connor also said he discovered a text message sent to Martin from his half-brother Demetrius Martin asking, “When you going to teach me how to fight?” West argued that that was evidence that Martin was good at fighting.

State attorney John Guy objected to the motion on the grounds that Martin could not be identified as the author of the messages. “We don’t know who typed these messages, we don’t know if they’re connected,” he argued.

One of the people who contacted Martin about his fighting now denies that he was involved in an altercation. Dominique Clarke sent a Facebook message to Martin on November 26, 2011 asking “who u fought?”

Clarke now tells the Daily Caller “he didn’t fight.” “I thought he did because of a rumor going on but it wasn’t the Trayvon I thought it was,” she told TheDC last week.

Judge Nelson said she will wait until Wednesday to rule on the admissibility of the cell phone evidence.