Violent melees involving Orlando-area neighborhood watch guy George Zimmerman (you remember—the guy acquitted in 2012 the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a black teenager) are no longer surprising to us.
What surprises us about the latest incident, which happened this afternoon, is that he was the one who got shot in an incident in Lake Mary earlier today. You can see media photos of his pickup truck. As a post on Wonkette points out, an Amurrican flag flies from the top of it on the driver's side; there's a bullet hole on the passengers' side.
CNN Editor Ram Ramgopal tweeted that the person who called 911 to report the incident said the shooter told him the two "were driving when Zimmerman waved a gun; so he shot Zimmerman" and that this was the third run-in between the two men.
"I shot George Zimmerman, call 911. I don't have a phone," the shooter told Kenneth Cornell, who was exiting his car after his lunch break, according to CNN.
The shooter has been identified as Matthew Apperson, who, by the way, already has a Facebook fan page.
Zimmerman suffered only minor injuries to his head from the glass that shattered when the bullet hit his window. He has not spoken to media.
Since he was acquitted in the Martin case, he has been involved in several dustups. Here's a list from Orlando's WFTV:
-He was charged with aggravated assault after being accused of throwing a wine bottle at an ex-girlfriend, Brittany Brunelle. The case was dropped in January after she recanted her story and refused to cooperate.
-Following another domestic confrontation, he was arrested on charges of aggravated assault, battery and criminal mischief after his then-girlfriend said he pointed a gun at her face during an argument, smashed her coffee table and pushed her out of the house they shared. Samantha Scheibe decided not to cooperate with detectives, and prosecutors didn't pursue the case.
-Zimmerman was accused by his estranged wife of smashing an iPad during an argument at the home they had shared. Shellie Zimmerman initially told a dispatcher her husband had a gun, though she later said he was unarmed. No charges were filed because of a lack of evidence. The dispute occurred days after Shellie Zimmerman filed divorce papers.
-Last September, a driver said Zimmerman threatened to kill him, asking "Do you know who I am?" during a road confrontation in their vehicles. The driver decided not to pursue charges, and police officers were unable to move forward without a car tag identified or witnesses.
So that makes this number five.
Lake Mary Police Chief Steve Bracknell told the Los Angeles Times in September of 2013 that Zimmerman was too much trouble for such a small suburb.
“Man, it would be fantastic if you have an apartment out there [in Los Angeles] for George Zimmerman," Bracknell [said]. “This guy is killing me. We’re just a small-town police department — this really taxes us."
Man. Maybe that guy needs counseling.
Or, dare we say it, not be allowed to own guns.
