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This is the federal law:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/249
This is an editorial on the possibility:
http://www.npr.org/2012/03/21/149058384/was-trayvon-martins-killing-a-federal-hate-crime
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/249
This is an editorial on the possibility:
Samuel Bagenstos, a law professor who worked in the Obama Justice Department, says "a crucial question in determining whether the Shepard-Byrd statute applies is going to be whether Zimmerman acted with discriminatory intent."
In the 911 call released by the police department, Zimmerman seems to disregard an order to let law enforcement handle the situation.
During the call, the dispatcher asks Zimmerman, "Are you following him?"
When Zimmerman says that he is, the dispatcher replies, "OK, we don't need you to do that."
Just before that exchange — approximately 2 minutes and 20 seconds into the tape — Zimmerman appears to mutter a racial epithet under his breath.
That remark could give the Justice Department a hook into the case, says Bagenstos.
"If, in fact, Zimmerman was saying a racial epithet right before the shooting, that's going to be a very important piece of evidence," Bagenstos says.
Some people think Zimmerman muttered a profanity — but nothing racially disparaging. His father told reporters that Zimmerman is Latino and has lots of black friends.
But Swarns of the NAACP says she has no doubt about Zimmerman's remark. "Obviously in the last 24 hours the enhanced audiotapes have come out," she says. "And we can all hear what sounds very clearly to be a racial epithet being used by Mr. Zimmerman before the shooting."
http://www.npr.org/2012/03/21/149058384/was-trayvon-martins-killing-a-federal-hate-crime
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