Originally Posted by lhgreengrd1

Nonsense - that was never "proven". The simple fact is, it was never PROVEN who started the fight, and frankly, it is entirely dependent upon what you define as "starting the fight". One civilian tailing another civilian who has every right to be in a public area is inherently a confrontational, threatening act, and THAT was the beginning of whatever fight subsequently occurred.

The issue is not what he knew when he began to follow Martin - it's what he knew when he confronted him. And by then, he knew he was confronting a black male. Who was unarmed, who had as much right to be there as Zimmerman, and whom Zimmerman subsequently shot, after ignoring the instructions of the police dispatcher NOT to confront him.

The fact is, Zimmerman initiated the fight by following someone who had every right to walk in the neighborhood without being tailed and confronted by a cop-wannabe.