George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who fatally shot a black teenager three years ago, blames President Barack Obama's "racially charged comments" for turning many Americans against him.
In an interview recorded with the lawyer who worked on his 2013 divorce case, Zimmerman calls out the president's messaging following the fatal shooting.
Zimmerman also refers to the president by his full legal name, Barack Hussein Obama.
"I think that throughout the process, the president should have done what he said he was going to do and not interject himself in a local law enforcement matter or a state matter and waited until the facts came out, instead of rushing to judgment, making racially charged comments, and pitting American against American," Zimmerman said.
The 31-year-old was asked to single out one "government agency or official" who placed "the highest level of unfairness" on the situation.
"By far, the President of the United States, Barack Hussein Obama. He had the most authority and in that sense I would hold him in the highest regard believing that he would hold that position and do his absolute hardest to not inflame racial tensions in America," Zimmerman replied.
"Unfortunately, after even after Jay Carney, his press secretary, stated in the White House briefing that the White House will not interject in a local law enforcement matter and at most a state criminal matter, President Obama held his Rose Garden speech stating, 'if I had a son, he would look like Trayvon [Martin].'
"To me, that was clearly a dereliction of duty pitting Americans against each other solely based on race. He took what should have been a clear-cut self-defense matter and still to this day on the anniversary of incident he held a ceremony at the White House inviting the Martin-Fulton family and stating that they should take the day to reflect upon the fact that all children's lives matter.
"Unfortunately for the president, I'm also my parents' child and my life matters as well. And for him to make incendiary comments as he did and direct the Department of Justice to pursue a baseless prosecution he by far overstretched, overreached, even broke the law in certain aspects to where you have an innocent American being prosecuted by the federal government, which should never happen."
Zimmerman was on neighborhood watch duty the night of February 26, 2012 when he approached 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. The teen was acting suspicious, Zimmerman claimed, and he said eventually a physical struggle ensued between the two.
The incident ended with Zimmerman shooting Martin in what he claimed to be self-defense. He was eventually charged in the shooting death, but a jury found him not guilty.
Recently, the Justice Department wrapped up an almost three-year investigation into whether or not Zimmerman violated Martin's civil rights. The department announced
it would not file charges.
Zimmerman reacted to the decision during the interview.
"Initially I was extremely alleviated," he said. "Quickly that turned into realization that the Department of Justice finding that there was no basis to pursue charges was just the beginning of a journey, my personal journey, to correct the wrongs that the federal government did. To ensure that it never happens to any innocent American ever again."
Zimmerman added that he was treated unfairly by the government in the days, months, and years following the shooting.
"They opened an investigation and reopened it to see if I had violated his civil rights," Zimmerman said. "And again, they had various, numerous examples of bounties place on my head, credible threats placed against myself and my family, against from whom they know to be domestic terrorists, and the president and the attorney general and the federal government declined to do anything about it."
Zimmerman's life has been rocky since the 2012 shooting. He
divorced his wife in 2013 and had several run-ins with the law. He also sold some paintings
that were criticized for being copies of photos taken by other people.
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