George “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” Zimmerman Had a History of Violence

by Patrick H. Moore

George “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” Zimmerman is a complex fellow. Although the prosecution in his second-degree-murder case is claiming that he racially profiled Trayvon Martin because he was black, Zimmerman’s history shows that he’s had plenty of black friends. Not only that, his Peruvian grandmother was reportedly half-black. Furthermore, when Zimmerman was a child, two black children spent a great deal of time at his family’s house and there is nothing on the record to show that he harbored any resentment toward them.

Zimmerman, who grew up in a multi-racial family with a white father and a Hispanic mother, served as a choir boy from age 7 to 17. He was raised to care for the less fortunate in society and has often been described as a helpful, kind-hearted person. As an adult, he has been a registered Democrat. The record shows that although he initiated the meeting (because of the rash of burglaries ) that led to him being named Neighborhood Watch Commander at the Retreat at Twin Lakes, the decision to select him as leader was more or less unanimous.

Thus, it seems somewhat unfair to classify Zimmerman as a racist. And there is little doubt that he has a good side. In fact, not unlike Dr Jekyll in Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novel, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Zimmerman may be primarily good. Unfortunately, like Jekyll’s alter-ego, Mr. Hyde, Zimmerman’s bad side can be very bad, particularly when it involves violence.

Whether or not he is ultimately convicted of the second-degree-murder of Trayvon Martin, it is patently obvious that Martin would still be alive making inflammatory statements on Facebook and generally acting like a immature teenager were it not for Zimmerman’s grotesque over-reaction to the presence of the 17-year-old black youth on the night of February 26, 2012 there at the Twin Lakes complex.

It turns out that for Zimmerman to over-react in an aggressive and/or violent fashion was nothing new. Between 2001 and 2005, he worked part-time for two agencies “securing house parties”, which I assume means keeping them from getting out of control. According to the New York Daily News, he was ultimately fired from his position for “being too aggressive.”

A former co-worker recalls:

“Usually he was just a cool guy. But it was like Jekyll and Hyde. When dude snapped, he snapped. He had a temper and he became a liability.”

“One time this woman was acting a little out of control. She was drunk. George lost his cool and totally overreacted. It was weird, because he was such a cool guy, but he got all nuts. He picked her up and threw her. It was pure rage. She twisted her ankle. Everyone was flipping out.”

Around that time, Zimmerman was also involved in a domestic violence incident with his ex-fiancee, Veronica Zuazo, who, in filing for a restraining order, claimed that Zimmerman snatched her cell phone from her hand and pushed her during an argument.

Zuazo informed the Miami Herald that three years earlier, Zimmerman had attacked her while the two were driving to — of all things — a counseling session. Zuazo admitted she aggravated Zimmerman by popping her gum in his face and he reportedly responded by repeatedly smacking her in the face. On another occasion, in January 2002, Zimmerman became enraged when Zuazo came home to late. According to the Herald, they wrestled and he threw her on the bed and struck her.

In September 2003, Zimmerman called police and reported that another motorist had spat on him. Zimmerman, who appears to have a history of following people, followed the man in his car until the police arrived. Daniel Osmun, the other driver, told police that Zimmerman was tailgating him and that he had spit his gum out the window “out of frustration.” While reporting the incident to the police, Osmun stated that Zimmerman had pulled up alongside him and that “at one point, he thought Mr. Zimmerman was going to attack him.” No charges were filed against either man.

After the February 26th shooting, when questioned, some of Zimmerman’s neighbors said he had a history of being overly aggressive while serving as Watch Commander and had the bad habit of following residents of the community, whom he thought looked suspicious, back to their homes.

At an emergency homeowner’s association meeting on March 1, just days after the killing, it was discovered that one resident had previously contacted the Sanford Police Department about “Zimmerman approaching him and even coming to his home,” a resident who spoke on the condition of anonymity told HuffPost. “It was also made known that there had been several complaints about George Zimmerman and his tactics” in his neighborhood watch role.

The former co-worker who worked with Zimmerman securing house parties said he had not recently been in touch with him and that the second-degree-murder charges came as a shock.