The same attorney who defended Casey Anthony is now involved in the trial of George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch captain facing second degree murder charges for the shooting of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed 17-year-old killed in February.
The Miami Herald is reporting that Jose Baez, who gained national attention for working to get Anthony acquitted, has confirmed that he is representing Chris Serino, the controversial lead investigator for the Martin case.
“He wants his own counsel — he’s intimidated,” Michael Wright, a spokesman for Baez, told the Herald. “It may not be a friendly deposition.”
Baez himself went on to speak to the Orlando Sentinel on behalf of his client, arguing that he wants the truth to come out accurately.
"It's a very politically charged case and he just wants to make sure that everything is done by the book," Baez told the Sentinel.
Reports surfaced last spring that Serino, who was reassigned in July, initially wanted manslaughter charges brought against Zimmerman on the night of the shooting, according to ABC News.
The news outlet notes that Serino filed an affidavit expressing doubts about Zimmerman's story of what happened that night, as well as his claims that he shot Martin in self-defense. According to ABC, on recordings from Feb. 29, Serino can be heard questioning Zimmerman's account of the events that led up to the shooting.
"You ever hear of Murphy's Law," Serino says on the recording, according to ABC. "This person was not doing anything bad."
Serino goes on the say that Martin was 17, and a "kid with a future" who was found with a can of ice tea and a bag of Skittles.
At the time, charges were not filed and the former police chief, Bill Lee, said there was a lack of evidence against Zimmerman.
A few months later, though, the Miami Herald reported that Serino told the FBI that he was pressured by a sergeant and two other officers to press charges against Zimmerman, despite what he believed was a lack of evidence. His credibility has since been questioned.
“Our position has always been that there’s something going on in the Sanford Police Department,” Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Martin's family told the Herald after Serino's account was made public. “All of this is window dressing. What’s important is George Zimmerman’s statements, which are inconsistent and factually impossible.”
As the Associated Press reported, it was 44 days before Zimmerman was charged in the shooting. He has pled not guilty, claiming self-defense.
Serino is currently on the defense's witness list, which according to the Sentinel, indicates that Zimmerman's attorneys are expecting any testimony from Serino to benefit their case.
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