Crimesider
Crimesider
March 20, 2012 1:00 PM

Trayvon Martin, victim of fatal shooting, told girlfriend, "I think this dude is following me," attorney says

By
Julia Dahl
Topics
Daily Blotter

Trayvon Martin

/ CBS/Personal photo
(CBS) FT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - An attorney for Trayvon Martin's family played what he said was a recorded affidavit from Martin's girlfriend, who was on the phone with the 17-year-old when he was allegedly approached by neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman.

Photos: Trayvon Martin

Much of the recording was inaudible when played Tuesday at a press conference in Florida, but attorney Benjamin Crump said that in it, Martin's girlfriend says that Martin told her "I think this dude is following me," minutes before he was shot by Zimmerman.

"This young lady connects the dots," said Crump. "She completely blows Zimmerman's absurd self-defense claim out of the water."

According to Crump, phone records and the affidavit show that Martin was on the phone with the young woman, whose name has not been released, on and off through his entire walk from his father's fiancee's apartment to a convenience store and back on Feb. 26.

Crump told reporters that Martin told his girlfriend it was starting to rain harder and that he ran to a nearby building for shelter.

"He's just a kid trying to get home from the store and get out of the rain," said Crump, who said he would turn the recording over to the Department of Justice. "He's got his hoodie on because it's raining."

In his phone call to 911, George Zimmerman told the operator that Martin looked "real suspicious...looks like he's up to no good, or he's on drugs or something. It's raining and he's just walking around looking about."

Crump said he and the family will meet with the DOJ and follow the case through the ongoing investigation and grand jury scheduled for April 10.

"Self defense is a legal argument you make in a courtroom, not an argument you make on the side of the street and get to go home and go to bed," said Crump. "Trayvon Martin's mother and father are not asking for an eye for an eye, they're just asking for an arrest."

Complete coverage of the Trayvon Martin case on Crimesider

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