Thursday, July 19, 2012

Attorney Anne Bremner Discusses Possible Inconsistencies in Zimmerman's Account


Anne Bremner discusses the Trayvon Martin shooting, Zimmerman's statements with Soledad O'Brien


Criminal defense attorney Anne Bremner appeared on the Starting Point segment on CNN this morning to discuss the conflicts in George Zimmerman’s account of the Trayvon Martin shooting:

Anne Bremner Discusses the Trayvon Martin Shooting
Anne Bremner on CNN's Starting Point with Soledad O'Brien on July 19, 2012 discussing Zimmerman's statements in the Trayvon Martin shooting.

For those that missed it (it was on at 7:00 a.m. this morning), a transcript from the segment:

Soledad O’Brien: To me it seems like right there he’s admitting, he said running to the dispatcher, but he wasn’t running. Is that problematic? I mean, you know, in a court?

Anne Bremner: Absolutely. “I said I was running but I really wasn’t running, I was just kind of next to him” He needs to say that now because of the Stand Your Ground law because you can’t run after somebody and then stand your ground and use deadly force. And you can simply stand your ground when someone’s attacking you, don’t have a duty to retreat, so, and it’s also an issue before the jury trial. A judge can just decide this issue in Florida. So it’s huge. And obviously he’s talked to his lawyer, and he’s got to be careful about what he says, about whether he followed Trayvon Martin because it’s the pivotal issue, pretrial and if it gets to a jury trial.

Soledad O’Brien: But his attorney says they may not use Stand Your Ground, they might just use a basic Self-Defense. He’s another chunk of the interview with Sean Hannity, where they, and he has, before you hear this chunk, he’s described in pretty great detail about the fight and the wrestle for the gun.

[clip plays]

Sean Hannity: Do you remember when you, yourself, reached for your weapon? Do you remember that moment?

George Zimmerman: Yes, sir.

Sean Hannity: Tell us about that.

George Zimmerman: Um, at that point, um I realized that it wasn’t my gun. It wasn’t his gun. It was the gun.

[clip ends]

Soledad O’Brien: I felt like there was some point that he was trying to make but I wasn’t sure that I fully understand it. What message was that supposed to be about, “not my gun” but “the gun”.

Anne Bremner: Well, exactly, and keep in mind in his first court appearance he said he didn’t know whether or not Trayvon was armed. I thought that was a statement he should never have made. Um, but that aside, I think he’s trying to talk about that there could have been a gun there, now he’s saying that. I mean, it’s difficult for him to make these inconsistent statements on the air and in court, and then he’ll have to face them in trial again, like I said. But I think he’s trying to say I had to use deadly force, “the gun”, uh, in person, kind of detach it from himself, um, and maybe attach it to Trayvon Martin. But then also to talk about how he feared for his life and he had to use deadly force, and it was, I guess, how it was “God’s plan.”

Soledad O’Brien: Uh, right. Which was his words. He sort of walked that back later a bit later on in the interview. Um, you said Stand Your Ground then he, they talked a little bit self defense, or his attorney Mark Marrow who was in that interview, as well. What’s the difference in terms of, how difficult, or, uh, it will be to convict him of, uh, manslaughter, let’s say?

Anne Bremner: Well self defense basically, and you have a right to self defense in this country, and it basically means that if you’re threatened, with deadly force or what you perceive to be deadly force, you can use deadly force. And Stand Your Ground is part of that, and if I were his lawyer I would definitely use it, if the facts warranted it because it basically says you have no duty to retreat. If someone’s attacking you, you don’t have to run away. You stand your ground and you can use the amount of force you need, whether it’s in your home, whether it’s out in the street, or anywhere else, to defend yourself. And so he’s basically got to use both. We have it all over this country, it’s by statute in Florida, but it’s a strong law that I would use as his lawyer. And self defense, only two people know what happened there, and one of them didn’t live to tell the tale.


Monday, July 16, 2012

Meet Anne Bremner - Legal Analyst


Anne is a trial attorney, and one of the nation's most recognized legal analysts. Her practice emphasizes civil rights, catastrophic loss litigation and criminal law. In her 29 years of practice, she has been lead counsel for many highly-publicized court cases. Anne is a regular contributing legal analyst on TV and cable, having appeared many times on networks including CNN, Fox, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, the BBC and others.

Among her successful high-profile trial work, are cases representing:

    Anne Bremner
  • Counsel and spokesperson for The Friends of Amanda Knox
  • Family of Susan Cox Powell
  • Illusionist David Copperfield
  • Lease Crutcher Lewis Construction
  • The Olympic Pipeline Co.
  • Atlas
  • Washington State Attorney General – now Governor – Chris Gregoire and the Attorney General’s office
  • The Des Moines Police Department - “Mary Kay Letourneau case”
  • The City of Seattle in a national ACLU test case - “WTO based litigation”
  • Dr. Joseph King
  • Gaby Rodriguez (“The Pregnancy Project”)
  • Numerous police departments, including the Seattle, Portland, Bellevue, Tacoma and Federal Way police departments, and numerous King County Sheriff deputies
  • The state patrol
  • The border patrol
  • Over thirty judges

She graduated from Stanford University receiving a B.A. with honors, and as an attorney has a perfect 10 AVVO rating, She has been voted one of the best lawyers in Seattle magazine and in Seattle Metropolitan magazine numerous times. Seattle magazine also voted her one of Seattle's Top 25 most influential people. Washington Law & Politics listed Anne as one of the 25 Smartest People in Washington State in 2003.

Anne has distinguished herself not only as a dedicated advocate for her clients, but also as an attorney who has achieved a level of peer recognition. Over the years, she has been honored with numerous distinctions, which few lawyers and even fewer women can claim.

As the Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for the Criminal Division of the King County Prosecutor’s Office in Seattle from 1983 to 1988, Anne specialized in prosecuting sex crimes, where she successfully tried over 200 cases.

Anne was profiled in Law and Politics under “Headliners and Legends”, profiled in the Bar Bulletin and was named a Superlawyer in the Corporate Counsel editions.

She was counsel and spokesperson for The Friends of Amanda Knox, has represented the family of Susan Cox Powell, the illusionist David Copperfield, Howard S. Wright Construction, Lease Crutcher Lewis, the Olympic Pipeline Co., Atlas, innumerable police departments, the state patrol, the border patrol and over thirty judges.

Off-duty, Anne is a Northwest resident who lives in Seattle. Dividing her time between her charities, trial work, and legal analysis, she stays extremely busy.

Anne Bremner, PC was established in 2012 allowing Anne to focus on her litigation, criminal law and legal analyst work. She also serves as Special Counsel to Frey Buck, a Seattle law firm.