Frank Taaffe, once a vocal defender of George Zimmerman, has changed his tune, testifying Wednesday to a grand jury in Orlando that Trayvon Martin was unfairly targeted.
According to the Orlando Sentinel, Taaffe, a neighbor of Zimmerman's, testified that he received a phone call just days after Martin was killed. He said the caller identified himself as Zimmerman, and said "something that was pretty disparaging to Trayvon and to African-Americans," leading him to believe that Martin was racially profiled by Zimmerman, who imagined himself a neighborhood security guard.
Taaffe said he wasn't 100 percent certain the caller was in fact Zimmerman, as the call came from an unknown number.
Asked why he has come out in support of Martin and his family, Taaffe explained that both of his sons died recently, giving him insight into the loss Martin's parents experienced.
"This is a young man who didn't deserve to die," Taaffe said.
Taaffe also said that his daughter, who is in the U.S. Marine Corps, was ostracized and ridiculed after he defended Zimmerman, and that damaged their relationship.
"I miss her and I love her," he said. "She's my only child I've got left."
Zimmerman was found not guilty of murder in the trial following his and Martin's altercation, which ended with the fatal shooting of Martin.
A federal grand jury is deliberating whether or not to bring separate charges related to a potential violation of the young man's civil rights. Several national news outlets have stated that charges are unlikely.
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