closing arguments. the judge also ruled that text messages from the phone of the deceased trayvon martin could not be used in court. let's get right to our panel. live from sanford, craig melvin, here with us in new york msnbc analyst lisa bloom and from "the washington post" craig capehart. >> right now another sidebar. adam pollock recalled, the gentleman who owned the gym where george zimmerman trained and he also trained george zimmerman for a while as well, described him as soft, said he was not athletic. first question out of the mouth of the defense porn was, are you now calling -- now advertising at your gym? this is basically where george zimmerman trained. they were asking him about using the trial as a way to advertise. the defense immediately

objected. and that is when the sidebar started. that sidebar's wrapping up now. as you indicated, the major headline this afternoon, announcement from george zimmerman that he will not testify. also, judge nelson deciding not to throw the case out, not to grant an acquittal from the bench as well. so it's going to go to a jury at some point. again, we expect that the defense -- excuse me, the state will call at least two rebuttal witnesses, perhaps three. then of course the jury instructions, closing arguments as well. but again, the defense has rested its case. it looks like, looks like, we are approaching the end of this trial. >> craig, i think that the judge has just ruled a recess for 15 minutes. and that's why you're seeing pictures of the court emptying. they will be back in 15 minutes. craig, going back to adam pollock, the other person who testified today mr. dennis root, also, he of course was a safety and law enforcement trainer.

he also was emphasizing thnotio of george zimmerman as a flaccid, flabby, weak fighter, wasn't he? >> yeah. yeah. that would be -- that would be precisely how he was described, martin. that would be -- yeah -- you mentioned dennis root. on the stand for four hours. and what was one of the things that was interesting about his testimony, earlier in the week judge nelson had already decided that his testimony would have to be fairly narrow in its scope. she said he would not be allowed to testify that george zimmerman acted in self-defense, not be allowed to telephone that george zimmerman exercised restrainting, he was not allowed to testify that george zimmerman violated any of the laws of state of florida. we were expecting his testimony would not take that long. once again, we were wrong. again, he ended up testifying for about four hours. ultimately, basically saying the

story provided to him by george zimmerman was consistent, consistent with the nchkinforma and photos provided. information and photos provided were by mark o'mara and the defense team. >> we've had this description by two witnesses for the defense of george zimmerman, as i said, being an unfit individual. and then at the same time, there was this implication or indeed strong suggestion that they had an assessment of trayvon martin's fitness, even though they knew nothing about his physical health. they had not actually met the young man. yet they were painting him as this superfit, young black athlete. >> well, the expert witness today was definitely, and that was interesting. he had to answer questions from the prosecutor on cross-examination about that. you didn't know anything about trayvon martin. you knew he played football in middle school, that was about it. what else did you know about him? height and weight and that he

was physically healthy, that's what the autopsy report said. that's it. we don't know anything about his fighting ability. if he had any at all. if he would be a one on a scale of one to ten or a ten or in between. a lot of assumptions made about him, 17 years old, just turned 17. we don't know anything about it. the witness started to say that he knew some things from the media, you know, that's obviously a big red flag. he got cut off on that and no further discussion. >> we do know, i believe trayvon martin was 158 pounds at point at which he was killed, right? >> right, 5'11". >> conceding how much in weight to mr. zimmerman? >> i've heard different things about zimmerman's weight at the time. he's put on a -- i think about 100 pounds since then. but we've seen pictures of him. he was obviously fairly physically fit at the time. and the gym owner even said he was physically fit. he lost a lot of weight. the gym owner said he was not a good fighter. he didn't use words as well as

you did, though, at the beginning of the segment, martin. >> what do you mean by that? >> flaccid, flabby. >> having watched every moment of it, it seemed to me that what the defense were attempting to do was sell the notion of one man being perpetually weak, though he had been in a gym for a year, against a young man who they were attempting to describe as a superfit athlete that they knew nothing about. >> you know what? bottom line is, how much does this matter? i mean, let's say he was superweak and wussy, right? when he's down, if he's down, if the jury believes he's down and trayvon martin's on top of him and he's incapable of fighting, first of all, perhaps he shouldn't have been following trayvon martin to begin with if he's not capable of fighting and we don't know how the fight started, but, secondly, is he in reasonable fear of imminent bodily injury or death? even if trayvon martin was superior fighter, had landed a couple of punches on him, you don't get to pull out a gun and

kill somebody in that situation. >> right. jonathan capehart of "the washington post," swnt this really about focusing the attention in terms of the defense on the actual fight so that the jury is not so concerned with the fact that mr. zimmerman was told not to pursue trayvon martin by the telephonist when he alerted them to this? that's what this is about. it's about making everything on the fight and if they create this notion there was a flabby individual against the young man who is superfit, that's where they want the focus to be, isn't it? >> yeah. you put all of the focus on the fight, primarily because it's still unclear who actually started the fight. now, all of the testimony we have heard and everything that we know up until this point is that it's from george zimmerman's point of view, he was cold cocked in the nose by trayvon martin. as long as the defense can keep

putting that story out there and perpetuating that story, yeah, it keeps them from talking about the fact that the nonemergency operator said to george zimmerman when he heard the door chimes of george zimmerman's car, he told him, we don't need you to do that. let's be clear that the telephone operator said on the stand that they do not, for liability issues, do not give orders to people who call that number. so, he said that they give suggestions and make suggestions for people to do or not do something. so, it's not a hard and fast police order, but i have to tell you, if i were to call a police department and a person on the other end from the police department said to me, we don't need you to do that, i wouldn't do it. >> i'm sure you would. lease, as we said, the court is in recess at the moment. tell us what's going to happen next when they come back in. where are we in proceedings terms? >> we are in the prosecution rebuttal indicate, the

prosecution has presented its case in chief. they rested. the defense presented its case in chief, they rested. now it's prosecution rebuttal. one other quick thing on the last point, there is a witness to the point that the fight was begun by george zimmerman and that's rachel jeantel. >> yes. >> she was on the phone with trayvon martin. >> yes. >> at the end of the call the phone hit what sounded like wet grass and then she heard trayvon martin saying, get off, get off. >> absolutely. >> if the jury believes that, they may believe that george zimmerman was the one who started the fight. >> yeah. going back, lease, thank you for that, going back to what happens now after the recess? >> right. after the recess the judge is going to have to rule whether this witness can testify or not. it's adam pollock the gym owner, called back to the stand. first question from the prosecution about advertising he's done, suggesting he's advertised his involvement in the case, that elicited an objection, sounds like a cross-examination question that should have been asked when he

testified previously for the defense. >> lisa, to that point, though, have you not noticed the number of people who have been called by the defense who have continuing relationships with the defendant? i mean, olivia bertalan who just testified, she follows the lead defense attorney mark o'mara on twitter, he's appeared on various television programs. >> right. >> john done ellie, who gives $5,000 to a fund and assists in the clothing of mr. zimmerman. it seems that virtually all of these individuals have a vested continuing interest in this trial, beyond the actual evidence. >> right. well, looking they're family and friends of george zimmerman. so they are supporting him in the case. the question would be a perfectly appropriate question for cross-examination of the gm owner, had it been raised on cross-examination when he was called as a defense witness. the question is, can he call him back to the stand now just to ask him that. we're always finding out new information as time goes on. we can't call witnesses back and

get in another additional question. this is time for the state's rebuttal case. they're supposed to be putting on fresh evidence to respond to new information that came out in the defense case. not supposed to be extending cross-examinations that are already concluded. >> lisa, again, i'm grateful to you. jonathan capehart and craig melvin. the trial is in a 15-ment recess. we'll return live in a moment. looked nice? soft would be great, but we really just need "kid-proof." softsprings got both, let me show you. right over here. here, feel this. wow, that's nice. wow. the soft carpets have never been this durable. you know i think we'll take it. get kid-friendly toughness and feet-friendly softness,

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have you made a decision? >> yes, your honor. >> what is your decision, sir? >> after consulting with counsel, not to testify. >> that was george zimmerman moments ago explaining to the judge za he would not be testifying in his trial in the shooting death of trayvon

martin. the court is currently in recess. we expect the jury to come back in momentarily. joining the panel, angela wry, and dr. lawrence koebbilinsky. has he made the right decision in choosing not to testify? >> absolutely. i think, one, if one has never been cross-examined, it's hard to explain what that is like. you are hit from all sides with unanticipated questions that look for nuances in what you've said or written and it is a strenuous attack on your personality, on your background, on anything and everything. it is a dangerous move when a defendant wants to testify. >> but is it not also a reaction to the fact that mr. zimmerman's version of events on that night

appears to have changed several times and he would have to sustain or explain how that has happened? >> absolutely, no question about it. the prosecution is quite effective at looking at the inconsistencies that you point out. and it would be a terrible mistake for him to get up there. the defense appears to be still doing a fairly good job. i mean, they have -- the state has not made its case. i do believe that they could have done more than they have done. remember, they have to prove every element of their case. i think there are still gaps that they have not closed. so i think the smart thing to do is for george zimmerman not to testify and my thinking on this is that, closing arguments, even though it's not evidence, is what is going to make a difference in the case, just like the casey anthony case and jose buy as, i think hi won the

case with closing argument. here if they use that animation during the closing argument, that will stay in jurors' minds, see george zimmerman's effectively testifying though he's not and i think it will have a dramatic impact on the case. >> the judge ruled today that that animated graphicized reconstruction of george zimmerman's version of what happened could not be used as evidence, yet but it could be used in closing arguments. yet you seem to be suggesting that animation may well have a significant affect on the jury? >> absolutely. i think once they -- >> should the judge, v. therefore, ruled it out altogether? >> i think that animations are used in the courtroom, used for the prosecution most of the time. the fbi has a unit that does graphics and animations and things of that sort. i don't know -- i mean some people say it shouldn't have been allowed in. some people say it should have

been allowed in. you can argue both ways. i think during closing arguments the defense has a lot of leeway and i think they will certainly use this as a major point for the jurors to view. >> angela, does this reconstruction give the defense a distinct advantage in closing arguments? >> i think it could potentially, martin. the challenges in a case where someone has lost their life, there's a whole other version of events that no one has the opportunity to hear. of course, that's from the victim, trayvon martin. his account certainly won't be accounted for in this particular animation. i would have liked to see the judge rule it out altogether. yes, it's been said in closing, that does not count as evidence. however, it does have tremendous impact on the jury. and we can expect it will have some level of impact here. >> yeah. in terms of the proceedings at the moment, they're in recess. i want to go back to craig melvin, if i can, who is down at the court.

craig, the individual that's been called back by the prosecution, adam pollock, what is their particular interest in what he said under -- on cross-examination originally? >> well, again, as you indicated, martin, he was the second witness, the first witness, rather, to speak to despite the fact that he had been training with george zimmerman for a while, he was soft, he wasn't in shape, couldn't hold his own in terms of grappling. what i want to let you know about here, we did some digging here, when they called him back as rebuttal witness, when the state called him back, they asked him whether he had done any advertising, whether he advertised his instruction of george zimmerman. his response on the stand, before the recess, was, no. team of producers did digging. if you go to his gym's website, i won't give the website out i don't want to advertise, we went to the website, it clearly says under the events tab on the gym's website to receive

information about the training george zimmerman received at this gym, please e-mail the request by filling out the form provided below. it goes on to say that the specific training that was provided to george zimmerman won't be provided until after the trial. this is presumably what the attorneys are talking about right now because, again, he just said they weren't advertising, they weren't using george zimmerman's training basically to profit. and now i assume that if we found it rather easily, that attorneys for the state of florida probably also found it just as easily. >> let's set aside how distasteful it is for anyone to promote their business following a murder or death. you're saying that the prosecution are going to claim that he misled the jury, that he didn't tell the truth, because he was adamant. he said he's not been involved in promoting -- >> that -- that is one possible

argument that the state could make. and i guess woel se'll see in a minute what the state tries to claim regarding his testimony. you mentioned john donnelly, he and his wife, as you indicated, gave a substantial amount of money to the zimmerman legal defense fund, bought him clothes for the trial, took food to the home as well. judge nelson indicated she has yet to deal with or address the matter of hit testimony as well, john donnelly, apparently. again, there is a picture that we pulled from the donnelly in court before he testified. and as you know, judge nelson decided early on in the trial that witnesses, according to the law in the state of florida, witnesses who are going to testify unless they're immediately related to a victim they're not supposed in the courtroom. he was in the courtroom. this is an issue that the state raised a couple of days ago. judge nelson has yet to deal

with that particular -- deal with that particular testimony. she could strike the testimony altogether. strike a portion of the testimony, there could be a saengs. she indicated that is an issue she has not addressed yet. we expect today she will address that matter as well. >> grateful to you again, craig. craig melvin, angela rye. the trial is expected to resume any moment. [ whimpers ] - hugs from beneful baked delights... - [ barks ] are crispy, oven-baked dog snacks with soft savory centers, made with beef and cheese. beneful baked delights: a unique collection of four snacks... to help spark play in your day.

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altercation between his attorneys, his defense attorneys, and the judge. let's listen to that. >> have you made a decision, sir, as to whether or not you want to testify in this case? >> your honor, i object to the question. >> overruled. have you made a decision as to whether or not you want to testify in the case? >> i object to that question. i think that's -- >> overruled. the court is entitled to inquire of mr. zimmerman's determination as to whether or not he wants to testify. mr. zimmerman, have you made a decision as to whether or not you want to testify in this case? >> no, not at this time there okay. when is it -- how long do you think you need before you make that decision? >> your honor, may we have an opportunity to speak? the case isn't concluded yet. >> i understand that. and i've asked mr. zimmerman if he needed more time to talk to his attorneys and if he does, i will afford it to him. mr. zimmerman, how much more time do you think you are going to need to discuss this with your attorneys?

>> i assume it will depend on how long the recesses are, your honor. the end of the day. >> okay. if your attorneys have finished with two witnesses before the end of the day, do you think you would then know whether or not you want to testify? >> your honor, on mr. zimmerman's behalf -- >> i'm asking your client questions. please, mr. west. >> i object to the court inquiring of mr. zimmerman as to his decision about whether or not to testify. >> your objection is overruled. mr. zimmerman, i will give you more time, sir, to discuss this with your attorneys. thank you very much. >> lisa, i thought attorneys were able to object with each other but objecting to a judge? >> right. that's just not done. however, don west is fighting for his client and god bless him. when we attorney are in the courtroom we are warriors for our clients, we are not potted

plants. he couldn't get the last word out. i object to your inquiring at the time. yes, at close of the defense case, that's when this typically happens. the judge was asking an an unusual time and he wanted more time to go over it with his client. also a little bit of gamesmanship. you don't want the prosecution to know that you're not putting your client on the stand until the close of your case. they're trying to put it off until that time. >> mr. west also had somewhat unfortunate exchange with the judge last night as well, didn't he? >> yes. >> as he was arguing case for the animation, i believe, the judge stood up and left the court. >> yes. it was 10:00 p.m. they had been going on a very long day, arguing about the animation late into the night. he's making his argument. she said, look, i've made my ruling, i'm done. he continues to argue. she gets up, she walks out and she's the judge. she gets to do that. you know we attorneys do have to be differential to the judge in the courtroom. when they say stop, you have to stop. >> it appeared that judge debra

nelson, who by all reputation is not someone to be medaled with, she didn't take kindly to being challenged in the way she was by mr. west. >> no, look, she's a judge. this is what judges do. you have to have control over the courtroom. you have to be authorititative. you make decisions every few minutes that one side or the other doesn't like. too bad. you're the judge. you have to follow the law. really the judge's biggest concern is being overturned on appeal. she has to be very careful following the law. clearly within her discretion to run the courtroom as sees fit and move the proceedings along. in her defense, she's advocating for the jury because it's a sequestered jury. every day they are sequestered is a liberty vielation in some sense for them. she wants to move through it, not waste time to resolve the case and get back to their lives. >> the jury is not back in court. there's a discussion ongoing at

the moment about adam pollock and whether he should be called back as a rebuttal witness for the prosecution. there's a debate going on at the moment. mark o'mara is arguing the case. we'll update viewers as things move on. jonathan capehart, you've been watching proceedings today. we were talking offcamera about the scene of the mannequin where the prosecution used this mannequin to try to make the point of how difficult it would be if the defense argument is right that trayvon martin was in a powerful position, above george zimmerman, how difficult it would for george zimmerman to access his firearm. >> well, you know i would call this, martin, the bloom question. lisa has been asking this question for a few days now. how is it possible or how was it possible for george zimmerman to reach his gun when he said in the video re-enactment that the gun holster was on his back, behind him, under his pants,

under his shirt, under his jacket. if trayvon martin is on top of him with either over the belly button as they were going back and forth or on the chest or as george zimmerman said trayvon martin's knees were under his arms, then how was it possible, one, for trayvon martin to see or feel the gun and, two, how is it possible for george zimmerman to get the gun and to trayvon martin in the chest? >> so that point, lisa, how well did the defense do in trying to argue the opposite, notwithstanding the presence of an individual on george zimmerman that in fact he could still access his firearm? >> first of all, thank you, jonathan for that acknowledgement. >> it's okay. >> everybody needs to look carefully at re-enactment video where it appears clear to me, that george zimmerman when he shows where he had the gun, he reaches back behind his right hip. that's where the gun is holstered. also inside the waistband with

only the grip extending out diagonally in the center of his back, a shirt over it, a jacket over it it's pitch dark and raining. yet somehow in the midst of all of that while he's on his back, trayvon martin, he claimed, saw and reached for the gun. and in this re-enactment we saw both attorneys getting down, straddling the dummy, i love that but no one pointed accurately where george zimmerman had the gun. the defense has indicated the gun was in the front or they used the word "hip," hip is misleading. hip started in the frond and goes to the back. >> right. >> when you use the word hip you don't know what somebody's talking about, that's why everybody has to look at re-enactment video where he pats behind him to where the gun would be holstered. >> go back to craig melvin in sanford. i believe, craig, we know about the possibility of adam pollock continuing as a rebuttal witness. what can you tell us. >> adam pollock is not going to be coming back to the stand,

martin bashir. judge nelson basically ruled that this website stuff, if you will, the idea that he is using the trial and using the trial of george zimmerman perhaps to try to generate revenue for his gym, is not enough reason to call him back. she's not going to allow him to testify about that. but presumably, craig, the prosecution were going to ask limb several questions. yet she's just ruled that because the first question was in relation to whether he's been promoting his own gym and his fitness training program because of george zimmerman, that's enough to strike him as a witness? >> no, no. what she ruled was that that was not enough for the defense to -- that was not enough for the state to try and use -- to use him to rebut any other testimony. does that make sense?

>> i think so. >> david lee, by the way, the witness called as next rebuttal witness. david lee. we're trying to figure out who he is. he's not a witness that has testified yet for the state. >> martin? >> lisa, what's your reaction to the judge's ruling on adam pollock as potential rebuttal witness. >> i assume the only thing the prosecution was going to call him on was that point and if the judge is not going to allow it, they're not going to call him. i think it's worse if he did advertise this on his website as craig melvin indicate. it worse than using the trial to get money. his testimony was, george zimmerman was a terrible fighter. so if he's using it to advertise his services, i mean the implication would be george zimmerman had to be somewhat better than a terrible fighter otherwise why would anybody want to go to the gym, take fighting classes three times a week for a month if they're a one on a scale of one to ten?

>> the actual website, which craig melvin, my colleague, looked up and this in crack production team says this, to receive information about the training george zimmerman searched at kokopelli's gym, e-mail requests by filling out the form provided below. that's what the gym's web page reads. >> why would anybody want that training if all it gets you at after months three times a week if you're a one on a scale of one to ten? >> craig melvin? >> david lee, by the way, not going to be called as a rebuttal witness. they're going to call arthur fleischmann, trying to call arthur fleeischmann. state wanted to use him as rebuttal witness. he's an agent with the bureau of -- he's an atf agent, bureau of alcohol, tobacco and firearms. as soon as they indicated they wanted to call him there was an

immediate objection. now they're hashing out what the october is from the defense. >> the defense has been successful in objecting to two rebuttal witnesses, one after the other, mr. lee, who followed adam pollock? >> yes. >> craig melvin and lisa bloom, thank you so much. discussion continues in the court, as you can see. stay with us. the trial is expected to resume at any momentle. we'll bring to you live. does your dog food have? 18 percent? 20? new purina one true instinct has 30. active dogs crave nutrient-dense food. so we made purina one true instinct. learn more at purinaone.com in miami, coca-cola is coming together with latino leaders to support hispanicize, and the adelante movement. teaching tools for success, and fostering creativity. these programs are empowering people to lead positive change, and helping them discover how great a little balance can feel. through initiatives like these,

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we continue to follow proceedings down in sanford, florida. the judge has just decided that the state cannot call adam pollock as a rebuttal witness, nor can they call david lee. now, as i understand it, i'm joined by craig melvin in sanford. the prosecution seeking to call arthur fleischmann, right? >> arthur fleischmann. yes, by the way, david lee was

not called because for whatever reason the state decided not call limb. arthur fleischmann an atf agent for the state of florida. signed an affidavit that zimmerman committed battery on him several years ago that case was in 2005 handled out of court. right now, they are, as you might imagine the objection came quickly from the defense. the defense argued essentially if the state wanted to go down this road, if they wanted to bring in a prior bad act, so to speak, that there would be other prior bad acts that he would then, mr. o'mara, would be forced to introduce as well. judge nelson admonished him for that. judge melson basically said -- judge nelson said, i trust that both you attorneys know what you're doing. let's not play that game here. right now, mr. mantie, he didn't

know if the witness is available, but he would like to be able to call the witness if he chooses. judge nelson indicated moment ago that she wants closing statements to begin tomorrow. she would like the jury to get closing statements tomorrow morning. >> right. the value of arthur fleischmann to the prosecution, this is an individual, an atf agent who arrested george zimmerman in 2005, charges were dropped but his value to the prosecution? >> so i drew a picture in my notes today when dennis root was testifying of a door opening. and that's because when dennis root, the expert witness testified that george zimmerman was not the confrontational type he was not the "i'm going to get on you" type, that was opening the door to exactly this testimony. the judge already said these prior acts of george zimmerman allegedly assaulting a law enforcement officer, would not come in unless, unless, somebody opened the door.

and i believed that testimony now gave an argument that that door was opened and the prosecution is apparently arguing that as well. because now that they have -- now that the defense put on a witness to say that george zimmerman's not the confrontational type, now the prosecution should have an opportunity to respond and how bettor respond than putting on a law enforcement officer who says, you know what? he assaulted me, he assaulted me, he is the conphonetatifrona type. >> something like five years. >> 2005 is the date of the assault. >> you're saying that that will -- that's opened the door to that evidence possibly coming in though it's earlier? >> well, that's the argument on the other side. it's more distant in time, it was a one-time incident, it was very different circumstances. those are the arguments on the other side. it's a very common argument in criminal cases. you always want to bring in prior bad acts to show this is the type of guy who would do

this and ordinarily that's not coming in. prosecution has to prove this particular case happened, not that somebody is the type. >> throughout today if there's been a single theme, it's been about george zimmerman's lack of physical prowess, his lack of fitness, the whole day has been spent rehearsing how this man couldn't fight anybody. >> well that's true. and that's acceptable. that doesn't cross the line. that doesn't open the door. what might have opened the door, we'll see if the judge thinks it did, is talking about his personality, that he's not the confrontational type. you can be in shape, out of shape and you can be confrontational, right? it's a personality type. it's a hostility issue. the defense has painted a portrait of george zimmerman that he would never start a fight, it had to have been trayvon martin who started the fight. now the prosecution said, guess what? he did it before and he did it with a law enforcement officer and the jury should hear about that. >> this witness today, den knit root, he was on the stand for over three hours. he appeared to suggest that he

thought the incident happened in early june. he talked about being very bright. everybody else knows that this happened in february and it actually wasn't very bright at all. >> that was a wonderful moment on cross-examination with the prosecutor asking him when the incident happened and he sat there, you know, quietly trying to remember. he didn't remember. it's a great moment when you're cross-examining someone and they don't have it and you let them sit there and stew and finally he said, you know, i don't know. i guess maybe june. i think it was june. he had gone there in the summer, in june, around that time, 7:50, 7:30 when this happened and it was still light out, as it in the summer at this time. this incident happened february 26, 2012. everybody on the jury knows that. everybody on the jury also knows it was very, very dark. there's been no dispute about that in this case. it was very, very dark. unless you're standing directly under a porch light, which these two men were not, it was very, very dark. >> also, mr. root was ostensibly

called as someone who trained people in fighting and in physical defense. yet he was also used today almost as a physician because he was asked questioned about injuries to the septum, nose of george zimmerman, did he overreach? >> did the attorneys overreach? the judge allowed it. she's careful of limiting the testimony. her theory, i'm sure, was that when you're an expert in fighting you become an expert in broken noses, right? you see it all the time. so he testified that when somebody's nose gets broken, when they get punched in the face they get disoriented, stunned, the blood runs down. that's appropriately within his area of expertise. >> we'll go back to court now. we understand the judge is going to give instructions as to the rest of the day. >> more work we need to do outside your presence. instead of keeping you back in the jury room, i'm going to let

you recess for the evening. i just wanted to tell you the state of where we are. i hate to ever tell anybody what i anticipate will happen because as soon as i say it, something else occurs. but we do anticipate to go to closing statements tomorrow. since it will be more work that we would have to do in the morning, i'm going to have you come back at 10:00 a.m. it gibbs you more time in the morning. when i have you recess for the evening, i want to give you the instructions. during overnight recess, you're not to read or listen to any radio, television, newspaper reports about the case. you're not to discuss the case amongst yourself nor with anybody else. you're not to use any type of electronic device to get on the internet to do independent research about the case, people, places, things or terminology. and you're not to read or create any e-mails, text messages, tweets, social networking pages or blogs about the case. do i have your assurances that you will abide by these

instructions? with that, put your note pads down. follow deputy jarvis and have a good evening. >> judge debra nelson has dismissed the jury for the day. she gave them the strict instructions she's given them every day, not to listen to television, listen to radio broadcasts, read newspaper, not to discuss the case and she's told them she's given them more time. they'll begin at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow, thursday morning. we'll continue our coverage in just a moment. stay with us.w ere to start. at angie's list, you'll find reviews on everything from home repair to healthcare written by people just like you. no company can pay to be on angie's list, so you can trust what you're reading. angie's list is like having thousands of close neighbors, where i can go ask for personal recommendations. that's the idea. before you have any work done, check angie's list. find out why more than two million members count on angie's list. angie's list -- reviews you can trust. i love you, angie. sorry, honey.

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we're continuing with our coverage of the george zimmerman trial. the jury has been sent home for

the day. there are some arguments, discussions ongoing at moment. we believe that concerns the evidence of john donnelly, today we've learned the animation that the defense wanted to use cannot be used in evidence but could be used in closing arguments joined again by political strategist angela rye, jonathan capehart and dr. lawrence kobilinsky. ask i ask you this? all day we've been hearing the defense arguing that george zimmerman is unfit, despite the training that he had had, that he was not capable of fighting, incompetent physical fighter, as it were. does that not, though, suggest a greater propensity to use a firearm in those circumstances if the individual was so weak? >> i -- >> is that not an argument that you would expect the prosecution to raise at some point? if this man were so unfit, his

likelihood to reach for a firearm regardless of the firearm may have been greater. >> that makes sense. i should remind everybody in the o.j. simpson case there was an argument that o.j. simpson could not have committed the crime because he was arthritic, had a lot of pain and couldn't get go about the athletic maneuver to perform the murders. yeah, the a point they would like to make to the jury. but on the other hand, it could backfire. >> yeah. jonathan capehart, closing arguments are to come. what do both sides need to do in these terms, in terms of closing arguments? >> they need to remake their case now that the witnesses have testify, now that the evidence has been brought in, both the defense in this case, the prosecution has to weave together everything that the jury has heard over the last two weeks into a compelling

narrative to show that george zimmerman was not acting in self-defense, that he chased trayvon martin, that he gunned him down, that trayvon martin was trying to defend himself basically, what they're trying to do is prove their second-degree murder charge or maybe the manslaughter charge -- we don't know what instructions the jury's going to get -- and it's the defense's job to sew those seeds doubt because, remember, the frprosecution haso prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. the defense has done a good job of sowing seeds of doubt on the prosecution's case and sowing seeds of doubt about what -- well, seeds of doubt of what trayvon martin i may or may not have done that led to his own death. angela, finally to you, if i may, is it not the case that the prosecution has to turn the attention away from what exactly happened at the moment of

conflict to the fact that this young man was pursued? >> i think that's absolutely right. not only was he pursued, but he was profiled. george zimmerman has almost been made out to be this gentle giant, this teddy bear that's toting a gun. teddy bears don't carry guns, they carry candy, if they carry anything and that's what the victim was carrying. they can't continue to allow this image, this nice fluffy image of george zimmerman to continue to be in the minds of the jurors. i know it's not going to get in but he has arestraining order from a past fiancee. the man who trained him at the gym had an assault charge from a 50-year-old woman. these aren't gentle creatures. >> thank you so much. we'll back in a moment. [ male announcer ] zzzquil.

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thanks so much for watching. we will, of course, bring you the latest from the trial of george zimmerman, including closing statements when the jury resumes tomorrow at 10:00. "hardball" is next. the defense rests. let's play "hardball." good evening. in for chris matthews. day 22 of the george zimmerman trial, the defense has rested and george zimmerman has chosen not to testify although not before a tense exchange between judge debra nelson and defense attorney don west as the judge asks zimmerman whether he wanted to testify on his own behalf. it was a day in which both prosecution and defense attorneys used a mannequin to demonstrate what may hav