Politics in the Trayvon Martin shooting

In March, Sanford’s city commission passed a 3-2 motion expressing “no confidence” in the police chief. Triplett and Commissioners Velma Williams and Mark McCarty voted for the motion, while Mahany and Jones voted against it.

Aubrey Jewett, a political science professor at the University of Central Florida who specializes in Florida politics and state and local government, said Triplett’s vote Monday to reject the police chief’s resignation was surprising since the mayor voted for the no-confidence motion in the first place.

Jewett said he thinks Triplett’s motivation is to foster calm and moderation and to reach out to different sectors of a town where people are at odds over the police handling of the case.
“My initial thought was he’s sort of being cautious,” Jewett said. “He wants to take his time and not rush. It sort of fits his leadership style.”

CNN recently wrote a story featuring Political Science professor Aubrey Jewett. The story is about the Trayvon Martin shooting in Sanford, Florida. You can read the entire piece here.