George Zimmerman sues Pete Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren over tweets on Trayvon Martin

George Zimmerman is suing presidential candidates Pete Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren, saying they maliciously connected him to “white supremacy” and “racism” in the death of Trayvon Martin.

Trayvon would have turned 25 on Feb. 5, and on that day Buttigieg and Warren used his birthday to tweet condolences and a call to action to end racism, gun violence and white supremacy.

Buttigieg tweeted: “Trayvon Martin would have been 25 today. How many 25th birthdays have been stolen from us by white supremacy, gun violence, prejudice, and fear? #BlackLivesMatter”

Warren tweeted: “My heart goes out to @SybrinaFulton and Trayvon’s family and friends. He should still be with us today. We need to end gun violence and racism. And we need to build a world where all of our children — especially young Black boys — can grow up safe and free.”

Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who was acquitted of homicide charges in the 2012 deadly shooting of then 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, took offense to the reference both candidates made in their tweets. So, he sued.

On Tuesday, he filed a lawsuit for damages in excess of $15,000.

Zimmerman alleges that Buttigieg’s use of “white supremacy, gun violence, prejudice, and fear” were referencing him and that his 1.71 million Twitter followers would make the connection between him and Buttigieg’s claims.

“Buttigieg defamed Zimmerman by claiming without any basis whatsoever that the Hispanic minority advocate and Obama supporter Zimmerman shot Trayvon Martin in cold blood due to his ‘white supremacy,’ a racist cause that is held in great disdain and consternation by the public,” according to the suit, filed in Polk County Circuit Court.

The lawsuit also mentions “heavy criticism” from black activists on Buttigieg’s record on black community issues.

As for Warren, the suit alleges that in her tweet she claimed that Trayvon is not “with us” due to “racism,” which makes the connection to her 3.72 million followers that Zimmerman killed Trayvon in an act of racism.

One of the three exhibits in the suit is an email from Larry Klayman, Zimmerman’s lawyer, to the two candidates demanding they take down their tweets in 24 hours to “mitigate the great damage which you both created.”

“You[r] malicious intent is undisputed, as you defamed my client to try to garner votes in the African-American community and did not care about the truth and the resulting damage to my client,” Klayman said in the email.

The email was sent five days after the tweets were made and the email addresses used for both campaigns are for general information and questions the public may be asking.

Buttigieg and Warren did not take down the tweets.

In his 30-page lawsuit, Zimmerman didn’t only reference the tweets and the damage they allegedly caused him, but also included disparaging details about Trayvon, describing him as a gangster, heavy marijuana user and constantly getting into fights.

The suit read, “Trayvon was often getting into fights at Michael Krop High School and was suspended 3 times.“

It also highlighted that Trayvon was kicked out of his home by his mother. Trayvon had attended Krop High in Northeast Miami-Dade.

The presidential campaigns for Buttigieg and Warren did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This isn’t the first time Zimmerman is suing because of events stemming from Trayvon’s death.

In December, Zimmerman sued Martin’s family, prosecutors and others involved in the case for $100 million over claims he says rested on false evidence. A day after he announced the suit, Coral Gables Art Cinema canceled a screening of a new film documentary from George Zimmerman’s perspective on the shooting.