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Rachel Jeantel: Defense tried to make me angry

Rachel Jeantel says she thinks defense lawyer Don West tried to rattle her on the stand in the George Zimmerman trial to make Trayvon Martin look bad by associa
Rachel Jeantel speaks to Rev. Sharpton during an interview on PoliticsNation. (Photo by Keeli Howard/msnbc)
Rachel Jeantel speaks to Rev. Sharpton during an interview on PoliticsNation.

Rachel Jeantel says she thinks defense lawyer Don West tried to rattle her on the stand in the George Zimmerman trial to make Trayvon Martin look bad by association.

In an interview set to air on PoliticsNation Wednesday, Jeantel told Rev. Al Sharpton she became especially frustrated during one exchange of the five-hour long questioning she went through, when defense attorney Don West asked her about her ability to understand English.

"[He was] trying to get me angry," she said when asked if she believed West was trying to "rattle" her with that question. "To show the jury 'Look at her. She's angry. She a friend. If she angry, you should imagine how Trayvon is.'"

Watch her response below.

After the not guilty verdict came through on Saturday evening, West addressed his experience cross examining Jeantel in response to a reporter's question about the "challenge."

"My goodness, she wanted to be left alone," he said. West also said that Jeantel "really didn't want to be there."

"Was that a challenge? Of course, it was,"  he added. "But I think ultimately, when you distill it to its important parts that we did accomplish ultimately what we wanted."

To find out more on what Rachel Jeantel thinks of Don West, Trayvon Martin, and George Zimmerman, be sure to watch her full interview on PoliticsNation with Al Sharpton.

Editor’s note: George Zimmerman has sued NBC Universal for defamation. The company strongly denies the allegation.