Florida v. Zimmerman | |
---|---|
Court | 18th Judicial Circuit in and for Seminole County, Florida |
Full case name | State of Florida v. George Zimmerman |
Submitted | April 11, 2012 |
Decided | July 13, 2013 |
Verdict | Not guilty |
Charge | Second-degree murder |
Court membership | |
Judge sitting | Debra Nelson |
Case opinions | |
Decision by | Jury verdict |
State of Florida v. George Zimmerman was a criminal prosecution of George Zimmerman on the charge of second-degree murder stemming from the killing of Trayvon Martin on February 26, 2012.
On April 11, 2012, George Zimmerman, a Hispanic, was charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a Black teenager. In support of the charges, the State filed an affidavit of probable cause, stating that Zimmerman profiled and confronted Martin and shot him to death while Martin was committing no crimes.[1] Florida State Attorney Angela Corey announced the charges against Zimmerman during a televised press conference and reported that Zimmerman was in custody after turning himself in to law enforcement.[2][3] Zimmerman was injured during the encounter and said he shot Martin in self-defense.[4]
After 16 hours of deliberations over the course of two days, on July 13, 2013, a six-person jury rendered a not guilty verdict on both charges (including manslaughter).[5][6]