Trayvon’s Killer Arrested After 45 Days, National Protests
Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from the Richmond Free Press
(TriceEdneyWire.com) - A special prosecutor in Florida announced Wednesday she had charged Neighborhood Watch volunteer George Zimmerman with second-degree murder in the shooting death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin.
The decision followed weeks of demands from Trayvon’s family and their supporters around the country for justice
for the slain 17-year-old.
Zimmerman was in custody in the Seminole County Jail in Florida, special prosecutor Angela B. Corey said. He had earlier surrendered to authorities, she said.
“I can tell you we did not come to this decision lightly,” Corey told media at a news conference. “Let me emphasize that we do not prosecute by public pressure or by petition,” she continued. “We prosecute based on the facts of any given case as well as the laws of the state of Florida.”
Trayvon’s mother gave praise after hearing the news. “Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Jesus. We simply wanted an arrest,” said Sybrina Fulton, still grieving. “We wanted nothing more, nothing less. We just wanted an arrest, and we got it.” Fulton and Trayvon’s father, Tracy Martin, spoke Wednesday at a Washington news conference in reaction to the arrest of their son’s killer.
Corey’s decision came 45 days after the fatal shooting in a quiet gated community in the central Florida town of Sanford, located near Orlando. Sanford police and the county prosecutor had declined to charge Mr. Zimmerman based on his account of self-defense, setting off civil rights demonstrations
across the country.
More than 2 million people signed an online petition calling for Zimmerman’s arrest, and in Richmond and other cities there were vigils and protests against Sanford Police inaction in numbers reminiscent of the civil rights and anti-war movements of the 1960s.
Civil rights leaders, including the Revs. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, members of Congress, celebrities and outraged people descended on Central Florida to call for action. Rev. Sharpton warned that the lakeside city of 53,000 was on the verge ofbecoming the Birmingham or Selma of the 21st century.
The firestorm of protest prompted the U.S. Department of Justice to launch a probe. The outcry also forced Sanford’s police chief to step aside and the prosecutor for the county to remove himself from the case, leading to Corey’s appointment by Florida Gov. Rick Scott.
The decision on whether to charge Zimmerman rested with Ms. Corey since she was handed the case March 22. By seeking second-degree murder rather than a lesser charge, such as manslaughter, Ms. Corey reaffirmed her reputation as a prosecutor who will seek to bring the most serious charge possible. If convicted, Mr. Zimmerman would face a prison sentence of 25 years to life.
Zimmerman claimed he acted in self-defense in shooting Trayvon during a confrontation with the teen Feb. 26. A big, hefty man who weighs more 200 pounds, Zimmerman claimed he fired in desperation at the smaller, 150-pound
teen after Travyon attacked him, broke his nose, knocked him down and was pounding his head on the pavement, Sanford police said.
However, photos of Zimmerman have shown no indication of or treatment for a broken nose. Before the confrontation happened, Trayvon was talking to his girlfriend on a cell phone while walking back to his father’s girlfriend’s home in the gated community after buying iced tea and a bag of Skittles for his little brother.
Zimmerman saw the teen and described him as “suspicious” after calling police because Trayvon was wearing a hooded sweatshirt. The confrontation happened 70 yards from Trayvon’s destination and apparently began when Mr. Zimmerman went after Trayvon after a police dispatcher advised him not to do so.
As the basis for their refusal to arrest Mr. Zimmerman, Sanford Police cited Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law, which allows people to use deadly force when they believe they are in danger of being killed or suffering great bodily harm. The law also provides immunity for such individuals from arrest or civil suit.
The shooting received scant media attention at first, but Trayvon’s parents and their lawyer, Benjamin Crump, kept making public calls for Zimmerman’s arrest. That eventually led to a media frenzy and an Internet explosion of concern about the case. Even President Obama commented on the case, saying: “If I had a son, he would look like Trayvon.”
The disputed facts surrounding the shooting have been picked apart endlessly by television commentators while dominating the headlines and reigniting a discussion about guns, self-defense laws and what it means to be
black in America.
Zimmerman’s relatives and supporters have insisted he is not racist and has been unfairly vilified. They said he feared for his life during his altercation with Trayvon, despite having a size advantage.