Killing of Trayvon Martin
On the evening of February 26, 2012, in Sanford, Florida, United States, George Zimmerman fatally shot Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old African-American. Zimmerman, a 28-year-old man who self-identifies as Hispanic, was a neighborhood watch coordinator for the gated community where Martin was visiting relatives at the time of the shooting. Zimmerman became suspicious of Martin and called police; Zimmerman was injured during a physical altercation between the two and shot Martin with a pistol he was licensed to carry. In a widely reported trial, Zimmerman was charged with murder of the second degree for Martin's death, but acquitted by the jury after claiming self-defense. The incident was reviewed by the Department of Justice for potential civil rights violations, but no additional charges were filed. Parties involved Trayvon Martin Trayvon Benjamin Martin was the son of Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin, who were divorced in 1999. He was a junior at Dr. Michael M. Krop High School and lived with his mother and older brother in Miami Gardens, Florida. On the day he was fatally shot, he and his father were visiting his father's fiancée and her son at her town home in Sanford, Florida. She lived in The Retreat at Twin Lakes, a gated community Martin had visited several times before. According to his autopsy, Martin was tall and weighed at the time of his death. George Zimmerman George Michael Zimmerman was born in Manassas, Virginia and is the son of Gladys (née Mesa) Zimmerman, born in Peru, and Robert Zimmerman Sr., a retired Virginia magistrate. At the time of the shooting, Zimmerman was employed as an insurance fraud investigator. He had been working toward an associate degree in criminal justice at Seminole State College. In one of his interviews with the police, he said his goal was to become a judge. At the time of his arrest on April 11, 2012, Zimmerman's height was reportedly 5 feet 7 inches and his weight , according to the Seminole County Sheriff's Office Inmate Booking record. Zimmerman's height was shown as 5 feet 8 inches and his weight at on the Sanford Police Department Offense Report for February 26, 2012, the night of the shooting. Zimmerman and his wife moved to The Retreat at Twin Lakes in 2009. Sanford Police Department Bill Lee had been chief of the Sanford Police Department for ten months when the shooting of Martin occurred. Prior to Lee becoming chief, the department had been accused of protecting relatives of police officers involved in violent incidents with black people. Trayvon Martin's case resulted in increased distrust between the police and Sanford's black community. On March 22, Chief Lee temporarily stepped down from his position because of public criticism over his handling of the Trayvon Martin shooting. In April, the Sanford City Commission refused to accept Lee's resignation and stated that "Lee's spotless record showed there needed to be further review to determine if he failed in his duties." Lee was fired on June 20, 2012, by Sanford City Manager