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Friday 1 June 2012

Trayvon Martin Killer's Bail Revoked

Greg Milam, US correspondent
The neighbourhood watch volunteer who killed an unarmed black teenager in a case that outraged America has been ordered to return to custody.
George Zimmerman has 48 hours to surrender to authorities after the judge ruled he had misled the court at previous hearings.
Zimmerman, 38, says he shot Trayvon Martin in self-defence after the two clashed at a gated community in Sanford in Florida in February. The killing prompted nationwide protests after police initially released him without charge.
Zimmerman, who has pleaded not guilty to a charge of second-degree murder, was originally released on a $150,000 bail bond.
Prosecutors say he misrepresented his financial status by failing to disclose several hundred thousands dollars in an account set up as a legal fund to receive donations from supporters.
The state attorney also says Zimmerman failed to mention that he had another passport when surrendering one to the authorities.
Zimmerman's lawyer, Mark O'Meara, told the court the failures were the result of an innocent misunderstanding.
But judge Kenneth Lester ordered the bond be revoked and for Zimmerman to report to the Seminole County Sheriff.
Meanwhile, media organisations have applied to the court for access to thousands of pages of evidence in the case. 
The prosecution and defence had agreed it should be withheld to protect details of witnesses and statements made by Zimmerman after the shooting.
But Prosecutor Bernie De La Rionda said: "What's occurring, unfortunately, are cases are being tried in the public sector as opposed to in the courtroom.
"We are in a new age with Twitter, Facebook, and all these things I've never heard of before in my career. Everybody gets to find out intimate details about witnesses that never occurred before. Witnesses are going to be reluctant to get involved."
Evidence released so far appears to confirm that Zimmerman suffered injuries consistent with his story that Trayvon Martin had assaulted him.
But 911 calls have revealed that emergency service operators told Zimmerman not to leave his car to pursue the 17-year-old as he walked across the community.
Police initially accepted Zimmerman's claim of self-defence under Florida's controversial "stand your ground" rule which allows for deadly force in cases where people feel threatened in a public place.
But it prompted accusations of racial profiling from Martin's family and civil rights leaders who say he was singled out as a black youth wearing a hooded top.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone provided by Airtel Nigeria.

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