More than a month after an unarmed 17-year-old with no criminal record, Trayvon Martin, was shot and killed in Sanford, Florida, George Zimmerman, the 28-year-old volunteer neighborhood watchman responsible for Martin’s death, was charged on Wednesday with murder in the second-degree and taken into police custody. The charges were announced by special prosecutor Angela Corey, the state attorney for the Jacksonville area, who was appointed as special prosecutor in the case after the local state attorney, Norman Wolfinger, stepped aside in the wake of criticism that the shooting case was moving too slowly. Corey praised the Florida local law enforcement officials at the news conference in Jacksonville, and pledged to pursue justice for the Martin family.
“We only know one category as prosecutors, and that’s a ‘V.’ It’s not a ‘B,’ it’s not a ‘W,’ it’s not an ‘H.’ It’s ‘V,’ for victim. That’s who we work tirelessly for. And that’s all we know, is justice for our victims,” Corey said when asked about racial overtones in the case that’s been speculated for racial profiling. If Zimmerman is convicted, he could face life in prison. The murder in the second-degree charge is the toughest charge Zimmerman could have faced. Murder in the first-degree would have required a finding of premeditation and a grand jury review, which Corey decided against earlier this week. Zimmerman has a right to a fair trial, however, there has been no bond set for him.
Martin’s parents, Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin, gave praise to the decision to arrest and charge Zimmerman at an emotional news conference in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, where they had been meeting with their lawyers and supporters. “We simply wanted an arrest,” said Fulton standing strong. “We wanted nothing more and nothing less, we just wanted an arrest. And we got it. And I say, ‘Thank you, thank you, Lord, thank you, Jesus.’”
The shooting case has been referred to as an “American Tragedy” and has caused outrage, public discussions, and demonstration marches, from people of all races and ages, across the nation. “If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon,” said President Barack Obama.
