* Release from jail may take several days, lawyer says
* Martin’s parents “devastated” by Zimmerman apology
* Zimmerman’s comments in hearing could play role in trial
(Adds details, editing)
By Barbara Liston and Chris Francescani
SANFORD, Fla., April 20 (Reuters) – Neighborhood watch
volunteer George Zimmerman apologized to the family of Trayvon
Martin on Friday, stunning a rapt courtroom and a national
television audience at a hearing in which the judge granted
Zimmerman $150,000 bail on a charge of second-degree murder in
the death of the unarmed black teenager.
Zimmerman’s surprise appearance on the witness stand added
an unexpected twist to a saga that has riveted the country,
provoked civil rights protests nationwide and fired a national
debate over guns, self-defense laws and race in America.
“I wanted to say I am sorry for the loss of your son,”
Zimmerman, 28, told Martin’s parents, Tracy Martin and Sybrina
Fulton, briefly looking toward them in the gallery.
“I did not know how old he was. I thought he was a little
bit younger than I am. And I did not know if he was armed or
not,” Zimmerman, dressed in a suit and tie with shackles around
his waist and wrists, said in his first public remarks on a
shooting that has topped the news for weeks.
The parents of Martin, 17, were outraged Zimmerman was
allowed to make what they considered a self-serving apology
meant only to improve his chances of making bail, their lawyer
said, calling the apology too late to be genuine.
Zimmerman’s release from jail could take days while his
family raises cash and prosecutors and defense lawyers work out
an agreement to protect his privacy and safety. Prosecutors must
also consider a defense request allowing him to leave the state.
Trayvon Martin’s parents, who divorced in 1999, left the
court stone-faced with arms locked, declining to answer
questions from reporters.
“They are devastated” that Zimmerman might soon be free on
bail, attorney Benjamin Crump told reporters, adding that Tracy
Martin had tears in his eyes throughout the hearing.
“And it was devastating that he got to give a self-serving
apology to help him get a bond,” Crump said of Zimmerman. “They
(the parents) were very outraged at that.”
Though dramatic, Zimmerman’s testimony could be used by
prosecutors later in the case to impeach his credibility should
they discover contradictions with previous statements to police.
Assistant State Attorney Bernie de la Rionda was limited to
the apology in his cross-examination of Zimmerman and prohibited
from delving into the facts of the case. But he made a point of
locking Zimmerman into his statement that he also told police he
“felt sorry for the family” about the death of Trayvon.
Zimmerman also testified he never changed his story in three
separate statements to police.
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Moments later, Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester Jr. set bail at
$150,000. Zimmerman’s defense lawyer had requested bail of no
more than $15,000 and prosecutors, who had opposed his release,
suggested bail of $1 million.
The judge set a number of conditions including electronic
monitoring he said would prevent Zimmerman from being released
on Friday. Zimmerman is also barred from further contact with
the Martin family and cannot possess a gun or drink alcohol.
His release would be a “several day process,” said defense
attorney Mark O’Mara.
Earlier in the hearing, Zimmerman’s wife, father and mother
told the court Zimmerman was not a violent person and they would
help ensure he does not flee if released on bail.
The three were allowed to testify by telephone from outside
the court to protect their privacy in the face of hate mail and
the intense emotions the case has generated.
“I’ve never known him to be violent at all, unless he was
provoked, and then he would turn the other cheek,” father Robert
Zimmerman testified under defense questioning.
Zimmerman, a white and Hispanic neighborhood watch
volunteer, shot and killed the unarmed Martin in what he said
was self-defense following a confrontation that occurred as
Martin was returning to his father’s house in the gated
community after buying candy from a convenience store.
Police initially declined to arrest Zimmerman, citing
Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law, which allows people to use
deadly force when they believe they are in danger of getting
killed or suffering great bodily harm.
The lack of an arrest led thousands to march in rallies in
Sanford and around the nation to demand Zimmerman’s arrest and
criticize investigators. The public outrage forced the Sanford
police chief and regularly assigned prosecutor to step aside.
Gov. Rick Scott appointed Angela Corey as special
prosecutor, and Corey charged Zimmerman on April 11.
(Reporting by Tom Brown, Barbara Liston and Chris Francescani;
writing by Daniel Trotta; editing by Vicki Allen and Todd
Eastham)
