Zimmerman gets bail, apologizes to Martin family
A day in court for George Zimmerman - the man accused of killing Florida teenager Trayvon Martin.
Zimmerman shot and killed the unarmed Martin in what he said was self-defense following a confrontation in a gated community in the central Florida city of Sanford on February 26, 2012.
On Friday, Zimmerman apologized to the family.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) DEFENDANT GEORGE ZIMMERMAN, ACCUSED OF SECOND DEGREE MURDER, SAYING:
"I wanted to say I am sorry for the loss of your son. 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."
The judge later agreed to release Zimmerman on $150,000 bail in the racially charged case that has captivated the United States.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) JUDGE KENNETH R. LESTER, JR. SAYING:
"What I'm going to do is I'm going to find that the motion is well-taken. I'm going to grant the motion, set bond in the amount of 150,000 dollars (U.S. Dollars) with the following conditions: electronic monitoring; GPS. I'm going to require the state and the defense to meet with the Sheriff's Department to accomplish it. That means that Mr. Zimmerman is not going to be released today, but I'm going to make sure that the state and defense can work out those assurances."
Police initially declined to arrest Zimmerman, citing Florida's controversial "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.
Deborah Lutterbeck, Reuters
Zimmerman shot and killed the unarmed Martin in what he said was self-defense following a confrontation in a gated community in the central Florida city of Sanford on February 26, 2012.
On Friday, Zimmerman apologized to the family.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) DEFENDANT GEORGE ZIMMERMAN, ACCUSED OF SECOND DEGREE MURDER, SAYING:
"I wanted to say I am sorry for the loss of your son. 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."
The judge later agreed to release Zimmerman on $150,000 bail in the racially charged case that has captivated the United States.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) JUDGE KENNETH R. LESTER, JR. SAYING:
"What I'm going to do is I'm going to find that the motion is well-taken. I'm going to grant the motion, set bond in the amount of 150,000 dollars (U.S. Dollars) with the following conditions: electronic monitoring; GPS. I'm going to require the state and the defense to meet with the Sheriff's Department to accomplish it. That means that Mr. Zimmerman is not going to be released today, but I'm going to make sure that the state and defense can work out those assurances."
Police initially declined to arrest Zimmerman, citing Florida's controversial "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.
Deborah Lutterbeck, Reuters
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