Following a two-ear investigation, Department of Justice sources said Wednesday they had insufficient evidence to file civil rights charges against George Zimmerman, who was acquitted for the murder of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin last summer.
The DOJ was looking into potentially filing hate crime charges against Zimmerman, in which it would have to be shown that Zimmerman intentionally targeted Martin because of his race, a high burden of proof. After the acquittal, the DOJ’s case was viewed by Martin’s family and civil rights advocates as the last option within the legal system for pursuing Zimmerman.
Martin’s family said they have not heard about the closing of the case from the DOJ, which was still publicly declaring it “active and ongoing.”
Zimmerman’s attorney Mark O’Mara intimated that the DOJ had opened the case to because of political pressure but done little to pursue it. “To those who have seen civil rights investigations and civil rights violations, it looked as though the Department of Justice was just placating pressure that existed by suggesting there was an ongoing investigation,” he said.
Zimmerman is now free to continue his daily life, which sounds like a hoot.
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