The George Zimmerman jury selection is well underway, and you can watch the attorneys for both sides interview prospective jury members. See embed below.
The attorneys are going through a pre-trial process called voir dire in which the lawyers question potential jury members about their backgrounds and knowledge or lack of knowledge of the case.
Unlike federal courts, state courts often allow cameras in the courtroom.
Zimmerman, a former neighborhood watch captain, has been charged with second-degree murder for fatally shooting Trayvon Martin, 17, on February 26 after confronting the teenager as he walked back to the house where he was staying in a gated community outside of Orlando, Florida. Zimmerman has entered a plea of not guilty on self-defense grounds. While Zimmerman alleged that the teen attacked him, forcing him to use lethal force, he elected not to use Florida’s controversial Stand Your Ground law as a legal justification.
Seminole County Judge Debra Nelson, who is presiding over the Zimmerman case, previously announced that once seated, the jurors will be sequestered , meaning that they won’t be able to go home at the end of each day during the trial, which is expected to last two to four weeks. Instead they will live in a hotel, cut off from the outside world and guarded by court officers, during the proceedings. After he was indicted, George Zimmerman was freed on $1 million bond and has himself been voluntarily “sequestered” and living in hiding since his release.
Apart from the evidence, the selection of the jury could be a key element in whether a defendant in high-profile case is deemed guilty or not guilty.
Zimmerman’s dramatic weight gain has shocked many observers, perhaps the result of being stuck indoors since the incident. “Zimmerman’s massive weight gain is thought to be caused by the fact that he is largely housebound. He is said to be afraid for his life and has received so many death threats over the past year that he feels he can’t leave his home.”
Do you think it’s plausible as at least some of these potential Florida jurors claim that they are unfamiliar with the case and haven’t followed it on the news?
Watch the George Zimmerman jury selection live stream: