MIAMI – A judge on Tuesday rebuffed George Zimmerman’s request for a five-month delay of his trial in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, saying it would begin as scheduled on June 10.
“We are four months away from a trial date,” Circuit Judge Debra Nelson told defense lawyers during a contentious hearing. “I don’t see any of your issues to be insurmountable.”
The decision came on what would have been Mr. Martin’s 18th birthday, which was commemorated outside the courthouse in Sanford, Fla., with community leaders and students singing “Happy Birthday.” The brief ceremony was just one in a series of events planned to honor Mr. Martin’s birthday this week, including a community peace walk and a fund-raising event with the Martin family and the Rev. Al Sharpton.
Acknowledging Mr. Martin’s birthday at the start of the hearing, Mark O’Mara, Mr. Zimmerman’s attorney, said that “the family has a special burden to bear today” and that “no matter what, a tragedy occurred.”
Mr. O’Mara said he requested a postponement of the trial because he needed more time to prepare, and he accused prosecutors of moving slowly in making evidence and witnesses available.
“We are working hard,” Mr. O’Mara said. “We are running into an enormous amount of resistance.”
Bernie de la Rionda, the lead prosecutor in the case, disputed that characterization in court on Tuesday, saying the delays are due, in part, to Mr. O’Mara often canceling depositions at the last moment.
“That’s frustrating,” he said.
Mr. Martin died nearly a year ago, on Feb. 26, as he walked across the modest gated community in Sanford where Mr. Zimmerman served as a volunteer neighborhood watchman. Mr. Zimmerman, who is white, viewed Mr. Martin, who was black, as suspicious because of a string of recent break-ins. Mr. Zimmerman said he fired his gun at Mr. Martin only after Mr. Martin attacked him, he told the police. Mr. Martin, a Miami teenager, was unarmed.
The case cast a light on Florida’s ambiguous self-defense law, Stand Your Ground, which allows people fearing great harm to retaliate with deadly force and is the core of Mr. Zimmerman’s defense. The case provoked protests around the country over racial profiling and the initial delay in arresting and charging Mr. Zimmerman.
In court, the two sides sparred over the yet-to-be scheduled deposition of so-called Witness 8, the teenage girl who was on the phone with Mr. Martin moments before his confrontation with Mr. Zimmerman. The girl spoke with Benjamin L. Crump, the lawyer for the Martin family, on March 9 about her conversation with Mr. Martin, saying Mr. Martin told her that he was being followed by a man and that he was scared. A scuffle appeared to have broken out and the call went dead, she said.
In an affidavit submitted Tuesday, Mr. Crump said that he found Witness 8 from Mr. Martin’s cellphone records and that he interviewed her over a speaker phone because her family did not want her interviewed in person. At that time, Mr. Crump said he did not know her last name or her Miami address. Mr. Martin’s family and reporters for ABC News were in the room during the conversation. Mr. Crump said he recorded the interview with a digital recorder.
In the affidavit, Mr. Crump said he did not erase or alter any part of the recording but that occasionally he would pause the recording to put Witness 8 on hold, take a break or deal with technical issues.
Judge Denies Request for Delay in Trayvon Martin Case
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Judge Denies Request for Delay in Trayvon Martin Case
