George Zimmerman Can Have His Gun Back
Now that he has been cleared of criminal charges, George Zimmerman is free to claim any of his property that was being held as evidence in his murder case — including the gun that was used to kill Trayvon Martin. NBC News reports that it's unlikely that the gun has physically been returned to Zimmerman, but since he is no longer an accused criminal and he has no felony convictions on his record, there is nothing to prevent him from owning a gun or reclaiming the one that already belongs to him.
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When asked if he actually will reclaim the Kel Tec 9 pistol, Martin's lawyer, Mark O'Mara, rather ominously replied that there is "even more reason now, isn't there?"
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That could still change, however, if the federal government decides to press charges, which it still might. The Justice Department says it is considering filing criminal civil rights charges against Zimmerman. The NAACP has also said they push for such a case, though it will be a difficult road for prosecutors. In order to file federal civil rights charges, the government has to prove that Zimmerman acted against Martin because of his race, and did while using a "public facility," in the case, a street. (That last requirement alone could be tricky, since Martin was killed in a gated community, which the defense could argue is not a public facility.)
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The return of Zimmerman's gun is merely another macabre detail to a story that continues to grip the nation even after the trial has ended. A day of nationwide protests in likely to spill over into future demonstrations later this week, and with the DOJ investigation and a highly likely civil suit, the story of Martin's death is not about to go away.
