Police Chief in Trayvon Martin Case Steps Down

Bill Lee Jr., chief of police in Sanford, Florida, where Trayvon Martin was shot, has temporarily stepped down after a no-confidence vote against him. "I must temporarily remove myself," he said in a press conference broadcast live on CNN, saying his presence was a distraction. "It is apparent that my involvement in this matter is overshadowing the process." He didn't take any questions.

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The U.S. Department of Justice  opened an investigation into the department after The New York Times raised questions about the department's response to Martin's shooting death by a neighborhood watch captain. Martin was black, the watch captain, George Zimmerman, is Latino. The Sanford City Commission voted on Wednesday that it had no confidence in Lee as a chief, after his department did not arrest Zimmerman, who claimed he fired in self-defense.

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Martin's case has become a national issue, with demonstrations taking to streets nationwide on Wednesday in a protest against racial profiling called the Million Hoodie March. Martin, a 17-year-old high school junior, was wearing a hoodie when he was shot. Zimmerman said he felt threatened. Police didn't press a homicide case against him under Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law which, as the Associated Press describes it, "gives people wide latitude to use deadly force rather than retreat during a fight."

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The Rev. Al Sharpton had demanded Lee's ouster, and is leading a rally for Martin in Sanford later on Thursday.