George Zimmerman case goes to the jury

NBC NEWS - A Florida jury began deliberating the fate of George Zimmerman on Friday after the defense and prosecution had their final say on whether he should be convicted of a crime in the death of Trayvon Martin...

Luther Vandross was outed as gay after his death.

A Florida jury began deliberating the fate of George Zimmerman on Friday after the defense and prosecution had their final say on whether he should be convicted of a crime in the death of Trayvon Martin.

The six women on the panel will have to decide if Zimmerman – who says he shot the teen in self-defense — is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of second-degree murder or manslaughter or not guilty of both charges.

Judge Debra Nelson handed them the case at 2:28 p.m. ET after instructing them on the law. They will be sequestered until they deliver a verdict.

Earlier, defense lawyer Mark O’Mara delivered his closing argument, declaring that Zimmerman is “not guilty of anything but protecting his own life.”

That was followed by a short rebuttal from prosecutor John Guy, who asked jurors: “Did he have to shoot Trayvon Martin? No, he did not.”

“They did good,” Martin’s father, Tracy Martin, said of prosecutors.

Defense lawyer Mark O’Mara told NBC News, “I’m happy with the way we did and the summations and now we wait for the jury.”

Zimmerman, 29, who pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, says he shot an unarmed Martin, 17, when the teen attacked him after they crossed paths Feb. 26, 2012, in a gated community of Sanford, Fla.

Click here to read more.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE