Documents shed new light on Trayvon killing

Associated Press

ORLANDO, Fla.

Trayvon Martin had marijuana in his system. He was shot through the heart at close range. George Zimmerman had a broken nose, bruises and bloody cuts on the back of his head.

The lead investigator wanted to charge Zimmerman with manslaughter in the weeks after the shooting but was overruled.

These are among the details revealed in nearly 200 pages of documents, photos and audio recordings that were released Thursday in a case that has riveted the nation. Yet it’s still unclear what exactly happened and whether it was racially motivated.

The evidence supports Zimmerman’s contention that he was being beat up when he fired the fatal shot. At the same time, it bolsters the argument of Martin’s parents that Zimmerman was profiling Martin and that the whole confrontation could have been avoided if not for Zimmerman’s actions.

Many of the pertinent questions remain unclear: What was in Zimmerman’s mind when he began to follow Martin in the gated community where he lived? How did the confrontation between the two begin? Whose screams for help were captured on 911 calls? And why did Zimmerman feel that deadly force was warranted?

Another opportunity for answers isn’t likely to come until a hearing later this year in which Zimmerman is expected to claim the shooting was justified under Florida’s “stand your ground” law. Zimmerman’s attorney, Mark O’Mara, didn’t return a phone call seeking comment Thursday.

The evidence supporting Zimmerman’s defense includes a photo showing the neighborhood-watch volunteer with a bloody nose on the night of the fight. A paramedic report says Zimmerman had a 1-inch laceration on his head and forehead abrasion.

“Bleeding tenderness to his nose, and a small laceration to the back of his head. All injuries have minor bleeding,” paramedic Michael Brandy wrote about Zimmerman’s injuries in the report.

Whether Zimmerman was injured in the Feb. 26 altercation with Martin has been a key question.