In a statement, the president said: "I know this case has elicited strong passions. And in the wake of the verdict, I know those passions may be running even higher.
"But we are a nation of laws, and a jury has spoken. I now ask every American to respect the call for calm reflection from two parents who lost their young son."
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| A man throws a trash can at the window of a building during a protest after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin, early Sunday, July 14, 2013, in Oakland, Calif. Protesters angered by the acquittal Zimmerman held largely peaceful demonstrations in three California cities, but broke windows and started small street fires Oakland, police said. |
In Washington, the justice department said that it is evaluating whether it has enough evidence to support Zimmerman's prosecution in federal court after his acquittal in the Florida state court.
A justice department spokesperson said in a statement on Sunday: "Experienced federal prosecutors will determine whether the evidence reveals a prosecutable violation of any of the limited federal criminal civil rights statutes within our jurisdiction and whether federal prosecution is appropriate in accordance with the department's policy governing successive federal prosecution following a state trial."
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| Benjamin Jealous |
Benjamin Jealous, president of the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) – the US's largest black advocacy group – said the case in which Zimmerman, who is of mixed white-Hispanic parentage, followed then shot Trayvon dead met the benchmark for an inquiry by the Department of Justice.
Although the jury in Sanford, Florida, accepted Zimmerman's argument that he acted in self-defence when he killed Trayvon on 26 February last year, he was caught on a recording of a call to police using the words "fucking punks" and "these assholes, they always get away".
Jealous said: "When you look at his comments and when you look at comments made by young black men who lived in that neighbourhood about how they felt especially targeted by him, there is reason to be concerned that race was a factor in why he targeted young Trayvon."
Jealous released a statement immediately after Saturday night's not guilty verdict, which followed more than 16 hours of deliberations by the six-strong jury."We are outraged and heartbroken over today's verdict. We will pursue civil rights charges with the Department of Justice, we will continue to fight for the removal of stand-your-ground laws in every state, and we will not rest until racial profiling in all its forms is outlawed," the statement said, referring to Florida's self-defence legislation used in Zimmerman's case.
Jealous said Sunday that he had spoken to "senior members" of attorney general Eric Holder's team and expressed hope they would continue the work of FBI investigators last summer who reviewed elements of the case.
"They will review all that comes out in that, and then they will make a choice about whether or not they will pursue criminal civil rights charges," Jealous said in a CNN interview.
"The reality is in these types of cases where there are very serious questions, we know there will be a state phase, there will be a civil phase almost assuredly and then there will be a federal civil rights phase."
Explaining his outrage, Jealous said: "We're upset with a situation in this country where as black people, as black parents, it feels so off that our young people have to fear the bad guys and the good guys, the robbers and the cops and the self-appointed community watch volunteers who think they're keeping folks safer," he said.
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| James Evan Muhammad, front left, of the New Black Panther Party, shouts slogans after the verdict of not guilty was handed down in the trial of George Zimmerman at the Seminole County Courthouse, Saturday, July 13, 2013, in Sanford, Fla. Neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman was cleared of all charges Saturday in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed black teenager whose killing unleashed furious debate across the U.S. over racial profiling, self-defense and equal justice. |
Rallies large and small follow Zimmerman verdict.
Protests broke out from New York to California on Sunday, a day after George Zimmerman's acquittal of second-degree murder charges.
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| Riots in downtown Oakland |
NEW YORK — With chants and prayers, sermons and signs, outrage over a jury's decision to clear George Zimmerman in the shooting of an unarmed black teenager poured from street protests and church pulpits Sunday amid calls for federal civil rights charges to be filed in the case.
Demonstrations large and small broke out across the country — with participants ranging from a few dozen to more than a thousand — in support of the family of Trayvon Martin as protesters decried the not guilty verdict as a miscarriage of justice.
The NAACP and protesters called for federal civil rights charges against Zimmerman, who was acquitted Saturday in Martin's February 2012 shooting death, which unleashed a national debate over racial profiling, self-defense and equal justice.
The Justice Department said it is looking into the case to determine whether federal prosecutors should file criminal civil rights charges now that Zimmerman has been acquitted in the state case. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama and religious and civil rights leaders urged calm in hopes of ensuring peaceful demonstrations in the wake of a case that became an emotional flash point.
In New York City, hundreds of protesters marched into Times Square on Sunday night, zigzagging through Manhattan's streets to avoid police lines. Sign-carrying marchers thronged the busy intersection, chanting "Justice for! Trayvon Martin!" as they made their way from Union Square, blocking traffic for more than an hour before moving on.
In San Francisco and Los Angeles — where an earlier protest was dispersed with beanbag rounds — police closed streets as protesters marched Sunday to condemn Zimmerman's acquittal.
Rand Powdrill, 41, of San Leandro, said he came to the San Francisco march with about 400 others to "protest the execution of an innocent black teenager."
"If our voices can't be heard, then this is just going to keep going on," he said.
Earlier, at Manhattan's Middle Collegiate Church, many congregants wore hooded sweatshirts — the same thing Martin was wearing the night he was shot — in a show of solidarity. Hoodie-clad Jessica Nacinovich said she could only feel disappointment and sadness over the verdict.
"I'm sure jurors did what they felt was right in accordance with the law but maybe the law is wrong, maybe society is wrong; there's a lot that needs fixing," she said.
At a youth service in Sanford, Fla., where the trial was held, teens wearing shirts displaying Martin's picture wiped away tears during a sermon at the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church.
About 200 people turned out for a rally and march in downtown Chicago, saying the verdict was symbolic of lingering racism in the United States. Seventy-three-year-old Maya Miller said the case reminded her of the 1955 slaying of Emmitt Till, a 14-year-old from Chicago who was murdered by a group of white men while visiting Mississippi. Till's killing galvanized the civil rights movement.
"Fifty-eight years and nothing's changed," Miller said, pausing to join a chant to "Justice for Trayvon, not one more."
Protesters also gathered in Miami, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C along with a host of other cities.
In Miami, more than 200 people gathered for a vigil. "You can't justify murder," read one poster. Another read "Don't worry about more riots. Worry about more Zimmermans."
Carol Reitner, 76, of Miami, said she heard about the vigil through an announcement at her church Sunday morning. "I was really devastated. It's really hard to believe that someone can take the life of someone else and walk out of court free," she said.
In Philadelphia, about 700 protesters marched from LOVE Park to the Liberty Bell, alternating between chanting Trayvon Martin's name and "No justice, no peace!"
"We hope this will begin a movement to end discrimination against young black men," said Johnathan Cooper, one of the protest's organizers. "And also to empower black people and get them involved in the system."
Earlier Sunday, hundreds gathered in Union Square in New York City to voice their passions over the verdict, hoisting placards with images of Martin.
Some tempered their anger, saying they didn't contest the jury's decision based on the legal issues involved.
But "while the verdict may be legal, a system that doesn't take into account what happened is a broken legal system," said Jennifer Lue, 24.
Nineteen-year-old Octavia McMahon came from the Bronx to march with her mother and five siblings, carrying signs they made after learning of the verdict. She called the protests an emotional experience.
"I'm really happy that so many people showed support because it's not just one person. It's all of us as one."
Civil rights leaders, including the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, urged peace in the wake of the verdict. Jackson said the legal system "failed justice," but violence isn't the answer.
But not all the protesters heeded those calls in the demonstrations that broke out immediately after the verdict.
In Oakland, Calif., some angry demonstrators broke windows, burned U.S. flags and started street fires. Some marchers also vandalized a police squad car and used spray paint to scrawl anti-police graffiti on roads and Alameda County's Davidson courthouse. In Los Angeles, police said a crowd of about 100 protesters surrounded an officer and eventually had to be dispersed by officers firing beanbag rounds.
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| Demonstrators march in protest in Atlanta on Sunday, July 14, the day after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin. |