(Photo: Family Photo)

The family of George Zimmerman, the shooter of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, is planning to launch a website aimed at helping to raise money to pay for his legal costs and for his living expenses.
Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer who is embroiled in controversy over the shooting of the unarmed Black youth, has not been arrested and is so far charged with no crime. He insists that he shot the teenager in self-defense, although Trayvon was carrying a bag of candy and a can of iced tea.
Hal Uhrig and Craig Sonner, attorneys for Zimmerman, released a statement saying, “George Zimmerman's family has set up a website for anyone who would like help with George and his family with their living expenses and for his defense," the statement reads. “Please go to the website at www.zimmermandefense.com.”
Prior to the shooting, Zimmerman worked at Digital Risk, a mortgage risk-management company. The company has said that he stopped coming to work shortly after the shooting of Trayvon Martin on Feb. 26.
Meanwhile, a USA Today/Gallup Poll found that there was a marked divide by race in opinion regarding the shooting. For example, when pollsters asked if Zimmerman was guilty of a crime, more than half the Black respondents said he was “definitely guilty,” while just 15 percent of non-African-American respondents considered him guilty.
The poll also said that Black Americans have paid far more attention to the case than white Americans. In addition, 72 percent of African-Americans said that race played “a major factor” in the events that led to the shooting. On the other hand 35 percent of non-Black respondents held a similar view.
Additionally, respondents were divided by race when asked if Zimmerman would have been arrested if the person he shot was white. The poll revealed that 73 percent of Black respondents said he would have been arrested under those circumstances while 40 percent of non-Black respondents agreed.

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