George Zimmerman Expected in Court; Zimmerman Attorney Tries to Get Bond; George Zimmerman Appears in Court; Zimmerman Attorney Takes Reporter Questions.
MALVEAUX: George Zimmerman about to appear in court any minute now. He faces a second-degree murder charge in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman says it was in self-defense. He got a new attorney who is trying to get him out now on bond.</s>MARK O'MARA, ATTORNEY FOR GEORGE ZIMMERMAN: I would like to get him out. I need him out to assist me in going over all the evidence and preparing our defense. I'm concerned about his safety to a certain extent but I'm truly hoping there will be a receding of the frustrations or anger now that the process is moving forward.</s>MALVEAUX: We've also heard from the special prosecutor in the case, Angela Corey.</s>ANGELA COREY, FLORIDA SPECIAL PROSECUTOR: When we charge a person with a crime, we are equally committed to justice on their behalf as we are on our victim's behalf. So we are here to do that on behalf of our victim, Trayvon Martin, and on behalf of the person responsible for his death, George Zimmerman. We will continue to seek the truth throughout this case.</s>MALVEAUX: I want to now listen to Trayvon Martin's mother and George Zimmerman's brother, how they both reacted to this arrest.</s>ROBERT ZIMMERMAN JR, BROTHER OF GEORGE MARTIN: We are relieved that he's safe. That is, you know -- it's the most bittersweet news to hear in your life that your brother is being charged with a murder and to se him being taken into jail on live TV and to somehow have to think, well, at least there's something good in all of that is that he can't be attacked this way or he most likely can't be, you know, hurt, killed, injured in a way that he has been on the run and underground in the streets for quite some time.</s>SABRYNA FULTON, MOTHER OF TRAYVON MARTIN: First of all, I want to say thank God.</s>FULTON: We simply wanted an arrest. We wanted nothing more, nothing less. We just wanted an arrest. And we got it. And I say thank you. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Jesus.</s>MALVEAUX: Martin Savidge is in Sanford, Florida, outside the complex that houses both the jail and the court. So, Martin, give us a sense. Zimmerman's court appearance just minutes away now. Set the scene for us.</s>MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, there's certainly a lot of anticipation, especially by the media. You have a parking lot that is just absolutely overflowing with all the television transmission trucks. There's a large crowd of journalists that have gathered by the entrance of the facility here. They're clearly anticipating after this hearing there's going to be some sort of a news conference. There are journalists being allowed in, a pool situation. So they would come out and give their commentary as to what they observed. There is going to be a camera inside, so you'll be able to watch as well as we'll be able to watch from here. The judge is the one who will not be in the courtroom. He is actually some place else and he's connected to the courtroom inside the prison facility by means of a television link up. That's how it all comes together. What we anticipate is, of course, that this is a first appearance. It's the arraignment. It's the reading of the charge. George Zimmerman is expected to enter a plea. His attorney says already that that plea is going to be not guilty. The question mark is, will they deal with the issue of bond? It's possible if something has been worked out ahead of time with the prosecutor's office and the defense attorney. If not, that could require another hearing at another time. It could become quite complex.</s>MALVEAUX: Are there a lot of people who are gathered where you are there? Is there a lot of excitement or anticipation about what's about to happen?</s>SAVIDGE: Yes, well, there's helicopters hovering overhead and the journalists are ready. Not a lot of the public because the public knows they can't get inside. It's a courtroom located inside of the corrections facility. It's kind of a new trend. It is done for security reasons, of course. This way you don't have to transport prisoners back and forth to a courthouse. Instead, it's the judge that appears electronically. As you looked inside the courtroom there -- and occasionally we do get glimpses of it -- you can see that there is an area that is -- has seats that allow members of the media and apparently others to be present, but they're separated by glass. It would probably be a rather strong glass. And then there is an area where the prisoner could come to the microphone and speak and either answer the judge's questions or make some sort of response. That's what we're waiting for. You can see there is a guard clearly who is waiting as well. George Zimmerman is not the only one who is going to have an arraignment today. This is a routine process that happens almost every single day. And so we expect it to be very quick, and George Zimmerman, we're told, will be first.</s>MALVEAUX: And do we know anything about his first night in custody?</s>SAVIDGE: Well, we know that he had to be transported from Jacksonville. That would be about a three-hour drive in a black SUV. That's what many people saw pulling up outside this facility. There was a huge crowd of journalists and cameras that were waiting to catch any kind of glimpse of George Zimmerman because, of course, he hadn't been seen. And so they were all rolling as he went inside. We know that then it's a formality. He has to be processed. There was the mug shot that everyone now has probably seen. That was taken. There is also a medical examination and a mental exam that is conducted. And then there is time for his brand new attorney, Mark O'Mara, to have the opportunity to sit down and for the first time talk face-to-face with his client. We understand that they did talk for about an hour.</s>MALVEAUX: Right.</s>SAVIDGE: Given so much that has to be done, that really is a relatively short period of time.</s>MALVEAUX: OK.</s>SAVIDGE: And Mr. O'Mara said afterwards he could tell his client was very stressed and very tired.</s>MALVEAUX: All right. Martin, we're going to stay with this. I want to bring in Holly Hughes, our legal analyst, to talk a little bit about what we're expecting, how this is going to play out once George Zimmerman appears with his attorney. What do we know about his attorney?</s>HOLLY HUGHES, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY & FORMER PROSECUTOR: Well, at this point, we know that he has finally stepped in. This is someone who has actually met the client. We know from the last sort of situation we had that the attorneys who were out in the press representing Mr. Zimmerman, had not even had the opportunity to sit down with him. So we see that Mark O'Mara, who is an experienced criminal attorney, has done exactly what you're supposed to do.</s>MALVEAUX: We are -- are these live pictures we're looking at? These are live pictures. We're seeing pictures -- we recognize the special prosecutor, Angela Corey, and I do believe, Holly, we are looking also at Mark O'Mara. Is that correct?</s>HUGHES: Exactly. Exactly. We see him on the far side of the screen to the right of Angela Corey.</s>MALVEAUX: There is George Zimmerman who is walking in now into the first court hearing. Let's listen in.</s>O'MARA: We'll give you credit for that. I also will say for the record that I just received here moments ago a two-page affidavit signed by Investigators Galbraith and Olsteen to stand for probable cause for the filing of an information in this matter. So you want him to appear, do you not?</s>O'MARA: Yes, I do, Your Honor. He is present.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: I didn't recognize him next to you there. All right. Mr. Zimmerman, you're appearing here for your first appearances -- or first appearance at this time for a charge of murder in the second degree and you are represented by Mr. O'Mara, is that true?</s>GEORGE ZIMMERMAN, ACCUSED OF SECOND-DEGREE MURDER: Yes, sir.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Remember your right to remain silent, all the other rights he's told you about. You have to say nothing. And we'll go forward on some procedural matters only at this time. After reviewing the short affidavit for probable cause, I do find that probable cause for the charge, as put in the information. Now, seeing that there's an information that was filed as of last -- yesterday at 4:00 p.m., all other matters at this point will be handled by the circuit court under the felony case number. That includes the further -- any further motions, bond hearings. Anything like that now will go forward. All I can tell you at this time is that you will be set for formal arraignment with the Judge Retsidler (ph) on or -- not before but on May the 29th, 1:30, courtroom 1A. And Mr. O'Mara, of course, will be in for that. There's no need to appoint other counsel. I show that he has good and adequate counsel. He's well-represented at this stage. And that date will hold. That is the right date, right, madam clerk? Let's get this straight. Five -- May 29th, 1:30 is his next official court date at this time. All other matters, therefore, will be taken up with the circuit court at the courthouse. Mr. O'Mara, agree?</s>O'MARA: We agree, Your Honor.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Very good. State, anything else?</s>UNIDENTIFIED PROSECUTOR: No, sir, thank you very much.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Upon that finding, this hearing, a first appearance, is concluded. Thank you.</s>O'MARA: Thank you for your time and consideration.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Take your time. And I know you have to make arrangements for everybody. And then we'll get the rest of the group in there and I will take a short break, OK?</s>UNIDENTIFIED PROSECUTOR: Thank you.</s>MALVEAUX: So that is the first appearance of George Zimmerman. It was very, very brief, as we predicted there. And there's his attorney and the special prosecutor who are still in the room there. Holly, explain to us the judge simply said that they had set an arraignment date, May 29th, 1:30 p.m., courtroom 1A. What happens now? He goes back. He cannot -- they didn't set a bond. He cannot get out of jail.</s>HUGHES: That's correct, Suzanne. He is still in custody and will remain in custody until he has this arraignment hearing. And at that point in time, the judge has let Mr. O'Mara and the state know you may address bond and any other preliminary matters at this point in time. The formal arraignment is where they will come into court, they will read out loud the charge, let him know what he is being charged with. That can also be waived by his attorney, if Mr. O'Mara, as I'm sure he will, has sat down explained the nature of the charge, the basis of the charge. At that point in time, he may say my client is fully aware, we waive.</s>MALVEAUX: His attorney is speaking now. Let's listen in.</s>O'MARA: -- information about some witnesses, some witness statements, some addresses, telephone numbers. There's even, I believe, though I haven't reviewed the court file, may be some information specific to Trayvon Martin, a juvenile. And the concern is, with the focus this case has gotten to date, there are going to be and already have been requests to get that information. So I am seeking on my client's behalf and just in the interests of justice on a temporary basis that we do a complete sealing of that record, that no one have access to it except for the court, the appropriate court, and court personnel and, of course, the attorneys involved. I'm very concerned that --</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Let's take one step at a time. The probable cause affidavit, the two-page plus the jurat that came over today on the fax, I would be of the mindset to make that public because there's nothing in there other than what the court has already read and seen.</s>UNIDENTIFIED PROSECUTOR: Yes, sir.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: But anything else so far what you have mentioned has not been filed yet to the clerk's knowledge.</s>O'MARA: And that's correct.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: If you want to do it from now on and the state agrees, is that --</s>PROSECUTOR: We're in agreement with that from now on. That's fine, Your Honor.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Stipulation, I don't have to order it. The two of you have agreed, and we'll put that in the minutes today. So from here on how now it has to be with a hearing with Judge Retsidler.</s>O'MARA: Your Honor, I appreciate it. I know you're very business. My concern is there's actually information flowing to the court file right now so it may get there within moments. And, two, I would truly ask rather than just sitting on the stipulation that you enter an order on our stipulation that would carry the weight of a court order because it may be attacked or assailed.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Remember, Mr. O'Mara, local practice, our minutes has done an ordered language on it, I believe.</s>O'MARA: Good.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Yes. So it would have the weight of an order.</s>O'MARA: That's what I wanted. Thanks for the time.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Now, anything that I have done here, remember, is always reviewable and can be changed by the trial judge who is now assigned as of this moment in this case, OK?</s>O'MARA: Yes, Your Honor. Thanks again for the time.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Thank you.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you, Your Honor.</s>UNIDENTIFIED JUDGE: Thank you.</s>MALVEAUX: I want to bring in Mark Nejame, who is with us from Orlando, to talk about what we have been seen. You know Zimmerman's attorney well. What was he trying to do in sealing those records?</s>MARK NEJAME, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Some of it came in a little garbled, but basically I think he's doing what we saw yesterday when he first made his appearance. He's attempting to keep control of this without letting it just simply go out there and become chaotic. I think he wanted to maintain control of the file where both the prosecutor and the defense and the court had it but that there would not be this ongoing leak through the media and then it would be handled in a haphazard way. From what I could hear, that seemed to be what was going down. May I also say something else though because I think that there's a little bit of a confusion. The arraignment date that's scheduled in Florida basically it would be a not guilty plea entered into writing. The defendant's personal appearance is not required. So the chances are almost zero that Mr. Zimmerman will be appearing in court for his arraignment. There will be an attempt to get a hearing for a bond at some point before that. A lot of that will depend upon the judge's docket and being able to get hearing time to get in there as soon as possible. With the intensity and the attention of this case, they're going to have to open up some time. So don't expect to see Mr. Zimmerman back in court for his arraignment. In writing it's done almost 100 percent of the time in Florida, but do expect that a motion for a bond will be set. Basically, the county court deferred to the circuit court who has jurisdiction over this case now to handle the bond hearing.</s>MALVEAUX: Right. So at least at this point, up until May 29th, he will remain in jail. Is that correct? There's no chance he would actually be released because it's May 29th, is the day.</s>NEJAME: No. He's entitled to a bond hearing. So if they can get a hearing tomorrow or next week and the court's docket permits that in front of the circuit judge, then they can have a bond hearing before the arraignment. The arraignment is simply an entry of a plea of guilty or not guilty independent of the bond hearing. You don't get an automatic bond hearing just because you have an arraignment. You have to schedule the bond hearing for a hearing, and so that's what's going to be forthcoming. Mr. O'Mara will likely, in the next few days, prepare a fully detailed motion to set reasonable bond. It will be filed in the court and be set for hearing.</s>MALVEAUX: Mark, you were initially -- I understand you said earlier this morning -- approached by George Zimmerman and his team to represent Zimmerman. Why did you turn down the case? Does this look like a case that's going to be difficult to defend?</s>NEJAME: No. It's a defensible case but it's a very complicated complex case. We were contacted and I have gotten a written consent from Mr. Zimmerman to allow me to talk about this. I did not disclose information yesterday, nobody has known about it because we didn't think it appropriate to comment until there was a release and consent by Mr. Zimmerman.</s>MALVEAUX: We lost Mark. He's going to explain that later. But he was approached by George Zimmerman's team to represent him and he's going to explain why he didn't actually accept it. But what do you make of seeing George Zimmerman now and the way he was portrayed before? Even in the photos, he looks physically different.</s>HUGHES: He absolutely does. We can tell he's lost weight. And we heard from his prior attorneys earlier in the week that he had lost a substantial amount of weight. So I think what we're seeing is a man who is just -- and understandably so -- extremely stressed. Probably has not been able to eat, Suzanne. And if he has, has probably not been able to keep a lot down. If you think about the intense media scrutiny that's been on this and a lot of community members who have sort of, out on their own said, hey, let's put a bounty on his head, let's go hunting him down, that's a pretty precarious position to be in. So -- and I'm not sure whether George Zimmerman believes it was fully in self-defense or not, I'm sure that the taking of a life weighs heavily on you, whether you think you had to do it to defend your own life or not. That has to be an emotional toll that very few of us will ever understand.</s>MALVEAUX: Earlier today, we heard from Trayvon Martin's mother. And she said she believed it was an accident, her son's killing. That they all just kind of got caught up in something.</s>HUGHES: Right.</s>MALVEAUX: Is that actually something that the defense could use to help Zimmerman in this case?</s>HUGHES: Absolutely. What we're going to see, step one, is going to be a motion to dismiss based on justification, based on the Stand Your Ground law. They're going to go before the court. Mr. O'Mara is going to prepare that motion, try to get that hearing date, and get the entire thing dismissed by a judge who will hear the facts and circumstances, have that preliminary hearing, and say, I do or I don't agree with the defense on the justification. It could all go away at that point. If, however, it progresses, that is absolutely one of the options that is available to the defense. They can raise accident. They can raise self-defense. They can put anything before the jury that they think is reasonable based on the facts and circumstances as the evidence comes out.</s>MALVEAUX: What do you make of the schedule, May 29th?</s>HUGHES: Like Mr. Nejame was talking about, this all goes with the court's docket. And we have to remember, as much as we're al watching this particular case, there are a couple hundred other defendants who have been sitting and waiting their court date, too. So the court is probably giving the first available date when they have to put him on. But, of course, because it is so high profile, and you do have a lot of additional security concerns, sort of like we saw in the Casey Anthony trial, where we don't really want to keep her in our jail because there's such a much greater risk. So I think we're going to see that bond motion filed and attempted to be scheduled a lot sooner than that May 29th date.</s>MALVEAUX: Holly, stay with us. We're going to take a quick break and we'll have more on this developing story. Thanks.