George Zimmerman Posts Big Bucks, Escapes Jail After $1 Million Bond

Written By S. Samuel

The man responsible for killing 17 year-old Trayvon Martin has reportedly been released from jail after a judge set bail at $1 million yesterday (July 5).

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Details on George Zimmerman‘s temporary jail release emerged Friday afternoon.

George Zimmerman was released from jail on Friday, one day after a Florida judge set bail at $1 million. Judge Kenneth R. Lester Jr. found that Zimmerman’s deceit over cash holdings at his first bond hearing in April was not enough to hold him without bail. However, he also said he believed the suspect may have been planning to flee the country to avoid prosecution in the killing of Florida teen Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman had to post 10% of the $1 million — or $100,000 — to meet the requirement for release. He wore a white dress shirt under a gray suit as he walked out of jail and into a waiting SUV. “We are confident and comfortable that George will be safe,” Zimmerman’s attorney, Don West, told CNN outside the jail following his client’s release. (CNN)

Zimmerman’s new bail bond was set to $1 million at a Thursday court hearing.

A Florida judge today set a $1 million bond for George Zimmerman, who is charged with killing Trayvon Martin, saying he set the substantially higher bail amount out of concern that Zimmerman might try to flee the country. USA TODAY’s Yamiche Alcindor reports that Circuit Court Judge Kenneth Lester ordered that Zimmerman remain in Seminole County and submit to electronic monitoring at his own expense. Zimmerman would be required to put up 10% to be freed. It was not immediately clear how long it would take for him to leave jail. (USA Today)

Despite raising his bond by $850,000, Judge Lester said it was not to punish Zimmerman.

“It appears to this court that .. the money only had to be hidden for a short time for him to leave, if the defendant made a quick decision to flee,” Lester wrote. The defense attorney Mark O’Mara “presented no evidence to negate the court’s impression that the movement of funds and false testimony was to aid and assist the defendant in fleeing the jurisdiction.” He said it looked to him that the only reason Zimmerman didn’t make a run for it, was because he was tethered to an electronic monitoring device. His plans, Lester said, “were thwarted.” “The increased bond is not a punishment,” Lester added. “It is meant to allay the court’s concern that the defendant intended to flee the jurisdiction and a lesser amount would not ensure his presence in court.” (Miami Herald)

Recently, Zimmerman’s jail phone calls to his wife were released to the public.

In a half dozen phone calls between a locked-up George Zimmerman and his wife, the couple talk about their love for each other, buying bulletproof vests and how to move a flood of donations into their personal accounts, recordings released Monday reveal. Prosecutors allege the six phone calls prove that Shellie Zimmerman lied when she told a judge that the couple was broke before her husband was granted bail in April. (Orlando Sentinel)

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Written by S. Samuel

Steven Samuel is the co-founder of SOHH.com.

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