George Zimmerman and his attorneys are asking the state of Florida to give him up to $300,000 in order to reimburse Zimmerman for court costs incurred during the murder trial that eventually acquitted him of first-degree murder in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, according to NBC News.
Florida law allows people who have been acquitted in court to recoup all of their court costs including paying expert witnesses, travel, depositions, photocopies and the animated reenactment video that Zimmerman's attorneys showed at the end of the trial. The one cost that the state is not on the hook for would be the sure to be substantial fee charged by Zimmerman's legal team, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
Last week it was announced that the local government in Seminole County had spent a whopping $902,000 on the trial, the majority of the bill on security around the proceedings.
Shortly after the shooting of Trayvon Martin the case became a national story due to the racial undertones and the belief that it was unjust that it took Sanford Police over 40 days to arrest Zimmerman. Zimmerman's name and face became infamous overnight and he went into hiding while waiting for trial.
While Zimmerman was in hiding it was impossible for him to hold a job so Zimmerman and his family lived off of donations to their legal defense fund. During the trial Zimmerman's lead attorney, Mark O'Mara, was prepared to ask the judge to declare Zimmerman indigent, which means that he was unable to pay his attorney fees and the state would pay, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
O'Mara never did have to declare Zimmerman indigent. So far O'Mara has not charged Zimmerman for his own legal fees, which could come close to $1 million. That would not include the fees charged by co-counsel Don West or Lorna Truett, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
The motion for reimbursement has to be approved by a judge and O'Mara expects that they will fight many of the charges in an attempt to pay less. The money will come from the Judicial Administrative Commission, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
