Now that a Florida jury has found him not guilty of murder (or even manslaughter), George Zimmerman is free to reclaim any of his belongings that were held as evidence in his murder case. Yes, including the Kel Tec 9 pistol he used to shoot and kill Trayvon Martin.
It’s unclear exactly when the gun will be returned to Zimmerman—although his defense team has made it clear that he will ask for it back. In fact, one of his attorneys went as far as to suggest it can’t happen soon enough. Here’s the pull-quote from Mark O’Mara’s interview with ABC News over the weekend:
He said that Zimmerman intends to rearm himself. When asked if he would carry a gun, O’Mara said, ‘Yes. [There’s] even more reason now, isn’t there? There are a lot of people out there who actually hate him, though they shouldn’t.”
Florida law bars anyone “convicted of a felony in the courts of this state” from possessing “firearms, ammunition, or electric weapons or devices unlawful.” That, of course, doesn’t apply to Zimmerman thanks to Saturday’s verdict. (O’Mara did, however, note that his client’s conceal-and-carry permit may be in jeopardy.)
