George Zimmerman

George Zimmerman will face criminal charges in the death of Trayvon Martin.

According to a senior law enforcement quoted by CNN, CBS, ABC, NBC and the Associated Press, the neighborhood watch captain in Sanford, Fla., will be charged criminally in the February 26 case that has captivated the nation.

A legal analyst said earlier that the most likely charge would be manslaughter, but it was just announced that Zimmerman faces second-degree murder charges.

A press conference announcing the decision took place at 6 p.m. Wednesday.

Angela Corey, the special prosecutor appointed by Florida Gov. Rick Scott to look into the incident, stated earlier that she would not take the case to a grand jury.

That automatically ruled out first-degree murder as an option, but the second-degree murder charge was still on the table - and ultimately what Corey decided.

“I can tell you we absolutely did not come to this decision lightly,” Corey told reporters moments ago. “We do not prosecute by public pressure.”

Zimmerman is in custody, Corey confirmed, though she gave no additional details. CNN reports that he surrendered to local officials earlier today.

Lawyers for Zimmerman, 28, stepped down from the case Tuesday, saying he'd become uncommunicative and expressing concern for his emotional and physical well-being.

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The special prosecutor investigating the shooting death of Trayvon Martin ruled out using a grand jury in the case, meaning her office alone will decide whether or not to charge the teenager's killer, George Zimmerman, with a crime.

Florida Governor Rick Scott appointed Angela Corey, a seasoned state attorney based in Jacksonville, to take over the Trayvon Martin case as special prosecutor.

"State Attorney Angela Corey has decided not to use a grand jury in the Trayvon Martin shooting death investigation," her office said in a statement.

"At this time, the investigation continues and there will be no further comment." It's very much unclear when a decision will be reached in the case.

Martin's death has captured national attention because of racial profiling and Florida's controversial self-defense laws, prompting demonstrations across the U.S.

The unarmed Martin, 17, was black and Zimmerman, 28, the neighborhood watchman who has not been charged with a crime, is white and Hispanic.

A demonstration Monday temporarily shut down the police department in Sanford, Fla., the epicenter of the case and where the shooting took place.

Sanford police declined to arrest Zimmerman after the shooting, saying they found no evidence to contradict his account that he acted in self-defense.

Police cited Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law, which allows people to use deadly force against adversaries when they fear great bodily harm or death.

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A version of the 911 tape of George Zimmerman reporting suspicious behavior by Trayvon Martin before killing him was edited, NBC admitted this week.

It wasn't doctored - his words were left intact - but it's what we didn’t hear that sheds light on the ultimately fatal Martin-Zimmerman confrontation.

On March 27, NBC’s Today Show aired Zimmerman’s call to the police, featuring these words: “This guy looks like he's up to no good … he looks black.”

The recording went viral, no doubt shaping public bias against Zimmerman. But it turns out Today shortened, and thus altered the meaning of, the call:

Trayvon Martin 911 Call

Here is the fuller version of the recording:

    Zimmerman: "This guy looks like he's up to no good. Or like he's on drugs or something. It's raining and he's just walking around, looking about."
    911 dispatcher: "OK, and this guy ... is he black, white or Hispanic?"
    Zimmerman: [pauses] "He looks black."

George Zimmerman’s actions February 26 remain dubious, and may still lead to criminal charges. Edited or not, the call still obviously shows he was told not to follow Martin that night, and his self-defense claim is highly questionable.

But, right now, he has not been charged.

Moreover, his description of Martin came only in response to a dispatcher's question. Was this racial profiling? Maybe. But the media dropped the ball.

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An elderly couple has reached a settlement with director Spike Lee after the pair had to abandon their home after he erroneously re-tweeted their address as that of George Zimmerman, the Florida man who shot and killed Trayvon Martin.

The couple's attorney, Matt Morgan, announced the settlement Thursday.

Specifics of the settlement weren't disclosed, but Morgan says Lee proactively called the couple to apologize profusely for re-tweeting their address.

Elaine and David McClain are in their 70s. Elaine's son from a previous marriage is named William George Zimmerman, who once lived in their home.

He is no relation to 28-year-old George Zimmerman, who has controversially not been charged with a crime after he killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin.

The neighborhood watch volunteer has said he acted in self-defense, but the issue has raised racial tensions and widespread outrage across the U.S.

After someone posted the address believed to be Zimmerman's, Lee's re-tweet sent it to 250,000 people, some of whom harassed the McClains.

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George Zimmerman's brother Robert spoke on Piers Morgan Tonight Thursday to say that George is innocent, his life was in danger after Trayvon Marin attacked him violently, and that medical records will prove his brother's injuries were real.

Robert Zimmerman Jr. spoke to CNN last night, saying he wanted to correct some of the "mythology" and untruths that have been spread about the case.

"We're confident the medical records are going to explain all of George's medical history," Robert Jr. said. "His nose is swollen in that video. I'm his brother."

George Zimmerman's Brother Interview

George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer, said he shot Trayvon Martin in self defense after the teen attacked him the night of February 26.

Martin, 17, was walking through the gated community back to the house of his father's fiancee, was wearing a hoodie in the rain and was unarmed.

Sanford, Fla., authorities say Zimmerman has not been charged because there are no grounds to disprove his account that he acted in self defense.

Critics say Zimmerman, who is half Hispanic, racially profiled Martin, who was black.

The shooting of Martin has sparked an intense national debate about race, leading to widespread debate. It was even addressed by President Barack Obama.

Like the POTUS, Robert Zimmerman Jr. also called the shooting a tragedy, however, he warned that some of the responses by the media and public have shown bias against Zimmerman and degraded the memory of the deceased.

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George Zimmerman's father, Robert Zimmerman, says Trayvon Martin threatened to kill his son, then beat him to the point where he had no choice but to defend himself against the 17-year-old in Sanford, Fla., on February 26.

The elder Zimmerman spoke, on camera but without showing his face, to Orlando, Fla., TV station WOFL, to share his son's side of the national story.

He claims Trayvon Martin attacked first and may have killed Zimmerman.

Robert Zimmerman Interview

"It's my understanding that Trayvon Martin got on top of him and just started beating him," Robert Zimmerman told WOFL. "Martin said something to the effect of, 'You're going to die now' or 'You're going to die tonight.'"

"He continued to beat George. At some point, George pulled his pistol ... and what he did."

"He was punched in the nose. His nose was broken," Robert Zimmerman insists. "He was knocked to the concrete. Trayvon Martin got on top of him and started beating him."

"Beating him in the face. In his nose, hitting his head on the concrete."

The comments came just after the George Zimmerman surveillance video, taken at police headquarters the night of Martin's killing, was released.

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Police surveillance video footage of George Zimmerman hours after he shot Trayvon Martin does not appear to show any injuries or bloodstains on the man who claims he killed the Florida teen in self defense February 26.

His attorney says the video is too grainy to be revealing, however.

The footage, obtained by ABC News late Wednesday, shows the handcuffed Zimmerman getting out of the police car, unaided, and walking into the police station where he was escorted after the shooting in Sanford, Fla. Watch:

George Zimmerman Police Video

In the police tape, taken about four hours after the deadly incident, there are no visible signs of injuries to Zimmerman's head or blood on his clothes.

However, he is wearing a red jacket, which could obscure a lot.

Zimmerman's attorney Craig Sonner described the video as "very grainy" on NBC's Today, noting that Zimmerman had been "cleaned-up" and received first aid care in the hours between the incident and his arrival at the police station.

Sonner previously said that his client suffered a broken nose and a gash to his head during the altercation in which he says Zimmerman feared for his life.

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Spike Lee, pardon the pun, decided to do the right thing.

The director has apologized for erroneously re-tweeting the address of Trayvon Martin killer George Zimmerman ... only to post an elderly couple's instead.

The tweet did not originate with Spike, but his re-tweet of the wrong Zimmerman address to over 250,000 followers put a pair of seniors in harm's way.

David and Elaine McClain, 72 and 70 respectively, were forced to flee their home and move into a hotel temporarily because of death threats and scrutiny.

Last night, Lee tweeted, "I Deeply Apologize To The McClain Family For Retweeting Their Address. It Was a Mistake. Please Leave The McClains in Peace."

Lee also seemed to subtly ask people who are angry about Trayvon's death to leave Zimmerman's fate to the legal system, closing with, "Justice in Court."

The apology came hours after the McClains reportedly lawyered up, but Spike almost certainly felt bad, given that he put an innocent couple's lives at risk.

Whatever you think about the fact that he would choose to re-tweet what he thought was Zimmerman's address in the first place, he meant no harm to the McClains.

Zimmerman, who friends say is not a racist and is devastated by the shooting of Martin, remains under investigation but has not been charged in the case.

George Zimmerman, the man who shot and killed unarmed teen Trayvon Martin, is not a racist and is devastated by the recent events, according to a friend.

The Feb. 26 death of Martin, and the Sanford, Fla., police department's decision not to arrest Zimmerman, has turned the case into a national obsession.

It has devastated Martin's parents, sparked widespread debate over racial profiling, gun rights and self-defense laws. President Obama even weighed in.

Almost entirely silent throughout the firestorm of the last month? The neighborhood watch captain who shot and killed the 17-year-old.

There has been near-universal backlash, and some might say heavy media bias against Zimmerman, who friends say is going through his own torment.

"He's not the man that I knew before the shooting," Joe Oliver tells People in its cover story. "He's a completely different man; he'll never be the same."

"He prays for Trayvon and he prays for the Martin family. He is so distraught that he took a life. That's the price he had to pay for saving his own."

Oliver says he stands behind his friend, who says Martin was the aggressor in the self-defense slaying, and who he insists is not a racist human being.

"He's not a racist," says Oliver, an African-American. "I wouldn't be speaking out on his behalf if he were. This didn't have anything to do with race."

"George was looking out for his neighborhood and he saw someone he didn't recognize acting suspiciously. In his mind, he shot in self-defense."

"He felt he had no other choice."

After director Spike Lee erroneously re-Tweeted their address as belonging to Trayvon Martin killer George Zimmerman, a school-cafeteria lunch lady and her husband were essentially forced to flee their home amid unwanted attention.

Death threats, hate mail, swarming reporters and fearful inquiries from neighbors were all too much for the woman, 70, who has a heart condition, and her husband, 72, who temporarily moved to a hotel to avoid the spotlight and possible danger.

According to reports, the confusion arose because the woman has a son, William George Zimmerman, who lived with her in 1995 and still lives in Central Florida.

He is no relation to George Zimmerman, 28, the un-charged shooter in the Trayvon Martin case, which is sparking national outrage and international interest.

Zimmerman traced the tweet - which did not initially come from Spike Lee, but gained massive interest after Lee re-Tweeted it - to a man in California.

Zimmerman said he has implored the man to stop and said he received this response, "Black power all day. No justice, no peace" and an obscenity.

Lee's tweet has been removed, but it continues to be re-tweeted.

Man. Spike hasn't flown off the handle and wished he could take it back this badly since his taunting of Reggie Miller sparked the Pacers guard's 25-point fourth quarter explosion in Game 5 of the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals.