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Judge: Zimmerman Could Have Fled The Country

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By: Associated Press

UPDATE: Thursday, July 5, 2012

A Florida judge says the reason he's setting bail for George Zimmerman at $1 million this time is because Zimmerman may have been hiding money as part of a plot to flee the country.

The judge had set bond at $150,000 in April, but revoked it last month after prosecutors said Zimmerman and his wife had misled the court about how much money they had.

Prosecutors have said that Zimmerman and his wife talked in code during recorded jailhouse conversations about how to transfer the donations he received through a website to different bank accounts.

The judge says it's "entirely reasonable" to think that had it not been for the electronic monitoring, Zimmerman and his wife "would have fled the United States with at least $130,000 of other people's money."

Zimmerman is awaiting trial on a second-degree murder charge in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. He has pleaded not guilty and claims the shooting was self-defense under the state's "stand your ground" law.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

The neighborhood watch volunteer who killed Trayvon Martin can be released from jail while he awaits trial on a second-degree murder charge.

A Florida judge on Thursday granted bond for a second time to George Zimmerman. The amount of the bond was not immediately released.

Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester had revoked Zimmerman's $150,000 bond last month after prosecutors told the judge Zimmerman and his wife misled the court about how much money they had during an April bond hearing.

Prosecutors said a website Zimmerman created for his legal defense had raised $135,000 at the time of his first bond hearing. Zimmerman and his wife did not mention the money then, and Shellie Zimmerman even said the couple had limited resources because she was a student and he wasn't working.


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