Zimmerman’s lawyers step down from case

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George Zimmerman’s lawyers, the man who claimed he killed Trayvon Martin in self-defense, said at a press conference Tuesday that they are withdrawing as his counsel because he has stopped communicating with them. They also said he contacted the Florida special prosecutor investigating the Feb. 26 shooting death of Martin.

“As of now we are withdrawing as counsel for Mr. Zimmerman,” Craig Sonner, one of his attorneys, told reporters outside the Seminole County Courthhouse in Sanford, Fla. “We’ve lost contact with him. Up to this point, we’ve had contact with him everyday. He’s gone on his own. I’m not sure what he’s doing or who he’s talking to, but at this point we’re withdrawing as counsel. If he wants us to come back as counsel, he will contact us.”

Sonner said he never met Zimmerman face-to-face, and only communicated with him through telephone.

George Zimmerman said he killed Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old black teenager who was visiting his father in Sanford, FL.

Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch captain, called 911 to report Martin, who was returning from a convenience store, saying he looked “suspicious”. An altercation happens, and Martin is shot in the chest. He told police that he shot the unarmed teenager in self-defense. He has not been charged or arrested.

Uhrig said that Zimmerman had stopped responding to their phone calls, and that they had a “pretty good idea” of where he was. Many are fearing Zimmerman might be a flight risk. In a recent interview with Anderson Cooper, Sonner said he is certain Zimmerman is in the United States, however is not in Florida.

“George Zimmerman in our opinion…is not doing well emotionally, probably suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome, we understand from others that we may have lost a lot of weight,” Uhrig said. “Our concern is that for him to do this…to handle it this way suggests that he may not be in complete control of what’s going on. We’re concerned for his emotional and physical safety.”

Zimmerman has been in hiding since the case has gone viral. Sonner said he did not believe Zimmerman would harm himself or flee the country.

The Zimmerman’s lawyers said that Zimmerman had repeatedly ignored their legal advice.

“We learned that he had called Sean Hannity of Fox News directly — not through us,” Uhrig said. “We believe that he spoke directly with Sean off the record and Hannity’s not even willing to tell us what our client told him.”

Special prosecutor Angela Corey, has decided not to proceed with a grand jury and is expected to release within the next few days whether Zimmerman will be charged with the shooting.

This is a breaking news story, please stay tuned as more develops.