Shellie Zimmerman (Seminole County)
Shellie Zimmerman, the wife of George Zimmerman, now being held
without bond on second-degree murder charges in the slaying of Trayvon Martin in February,
has been arrested and charged on one count of perjury.
She is accused of having lied in a bond hearing for her husband, claiming that the family had little money and that bail should be set low. It was. But it was revoked when it became known that the Zimmermans had access to at least $200,000 raised on a website.
The Zimmermans spoke about the money "in code" during recorded jailhouse phone calls, prosecutors said. Then, Shellie Zimmerman told the judge during her husband's bond hearing that the couple was essentially destitute.
"It is apparent that [Shellie] Zimmerman testified untruthfully at the bond hearing," the judge writes in his order. "The Defendant also testified, but did not alert the Court to the misinformation."
"Had the Court been made aware of the true financial circumstances at the bond hearing, the bond decision might have been different," Lester wrote. After finding out about the discrepancy, the judge said he was left with two options: Increasing Zimmerman's bond, or revoking it.
A new hearing has been set for George Zimmerman on June 29.
In a document posted Tuesday to an official website, Circuit Court Judge Kenneth Lester provided his rationale for revoking bond:
There are several factors that weigh against [George Zimmerman's] release: this is a serious charge for which life may be imposed; the evidence against him is strong; he has been charged with one prior crime, for which he went through a pre-trial diversion program, and has had an injunction filed against him. More importantly, though is the fact he has now demonstated that he does not properly respect the law or the integrity of the judicial process.
