The jury determined it was self defense.
There is a big difference between a not guilty verdict and a determination of self defense.
The jurors interviewed all said they thought he was probably guilty of murder, but that the probability of guilt was only around 55% or so, and you need more than 90% probability of guilt in order to convict.
No one thought he was innocent.
An innocent person would have stayed in their SUV.
How do you figure? Zimmerman is guilty if he doesn't stay incarcerated in his own vehicle? In this country, that shit doesn't fly.
Zimmerman was a authorized member of the block watch, and was certainly permitted to leave in SUV for any reason or no reason at all.
Further, if he would have stayed in his vehicle, he would have had no place to go if Martin would have saw him, and dragged him out of the SUV for a beating.
Not only did the dispatcher tell him NOT to chase, but clearly it is illegal to chase someone who has committed no crime.
Zimmerman was NOT at all a member of the Neighborhood Watch, and no Neighborhood Watch member is EVER allowed to be armed or alone.
And no, that was NOT Zimmerman's neighborhood, so he was not supposed to be cutting through people's yards like he did.
It is ridiculous to claim it was safer to chase after Martin than to remain in the safety of a lockable SUV.