George Zimmerman Was Acquitted of Killing Trayvon Martin in 2012 — Where Is He Now?

Exactly three weeks after he turned 17, Trayvon Martin was fatally shot by 28-year-old George Zimmerman. The incident occurred the evening of Feb. 26, 2012, in Sanford, Fla., where Trayvon was visiting family.

While walking home from 7-11 with an iced tea and a bag of Skittles in hand, Trayvon encountered Zimmerman who was head of the neighborhood watch where the teenager was staying.

After calling the police, who told Zimmerman they were on their way and to let them handle it, the older man confronted Trayvon. According to CBS News, six neighbors heard a scuffle followed by a gunshot. Zimmerman later said he feared for his life, and fatally shot Trayvon in self-defense. He was later charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter but was acquitted by a jury.

Where is George Zimmerman now? Here's what we know.

According to the Associate Press, in the decade following Trayvon's death, Zimmerman was plagued with troubles. He frequently had issues with police, though was never charged with anything. The allegations against him include pointing a gun at a then-girlfriend, throwing a wine bottle at another girlfriend, and destroying his estranged wife's iPad.

In May 2018, Zimmerman was issued a summons for allegedly threatening a private investigator working on a documentary about the shooting. Per court records, Zimmerman sent the investigator 67 text messages, called him 55 times, left 36 voicemails, and sent 27 emails regarding the film.

Four years later, Zimmerman was back in court where a judge dismissed a defamation and conspiracy lawsuit he filed against Trayvon's parents, per the Associated Press.

Zimmerman has had difficulty finding employment and has resorted to making Confederate flag art online. He has since changed his name due to death threats Zimmerman claims he has received.

The BBC reported that Zimmerman was able to sell the gun used to kill Martin for $250,000. The auction was hosted on UnitedGunGroup.com in May 2016 and was initially flooded with hoax bids as high as $65 million. The bidders had names like "Racist McShootface." A Florida bar owner by the name of Denny Honeycutt told the Daytona Beach News-Journal (via the BBC) that Zimmerman agreed to sell it to him for $150,000 but backed out of the deal. "I thought he was a man of his word," said Honeycutt.

Zimmerman claimed that some of the proceeds from the auction would go to "fight [Black Lives Matter] violence against law enforcement officers." The buyer, who Zimmerman said could reveal their identity if they chose to, was a woman who supposedly wanted to give the gun to her son as a birthday present.

A lawyer for the Martin family said this was "offensive, outrageous and insulting."