Prosecutors on Wednesday have released the names of the six secret witnesses in the George Zimmerman second-degree murder case, all of them neighbors who lived near where Trayvon Martin was shot to death.
The newly disclosed list does not include new witnesses, just several whose identities earlier were kept secret by prosecutors, something both sides agreed would help protect their privacy.
But Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester Jr. ordered the release of the names of witnesses who had previously talked publicly to reporters. Those six were identified Wednesday.
That’s important because there’s been a dispute about which person was on top during a fight between Zimmerman, 28, and Trayvon, an unarmed 17-year-old from Miami Gardens. Zimmerman was wearing a reddish-orange jacket, and Trayvon was wearing a grey hoodie.
Zimmerman, a self-appointed Neighborhood Watch volunteer, told police he shot Trayvon after the teenager knocked him to the ground with a single punch then got on top of him and began pounding his head onto a sidewalk.
Prosecutors say Zimmerman profiled, pursued and killed the teen.
The just-disclosed names include Brandy Green, the girlfriend of Trayvon’s father. Trayvon was spending the week with her. She lived in the same gated community as Zimmerman.
The list also includes Mary Cutcher and Selma Mora, two roommates who heard cries for help and the gunshot. Cutcher told television broadcasters that she did not believe that Zimmerman fired in self-defense, and that he showed no remorse.
Mora told CNN that immediately after she shooting, she saw Zimmerman straddling Trayvon.
Another witness is Cheryl Brown, the mother of the 13-year-old boy. She was not home at the time of the shooting and did not witness it.
