By Rene Stutzman and Jeff Weiner, Orlando Sentinel
9:29 a.m. EDT, October 19, 2012
SANFORD – George Zimmerman will return to court this afternoon for a hearing about what to do with Trayvon Martin's school records — just as parents of the slain teen ramp up their efforts to keep those documents private.
Circuit Judge Debra S. Nelson must decide whether to order Miami-Dade school officials to turn them over to Zimmerman's attorneys.
They want to find out about Trayvon's history of suspensions, his grades, attendance record and other things.
George Zimmerman murder trial set for June 10
Assistant State Attorney Bernie de la Rionda says they're not relevant and has accused defense attorneys of going on a fishing expedition.
Trayvon's parents have denounced the effort, describing it as an attempt to further victimize their son.
They plan to hold a news conference outside the Seminole County courthouse before the hearing to talk about that and to raise funds for a political committee they've just created that's designed to donate money to political candidates who support changes to Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law.
Zimmerman, a 29-year-old Neighborhood Watch volunteer, shot Trayvon Feb. 26 in Sanford after calling police and describing the teenager as suspicious.
Zimmerman says he acted in self-defense. Prosecutors charged Zimmerman with second-degree murder.
In a move surprising only in its timing, prosecutors Thursday asked the judge to issue a gag order, barring attorneys from talking about the case. It was clearly aimed at defense attorney Mark O'Mara.
Prosecutor Bernie de la Rionda wrote that O'Mara has been on national television and used a website, Facebook and Twitter to issue statements about the case. That, he wrote, threatens to taint the jury pool.
In April, when he asked for the same thing – a gag order – a previous judge, Kenneth Lester Jr., said no.
It's not clear whether Judge Nelson will take up that issue today.
Police say the 17-year-old Miami Gardens teenager was serving a 10-day suspension at the time of his death because school officials had found him with an empty marijuana baggie. O'Mara has already released to the public notes made by a physician's assistant, who treated Zimmerman the day after the shooting.
She wrote that he suffered a broken nose, cuts to his head and back pain.
De la Rionda is asking for more details, a request that O'Mara says violates his client's privacy.
The judge will also hear arguments from an attorney for more than a dozen news organizations – including The New York Times, CBS News, CNN and the Orlando Sentinel - who are fighting an attempt by prosecutors to seal defense subpoenas and the evidence they produce.
De la Rionda wants the judge to see all of those things first and decide, item by item, whether they should be made public. That could involve secret hearings.
Media attorney Scott Ponce says that does not comply with Florida's history of open courts nor with how previous appeals courts have ruled on requests to seal information.
The hearing is scheduled to start at 1:30 p.m.