As my colleague Lizette Alvarez reports, a Florida judge denied a request by George Zimmerman’s lawyer to delay his June 10 trial in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.
The decision on Tuesday came on what would have been the 18th birthday of Mr. Martin, who was shot and killed on Feb. 26, 2012, during a scuffle after he was followed by Mr. Zimmerman while walking through a gated suburban townhouse development.
Outside the courthouse in Sanford, Fla., a group of community leaders and local students, as Ms. Alvarez writes, ang “Happy Birthday.†And thousands of people turned to Twitter and other social platforms to remember Mr. Martin with birthday wishes.
A single post on Twitter by Russell Simmons, the hip-hop pioneer and mogul, wishing Trayvon Martin happy birthday was shared more than 2,500 times in a couple of hours.
To show their respect, others posed for photos wearing hoodies and displaying a package of Skittles, which Mr. Martin was carrying when he was killed. He was also wearing a hoodie.
With the anniversary of Mr. Martin’s death approaching, several groups are oranizing marches and protests with a peace walk scheduled for Saturday.
