SANFORD –A judge in the George Zimmerman case this morning wants more information about the $200,000 donors sent to the defendant's different Pay Pal web accounts.
Zimmerman's attorney, Mark O'Mara said he has taken control of the money and was not aware of the donations during last week's bail hearing. None of the donor money was used to post bond Sunday.
The money was deposited in trust accounts managed exclusively by O'Mara, he told Circuit Court Judge Kenneth Lester, Jr.
O'Mara asked the judge if he could disclose donor list and information about who had authority over the accounts in a private meeting to avoid exposing contributors to "ridicule and danger."
Judge Lester also rejected Special Prosecutor Angela Corey's request for a gag order on O'Mara.
He said he would not hear arguments about a gag order and he praised both Corey's office and O'Mara for tamping down emotions in this case.
Word of Corey's request came after O'Mara revealed on CNN on Thursday that his client received $200,000 in donations through a now-defunct website.
O'Mara said he is concerned about a gag order, noting that he's been very careful not to discuss the facts of the case in media interviews.
He also noted that this is the most "significant media event" in the country right now and "handlers" for others involved in the case are frequently commenting in the media.
Also this morning, attorneys for the Orlando Sentinel, WFTV-Channel 9, NBC, CNN, The New York Times and other media companies gathered in court to fight for access to records in the Zimmerman case.
O'Mara is also is expected to discuss Zimmerman's $200,000.
O'Mara told CNN that Zimmerman's website had raised more than $200,000 before it was taken down this week.
O'Mara, speaking Thursday on the "Anderson Cooper 360" show, said Zimmerman mentioned the money casually to him, and O'Mara didn't know about it April 20 when a judge set Zimmerman's bail at $150,000.
This morning's fight about records in the case may not be a long one.
Some of what they're demanding was released Monday, a week after they made their requests. Those are the records in Zimmerman's court file, such things as his written plea of not guilty and a request by his lawyer that an earlier judge step aside because of a potential conflict of interest.
Another set of much-sought-after records may be another, bigger fight. Those are the ones collected by the special prosecutor and spelling out what evidence she has against Zimmerman.
He's the Neighborhood Watch volunteer charged with second-degree murder for shooting Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black 17-year-old to death in Sanford Feb. 26.
Two weeks ago, Zimmerman's lawyer formally asked Corey to provide the records by today, a deadline she is required by law to meet.
Once she provides them to him, they're public records, meaning they should be available to anyone who asks for them.
But the day after Zimmerman's arrest, defense attorney Mark O'Mara asked that those records be sealed, and Corey's trial lawyer, Bernie de la Rionda, agreed, and so did Seminole County Judge Mark Herr.
This morning, O'Mara indicated he wanted evidence sealed, saying witnesses out of fear may refuse to cooperate.
De la Rionda said he wants the names and addresses of witnesses kept secret.
rstutzman@tribune.com or 407-650-6394.
Copyright © 2012, Orlando Sentinel
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