Trayvon Gunman Released On $150,000 Bail

The man charged with murdering unarmed Florida teenager Trayvon Martin has been released from jail on $150,000 (£93,000) bail.

George Zimmerman shot the 17-year-old dead on February 26 while patrolling his housing compound near Orlando as a neighbourhood watch volunteer.

He appeared in court on Friday where he apologised directly to the teenager's parents.

He said he had not known Trayvon, who was visiting from Miami, was unarmed on the night he killed him and did not realise how young he was.

The case caused a nationwide furore after Zimmerman, 28, claimed he was acting in self-defence and police initially refused to arrest him.

Trayvon had been visiting a convenience store and was only carrying a bag of Skittles sweets at the time of his death.

The case provoked weeks of angry protests and outrage across America. It prompted a furious debate on issues that included race relations, racial profiling and Florida's notorious gun laws.

Trayvon was black, Zimmerman's father is white and his mother is from Peru.

After six weeks in hiding, Zimmerman handed himself in to police when Florida's state prosecutor announced charges of second-degree murder against him.

At Friday's hearing Judge Kenneth Lester said Zimmerman cannot have any guns and must observe a 7pm to 6am curfew. He also surrendered his passport.

Zimmerman had to put up 10%, or $15,000, to make bail. His father had indicated he might take out a second mortgage.

A website was set up to collect donations for Zimmerman's defence fund. It is unclear how much has been raised.

He left the Seminole County jail at around midnight on Sunday.

His ultimate destination is being kept secret for his safety and it could be outside Florida.