Race tragedy unfolds in Sanford, the gateway to the Magic Kingdom

A LITTLE more than five weeks ago, the quiet central Florida town of Sanford was best known as a gateway to the fantasies of Disney World, with thousands of visitors passing through its airport on their way to the theme parks of nearby Orlando.

Today, given the extraordinary events that have taken place since a neighbourhood watch leader shot dead an unarmed black teenager, it appears the world of make-believe has moved to Sanford itself.

The death of Trayvon Martin, 17, and the refusal of police to arrest his killer, George Zimmerman, has sparked national outrage, with some likening the mass protests in the town and elsewhere to the civil rights movement of the fifties and sixties.

The local police chief has been forced to stand aside and the investigation has been taken over by a prosecutor appointed by the state.

However, the incident has also called into question America’s lax gun regulations, and particularly Florida’s controversial stand-your-ground law under which Mr Zimmerman, 28, has been allowed to remain free since the 26 February incident.

Mr Zimmerman, who is Hispanic, claimed he was acting in self-defence when he shot the teenager, who was walking back to the house of his father’s girlfriend with sweets and an iced tea he had just bought for his little brother.

He told police that Mr Martin, who he had been following because he “looked suspicious”, was the aggressor and broke his nose and banged his head on a pavement during the fight. Florida law says a killing is justified if a person uses deadly force fearing his own life or safety to be in jeopardy.

Protestors, however, say that Mr Martin was singled out by an overzealous snoop simply because he was a black youth wearing a hoodie, and looked out of place in a community protected by gates to keep out undesirables.

“This isn’t about guns, it isn’t about the police, or whites, it’s about a black victim and the brutality of the violence used,” said Professor Larry E Davis, head of the centre on race and social problems at the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

“This case is a tipping point, it’s one killing too many, one beating too many. The outpouring from across the country is of anger and concern and there’s not an African-American male in the country that doesn’t have some cognisance of this. It’s had the effect of bringing consciousness to all Americans. If Zimmerman is prosecuted and found guilty it sends a message that there is a consequence for this behaviour against African-Americans.”

Whether Mr Zimmerman, who is in hiding for his own safety, will be arrested remains to be seen. Calls from The Scotsman to the Sanford police department were referred to state attorney Angela Corey’s office, and her staff say she will not comment because she is too busy working on the investigation.

However, a grand jury will decide on 10 April if there is enough evidence against him, unless Ms Corey decides to act before, as she has indicated she might.

Daryl Parks, a lawyer for Martin’s parents, said he expected an arrest “very soon”, citing a new eyewitness account of the fatal altercation that said Mr Zimmerman appeared unhurt and video of his arrival at the police station soon after the incident that seemed to back that up.