Dec 10 (4 days ago)
 | | |||
The Civil Rights Division of the United States Department of Justice, the United States Attorney=s Office for the Middle District of Florida, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have opened an investigation into the facts and circumstances of the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. The department will conduct a thorough and independent review of all of the evidence and take appropriate action at the conclusion of the investigation. The department also is providing assistance to and cooperating with the state officials in their investigation into the incident. With all federal civil rights crimes, the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the subject acted intentionally and with the specific intent to do something which the law forbids - the highest level of intent in criminal law. Negligence, recklessness, mistakes and accidents are not prosecutable under the federal criminal civil rights laws.