From his failure to disclose the thousands of dollars he raised in donations to his lawyer’s claim that he might need to be declared indigent, George Zimmerman’s astronomical legal fees have been a recurring issue since his arrest. Now his attorney, Mark O’Mara, tells the Orlando Sentinel a motion is “in the works” to request that the state of Florida cover $200,000 to $300,000 of his legal fees. When a defendant is acquitted, Florida law requires the state to cover expenses such as the cost of legal experts, travel, depositions, and photocopies – basically everything but attorneys’ fees. O’Mara estimates that his fees alone would total more than $1 million, but as USA Today notes, what the attorneys are charging is unclear. Zimmerman’s five-week trial already cost the state roughly $902,000.
