Jury Acquits George Zimmerman In Shooting Of Trayvon Martin [VIDEO]

The jury in the George Zimmerman case has acquitted the defendant of second degree murder in the shooting of Trayvon Martin in Florida.

The verdict was reached after 15 hours of deliberations that started on Friday and continued all day today.

Zimmerman showed little emotion upon hearing the verdict. He shook one of his lawyer's hands and then sat back down at his table according to CNN.

Supporters of Martin's family who had gathered outside the courthouse yelled out "No! No!"

Zimmerman's wife, Shellie Zimmerman, had tears in her eyes after the six-member, all-woman jury delivered its verdict Saturday night. After hearing the verdict, Judge Debra Nelson told Zimmerman he was free to go.

After the verdict, Trayvon Martin's father, Tracy Martin, tweeted "God blessed Me & Sybrina with Tray and even in his death I know my baby proud of the FIGHT we along with all of you put up for him GOD BLESS."

"Thanks to everyone who are with us and who will be with us... we together can make sure that this doesn't happen again," said another tweet from Trayvon's father.

Mark O'Mara said Saturday night he was "ecstatic" after the verdict was announced that the only thing Zimmerman was guilty of was protecting himself. Another defense attorney, Don West, says he is pleased the jury "kept this tragedy from becoming a travesty."

Nelson will reconvene the jury in her courtroom later Saturday evening and have them read their verdict according to CNN.

"Seek The Truth For Trayvon Martin"

"I have an amazing team of lawyers," Special Prosecutor Angela Corey said after the verdict was read . "We promised we would seek the truth for Trayvon Martin and due process for George Zimmerman," reports WKMG TV.

When asked about the charging of Zimmerman, Corey replied, "we truly believe that George Zimmerman's mindset ... fit the bill for second-degree murder."

Prosecutor Bernie de la Rionda said he was  "disappointed" but "respects the verdict," along with prosecutors John Guy and Richard Mantei.

The six-member, all-woman jury began deliberating at 2:30 p.m. Friday after spending part of the day listening to the defense closing arguments and a rebuttal from the prosecution.

Earlier in the day, they asked the court for clarification on its instructions regarding manslaughter. The jury couldn't have even posed such a query a few days ago: Judge Nelson ruled Thursday, over the defense's vehement objection, to include manslaughter as an option for jurors, in addition to a second-degree murder charge according to CNN.

Zimmerman is charged with second-degree murder in the death of 17-year-old Martin, Zimmerman claims he shot Martin in self-defense.

The case drew massive protests after a 44-day delay in Zimmerman's arrest. Demonstrators demanded Zimmerman's arrest.

The police chief in Sanford, where Martin was shot and where the trial is being held, urged peace after the verdict is read.

The Associated Press contributed to this report