Poll: Trayvon Case Split Along Race Lines

UPDATE: George Zimmerman's family is asking for donations.

NBC Miami reports that the family will be launching a website, that has not yet gone live, to raise contributions for Zimmerman and his family.

"George Zimmerman's family has setup a website for anyone who would like help with George and his family with their living expenses and for his defense," said attorneys Hal Uhrig and Craig Sonne in a statement.

In related news, the Orlando Sentinel reports that the National Association for Legal Gun Defense wants to contribute $10,000 toward Zimmerman's defense.

Meanwhile, Hal Uhrig, a lawyer who is part of Zimmerman’s defense team cited the risk of “Shaken Baby Syndrome” while defending his client in a TV interview. As many of his defenders had said before, Zimmerman acted in self-defense because Martin was pounding his head into the pavement. “Uhrig's choice of words, and use of a recognized sign of child abuse to defend a 28-year-old man who killed a kid, seemed likely to raise more than just a few eyebrows,” notes Reuters.

Friday, April 6 at 11:22 a.m.: A new USA Today/Gallup poll reveals that American opinions about the Trayvon Martin case are divided along race lines.

While 73 percent of African Americans believe that George Zimmerman would have been arrested if he had shot a white man, only 33 percent of whites agreed, reports USA Today. The majority of whites said race made no difference in the case.

The racial lines were just as defined when asked if Zimmerman should be charged. Whereas 72 percent of blacks say Zimmerman is definitely or probably guilty of a crime, 32 percent of non-blacks hold that view, reports Gallup. That's not to say they think he isn't guilty but rather that it's still unclear based on the available information. One percent of blacks say Zimmerman is probably not guilty of a crime, compared to 7 percent of non-blacks.

Black Americans are also paying much more attention to developments in the case. While 52 percent of blacks say they are following news of the Martin case very closely, only 19 percent of non-blacks reported a similar interest, notes Gallup. 

"There are really profound differences in the worldviews of blacks and whites," a political science professor tells USA Today. 

Politico reminds readers that an earlier Pew Research Center poll found that more white voters thought the media was overdoing its coverage of the February shooting that has fueled nation-wide protests.

Read Slate’s complete coverage of the Trayvon Martin case.