More Records Released in Trayvon Martin Case :: 07/16/2012

MIAMI - A wide-ranging investigation of George Zimmerman, who is charged with second-degree murder in the killing of Trayvon Martin , found a man not prone to violence or prejudice and who moved easily between racial and ethnic groups - a "decent guy," "a good human being." The assessments, made public on Thursday, came from interviews with friends, co-workers and neighbors who were interviewed by the F.B.I. and state and local law-enforcement authorities. They are part of a pretrial cache of documents in the case that have been released periodically by Angela B. Corey, the special prosecutor. The F.B.I. was brought in to conduct a federal civil rights investigation, which is focused on whether there was racial bias involved in the shooting and in the handling of the case.

Documents released previously focused on the Feb. 26 shooting, the subsequent police investigation and Mr. Zimmerman's statements to the police. The latest trove of reports and tape recordings contained little fresh information about the shape of the case, but provided instead a fuller portrait of the defendant.

His bosses and co-workers repeatedly described Mr. Zimmerman, 28, who speaks English and Spanish, as helpful and reasonable.

After someone broke the lock on his chair - it was an orthopedic chair that he kept at work - and disturbed his desk, Mr. Zimmerman handled the situation calmly, reporting the incident to his superiors to resolve the problem and get reimbursement for the lock, interviews showed.