Zimmerman To Be Charged In Trayvon Martin Shooting

Special prosecutor Angela Corey will announce at 6 PM ET that George Zimmerman will face criminal charges in the Feb. 26 shooting death of Trayvon Martin, NBC News has learned.

The law enforcement official who informed NBC News correspondent Pete Williams of the forthcoming announcement on condition of anonymity did not disclose just what charges Corey would be filing. Corey was appointed to the case by Florida Gov. Rick Scott after Sanford, Fla. prosecutor Norm Wolfinger recused himself, and made it known Monday that she wouldn't bring the case against Zimmerman before Tuesday's convening grand jury.

Sanford, Fla. authorities began placing barricades and establishing security surrounding the Seminole County Jail's new-inmate booking area, as reported by NBC outlet WESH of Orlando. Zimmerman, a 28-year-old Sanford neighborhood watch volunteer, shot 17-year-old Martin during a Feb. 26 nighttime altercation while Zimmerman made his rounds through Martin's neighborhood. Zimmerman is half-white, half-Peruvian, and the differing accounts - and media portrayals - of the incident with Martin, a black teenager, have started combustible American race relations dialogues and disputes over firearm self-defense laws.

In the month and a half since the shooting, Zimmerman has averted prosecution because he's claimed that Martin attacked him first, granting him temporary protection under Florida's Stand Your Ground Law. State law protects from prosecution individuals who shoot when themselves, their loved ones or their property comes under violent attack.

This is a developing story. Please, keep checking in with Yidio as we continue following the charges and the fallout later this afternoon.