Trayvon's Mom: He Was Just a Kid Trying to Get Home

Trayvon Martin's parents made appearances on three of the major networks today, telling each interviewer that they were shocked by the verdict. "We felt in our hearts that we were going to get a conviction," Tracy Martin told the Today show. "We felt that the killer of our unarmed child was going to be convicted." Sybrina Fulton repeatedly stressed her son's age, saying the jury hadn't considered things from his point of view. "Trayvon is not a confrontational person," she told CBS. "Instead of placing the blame on the teenager, we need to place the blame on the responsible adult."

Fulton echoed those remarks on ABC. "I think people are forgetting that Trayvon was a teenager," she said. "I really do believe he was afraid, because he did call George Zimmerman creepy. … If you are 17 and you are afraid, you may not know what to do." She also said the verdict sent a "terrible message to other little black and brown boys. They can't walk fast. They can't walk slow. So what do they do? How do they get home without people assuming you are doing something wrong?" Their lawyer, Benjamin Crump, says they're considering civil action against Zimmerman, adding, "we'll ask the Department of Justice to answer, 'Can a private citizen with a gun profile and follow our children home?'" Crump wants the White House to "at the least investigate what happened." (More Trayvon Martin stories.)