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Published February 24, 2015

FILE - This Jan. 10, 2015, booking file photo provided by the Seminole County Public Affairs shows George Zimmerman. The U.S. Justice Department said Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2015, that the former neighborhood watch volunteer will not face federal charges in the shooting death of unarmed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman was acquitted in 2013 of second-degree murder. (AP Photo/Seminole County Public Affairs, File)(The Associated Press)

WASHINGTON The Justice Department says George Zimmerman will not face federal civil rights charges in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin.

The department announced its decision Tuesday, saying that there was not enough evidence to bring federal civil rights charges, which would have required proof that the killing was motivated by racial animosity.

Zimmerman, a former neighborhood watch volunteer, was acquitted of second-degree murder in July 2013. He has said he shot Martin in self-defense during a confrontation inside a gated community in Sanford, Florida.

The case created a national conversation about race and self-defense gun laws. Martin, who was unarmed when he was killed, was black. The teen's relatives have accused Zimmerman of starting the fight and racially profiling Martin. .

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Justice Department: George Zimmerman will not face federal charges in death of Trayvon Martin

MIAMI George Zimmerman, the former neighborhood watch volunteer who fatally shot Trayvon Martin in a 2012 confrontation with the teenager, will not face federal charges, the Justice Department said Tuesday.

The decision, announced in the waning days of Attorney General Eric Holder's tenure, resolves a case that focused on self-defense gun laws and became a flashpoint in the national conversation about race two years before the Ferguson, Mo., police shooting.

Zimmerman has said he acted in self-defense when he shot the 17-year-old Martin during a confrontation inside a gated community in Sanford, Fla., just outside Orlando. Martin, who was black, was unarmed when he was killed. Zimmerman identifies himself as Hispanic.

Once Zimmerman was acquitted of second-degree murder by a state jury in July 2013, Martin's family turned to the federal investigation in hopes that he would be held accountable for the shooting.

That probe focused on whether the killing amounted to a federal civil rights violation, which would have required proof that it was motivated by racial animosity. The Justice Department said there was not enough evidence to establish that Zimmerman willfully deprived Martin of his civil rights or killed the teenager on account of his race.

Zimmerman's attorney, Don West, was on a flight and couldn't immediately comment.

Martin's parents were too distraught after their meeting in Miami with Justice Department officials to speak with reporters, their attorney Ben Crump said.

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No federal charges against George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin's death

ORLANDO, Fla. -

George Zimmerman will not face federal civil rights charges in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin, the U.S. Justice Department announced Tuesday.

Zimmerman was acquitted of criminal charges in 2013 in the killing of the 17-year-old Martin, who is African-American.

[RELATED: George Zimmerman Trial page | VIDEO: Zimmerman's other run-ins with law]

The case stirred a groundswell of emotion, much of it centered around race. Civil rights leaders, as well as Martin's relatives, took to the streets contending that the teen -- who'd gone out to get a drink and Skittles from a Sanford convenience store only to run into Zimmerman on his way back -- might still be alive today if not for the color of his skin.

Zimmerman, a former neighborhood watch volunteer, never denied shooting Martin, saying it was in self-defense.

Zimmerman wasn't charged right away -- his second-degree murder charge didn't occur until April 2012, a month after the Justice Department and FBI announced that they had opened an investigation.

Still, the bar was always high to charge Zimmerman under federal hate crime laws, as it is for anyone. The FBI defines a hate crime as "a traditional offense like murder, arson, or vandalism with an added element of bias."

Proving that a person attacked someone is one thing. Proving what was going through their mind when they did it -- especially if the other person is dead -- is much harder.

Attorney General Eric Holder acknowledged the law's high standard in April 2012: "Something that was reckless, that was negligent does not meet that standard," Holder said. "We have to show that there was specific intent to do the crime with requisite state of mind."

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George Zimmerman won't face civil rights charges in death of Trayvon Martin

WASHINGTON, Feb. 24 (UPI) -- The U.S. Justice Department is set to announce it will not file civil rights charges against neighborhood-watch volunteer, George Zimmerman, in the 2012 shooting death of unarmed teen Trayvon Martin.

Justice Department sources have told multiple news organizations there is not sufficient evidence that Zimmerman intentionally violated Martin's rights. Martin's family will be notified before an official announcement is made.

Zimmerman shot Martin, 17, as he was walking home from a convenience store on Feb. 26 in Sanford, Fla. Zimmerman said he stopped and shot the teen because he looked suspicious, as Martin was wearing a dark hoodie, which made him fear for his safety. Zimmerman was acquitted on charges of second-degree murder and manslaughter in 2013.

The shooting sparked a national debate on race relations and gun rights. Civil rights leaders took to the streets in the small Central Florida town, located about 30 minutes north of Orlando, contending Zimmerman targeted the teen because of his race. Other rallies in solidarity with the Martin family took place in large cities throughout the United States, including New York City, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The Justice Department and the FBI opened the investigation nearly two years ago to determine "whether the evidence reveals a prosecutable violation" of federal law.

Attorney General Eric Holder said the end of the Zimmerman investigation would be accompanied with as much information as possible to detail the Justice Department's findings. It was unclear when the information will be released.

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Report: Zimmerman won't face federal charges in Trayvon Martin's death

WASHINGTON (KABC) --

"Though a comprehensive investigation found that the high standard for a federal hate crime prosecution cannot be met under the circumstances here, this young man's premature death necessitates that we continue the dialogue and be unafraid of confronting the issues and tensions his passing brought to the surface," Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement. "We, as a nation, must take concrete steps to ensure that such incidents do not occur in the future."

Thursday marks three years to the day since 17-year-old unarmed Martin was killed by Zimmerman, who maintains that he acted in self-defense. Martin was walking to his home with only Skittles and an iced tea in his hands.

"We would like to thank the Department of Justice for their extensive and thorough investigation into the killing of our son," Martin's family said in a statement. "Although we are disappointed in these findings, it has steeled our resolve to continue traveling the country with the message of the Trayvon Martin Foundation."

Once Zimmerman was acquitted of second-degree murder by a state jury in 2013, Martin's family turned to the federal investigation in hopes that he would be held accountable for the shooting.

"We remain poised to do everything in our power to help eradicate senseless violence in our communities, because we don't want any other parent to experience the unexplainable loss we have endured," the family statement read. "We will never, ever forget what happened to our son, Trayvon, and will honor his memory by working tirelessly to make the world a better place."

Federal prosecutors concluded there was not sufficient evidence to prove Zimmerman, a neighborhood watchman in Sanford, Florida, intentionally violated Martin's civil rights, sources told ABC News.

"This decision is limited strictly to the department's inability to meet the high legal standard required to prosecute the case under the federal civil rights statutes; it does not reflect an assessment of any other aspect of the shooting," the Justice Department said in a statement.

The decision resolves a case that focused on self-defense gun laws and became a flashpoint in the national conversation about race two years before the Ferguson, Missouri, police shooting.

Florida prosecutors tried to convict Zimmerman of state-level murder and manslaughter charges, but in July 2013, a jury acquitted him, saying prosecutors didn't have enough evidence.

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George Zimmerman will not face federal charges, Justice Department says