SANFORD, Fla. — The controversy over the death of Trayvon Martin prompted Sanford's police chief to ask to step down, but during a heated commission meeting, leaders voted to keep him on the job.
The commission passed a "no confidence" vote on Police Chief Bill Lee last month. But during a heated meeting Monday night, city commissioners voted not to accept Lee's resignation.
Lee has been off the job since late last month after he voluntarily put himself on paid leave, amid controversy surrounding Trayvon Martin's death.
It's clear the commission is split on this issue. Two commissioners were adamant they did not want to see the chief go because of public pressure and without evidence of wrongdoing.
Residents were also split on the commission's decision to keep Lee around.
"If the black community had not vigorously protested, I mean vigorously that Monday afternoon, an alleged murderer would be walking the street right now," said resident James Davis.
"He did what he was supposed to do; his department did what they were supposed to do," said Sanford resident Miles Moore.
City Manager Norton Bonaparte proposed accepting Lee's resignation.
The 3 to 2 vote not to accept the resignation, but instead to keep Lee on at least for three months, came after two commissioners lashed out at Bonaparte for asking Lee to resign and take three months' pay from a $102,000 annual salary.
"I don't know if it was pressure put on you by the outside by locals or who did it, at what level up to the national level," said city commissioner Randy Jones. "That's ridiculous that he be asked to resign over that. The chief of police needs to be reinstated immediately."
Lee put himself on leave last month as the investigation gained notoriety. Some insist Lee did nothing that should lead to losing his job.
"What did the chief do wrong?" said city commissioner Patty Mahany. "Frankly, this is wrong. Where's the character of the commissioners who won't stand up for one of the finest officers in the state?"
They blamed outside people putting pressure on the city for the uproar, and said it hasn't been proven the chief did anything wrong.
The mayor suggested the choice be revisited after state and federal investigations into the handling of the case are complete.
An attorney who is part of the team representing Martin's family condemned the city's decision not to accept Lee's resignation.
"I think Sanford's leadership is doing more harm than good," said Natalie Jackson.
Jackson said Lee should have been let go, because she said he allowed information to leak on the investigation, and because he commented on the credibility of witnesses to the media, which could jeopardize the case.
"He should lose his job because he's lost control of his department, as I've said, by the internal leaks that have come out of his department and by the statements that he's made," said Jackson.
As for the man who shot and killed Trayvon Martin, George Zimmerman's location is still a secret, and WFTV learned that even his family doesn't plan to visit him because they're concerned for his safety.
Zimmerman walked out of the Seminole County Jail Monday after his parents posted their properties as collateral, and $15,000 in cash so he could bond out.
Zimmerman is allowed to leave Florida, but has a curfew and a GPS monitoring device. His attorney won't say if he's still in the state.
"Have you talked to him since his release?" asked WFTV's Daralene Jones.
"Well, he's relieved at being out, but he's still very concerned about his safety and his family members," said Zimmerman's attorney Mark O'Mara.
Zimmerman claims he shot and killed 17-year-old Martin in self-defense.
His attorney said he still hasn't decided if he will use the "Stand Your Ground" law to justify the killing.
O'Mara also said Zimmerman is not using social media or any other form of the internet to communicate with people.
He said a site Zimmerman set up a few weeks ago, called TheRealGeorgeZimmerman.com will not be maintained by his client, and new sites where people claim to be Zimmerman are fakes.