I have seen several discussions in which it was mentioned that juries sometimes feel the prosecution has not made its case for the primary charge, but the jurors feel that there was some degree of wrongdoing by the defendant, so they return a guilty verdict on a lesser charge.
The "lesser included charges" are very scary in Zimmerman's case because most of them would involve some type of felony that involved use of a firearm, triggering Florida's special minimum sentencing provisions. As
this article notes, the results could be very strange:
Quote:
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Realistically though, George Zimmerman must hope he is acquitted out right. Because absent a Manslaughter conviction, Judge Nelson would be statutorily required to impose the 25 year mandatory-minimum prison sentence under Florida’s 10-20-Life for any felony but Manslaughter or Felony Battery.
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I believe that jurors are not informed about the penalties for the various charges.