Coworkers asked my opinion about this trial yesterday. I dismissed the talking point but the thought lingered and permeated.
With anything bad, find the corrective action, find a way to make it work for next time.
Do we want to allow what Zimmerman did to be repeatable by others?
This is America, "not allowing" grinds gears. We should allow as much as possible. Let's remove quality of execution and all that aside, for this we are past the details of the individuals.
Defend Self. Defend Others. Defend Property. Defend Territory. Some might want to depend on others to do this for them. Some want to have the freedom to do it themselves. They should be granted that right. These are opinions. Opinions mean culture; that means state - state by state allowance of this policy. I assume, however, it should be consistent across all states and then each state checks the box and toggles yes/no.
Zimmerman started good policy by calling 911 first. Let's roll with that. Don't be ambiguous. Call 911 state intention to pursuit, have rightfully-beared arms out and presented. Over speaker phone address the suspect with your concerns. If they don't react properly inform them of your intentions to shoot. Shoot depending on reactions. All officially logged.
In this policy, make room for independent Neighborhood Watches and Militias.
Make adjustments for those that don't have cellphones - rights shouldn't be limited by technology/monetary standing.
Crack down hard on those that want to go too far; those that kill wantonly and then cook the books to make it look legit.
Create a policy module. Make it work. Tweak it to perfection over time and later.
Then decide if that is how you want to live.