SANFORD, Fla. – Courtroom seats for day one of the George Zimmerman murder trial are now available to the public through a lottery system.
During the trial, which begins Monday, about 24 seats will be reserved for randomly selected members of the public who entered the lottery.
To be eligible for a ticket, members of the public have to go to the Seminole County Supervisor of Elections Office a day in advance, between 2 and 4 p.m., and enter their names for the drawing.
Those selected will get a call from court officials sometime between 4:30 and 6 p.m. and be instructed with information about how to pick up their passes.
Gerard Shine was the first in line waiting to enter his name in the lottery. He also sat in court during jury selection as a member of the public.
"[I] just want to see what's all out there, the evidence. You know, you hear it on the news, you hear it from other people -- I just want to see what they have, the actual evidence," Shine said.