George Zimmerman says he was not pursuing 17-year-old Trayvon Martin the night the teen was fatally shot.
Zimmerman is charged with second-degree murder in the teenager's death.
He made the statement Wednesday in an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity. (See Video Below)
When asked to explain what he meant when he told a police dispatcher he was following Martin, Zimmerman said he was "going in the same direction as him so I could keep an eye on him so I could tell police where he was going."
The neighborhood watch volunteer claims he was defending himself when he shot and killed the unarmed Martin on Feb. 26 in a central Florida neighborhood.
His attorney says he agreed to the interview because he's hoping to receive donations to Zimmerman's defense fund.
Zimmerman says he is in hiding and that he feels his life is in jeopardy, based on death threats he has received. He told Fox News that on the night of the shooting he had gone out to shop at Target -- "that's the last time I've been home."
The case drew intense national attention as speculation grew about the motives for the shooting, especially given that Martin was black. Zimmerman has white and Hispanic heritage.
He dismissed suggestions by some that he acted out of racism.
"I don't think it's fair that they rushed to judgment to assume that," he told Fox News.
Asked what he would say to Martin's parents, Zimmerman said, "I would tell them that, again, I'm sorry."
"My wife and I don’t have any children," Zimmerman told Hannity. "I have nephews that I love more than life. I love them more than myself. And I know when they were born, it was a different unique bond and love that I have with them. And I love my children even though that they aren’t born yet.
"I am sorry that they buried their child. I can’t imagine what it must feel like. I pray for them daily."
Zimmerman ended the interview by looking into the camera and saying that he wishes the night hadn't ended in Martin's death.
"I do want to tell everyone, my wife, my family, my parents, my grandmother, the Martins, the city of Sanford and America that I'm sorry that this happened," he said. "I hate to think that because of this incident, because my actions, it's polarized and divided America. And I'm truly sorry."
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