Trial set for Florida boot camp case

PANAMA CITY, Fla., Dec. 3 (UPI) -- The trial is set to begin in the Panama City, Fla., case against seven guards and a nurse in the death of a teen at a boot camp.

The Miami Herald reported that many are expecting the case to be tough for prosecutors, as jurors in the conservative community are expected to be skeptical of charges against officers.

The guards and the nurse are facing charges in the death of 14-year-old Martin Lee Anderson at the Bay County juvenile-justice boot camp.

The eight are charged with failure to provide Martin "the care, supervision or services necessary to maintain his physical or mental health that a prudent person would consider essential."

The case has racial overtones. Many parents of black children in Florida believe the law targets black children more than whites.

"I think this is going to be a very, very explosive trial," said Benjamin Crump, a Tallahassee lawyer who represents the teen's parents, Robert Anderson and Gina Jones.