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For a second time, a judge has set bond for the man who shot and killed 17-year old Trayvon Martin.

This afternoon a million dollar bond was set for George Zimmerman. His initial bond of 150-thousand dollars was revoked last month because he and his wife failed to disclose to the court thousands of dollars in donations. Ben Crump, an attorney for Trayvon’s family, says his clients wanted Zimmerman to stay behind bars, but they respect the judge’s decision.

“Everything is taken with a grain of salt knowing that the most important decision is going to be the outcome of the trial, but even that won’t bring Trayvon back. He’s never coming back to them,” said Crump.

Zimmerman will have to come up with 10 percent of the million dollar bond in order to be released from jail.

There’s some good news tonight for Florida college students. Congress has reached a deal to freeze student loan interest rates, but as Whitney Ray tells us, the deal limits who qualifies for the government subsidized loans.

FSU junior Caroline Pryor is borrowing money to pay for school.

“After I’m done, it’s probably going to be around nine, ten thousand,” said Pryor.

While her loans are expensive, they could have been even higher. Last week Congress reached a deal to keep student loan interest rate from doubling to nearly seven percent.

“If they keep it the same, I think I’ll be able to get by, hopefully,” said Pryor.

The rate freeze is good news for Florida students who, without the deal, would have seen their loan debt increase an extra thousand dollars every year they borrow.

But there is a catch. Interest on new student loans will begin accumulating as soon as a student graduates. Now on existing loans, there will still be a grace period for interest and students will still have six months before they have to begin making payments.

Caroline says the changes will add pressure for college grads trying to find work in a saturated job market.

“If I don’t get a job in a certain amount of time it’s going to be really tough,” said Pryor.

And it’s getting tougher still for students who seek advanced degrees. As of this month, grad students no longer qualify for government subsidized loans. That concerns Sophomore Shawn McCullough, who plans to attend medical school.

“I’m passionate about what I want to do so it doesn’t change my plans, but it’s going to make things a lot more difficult,” said McCullough.

The last minute deal is set to expire in one year. Which means students who don’t graduate by 2013 could face another round of student loan increases.

The new student loan bill also disqualifies people who don’t have a high school diploma or a GED from qualifying for government subsidized loans. The provision is expected to affect people who attend trade schools.

On Wednesday, thousands of immigrants across the state and county will be sworn in to become US citizens. Jose Godinez-Samperio is 26, a graduate of New College and the College of Law at Florida State University. He wants to be a lawyer, but his lack of citizenship is holding him back. As Mike Vasilinda tells us, Jose’s case is the perfect example of why some are calling for a “Dream Act.”

Jose Godinez Samperio attended the Florida Bar Annual Meeting this year. The Eagle Scout and Valedictorian of his Tampa high school graduated from New College, the state’s Honors College and from the Florida State College of Law, but whether Jose ever becomes a lawyer in Florida is up in the air. He is an undocumented alien who came to the US when he was 9.

“One day, about six months later, I was watching Barney and my visa expired. Of course, I didn’t know it then, as I was still 10 years old, and eventually I went through school just like any other kid,” Godinez-Samperio said.

Jose passed the Bar Exam with Flying colors.

But because Jose isn’t a citizen, bar examiners refused to admit him to practice law, and instead sent this first-ever case here to Florida’s Supreme Court.

Former FSU President Sandy D’Alemberte, along with three other former American Bar Association Presidents, have filed paperwork supporting Jose’s quest to be a lawyer.

“When you’re a nine year old and you decide to stay with your parents, that’s hardly a character defect,” D’Alemberte said. “What I would say to people is that Jose is exactly the kind of person we want as a citizen of the United States.”

No one has filed paperwork opposing Jose’s admission to the bar. He believes he’s proven he’s worthy to be a lawyer.

“I have not taken advantage of anybody’s taxes, I’m just here to contribute,” he said.

In the meantime, he is working as an activist and he plans to practice immigration law when and if he is allowed to be a lawyer.

His journey took him from the battlefield to the basketball court, now a former FSU player is crediting the US Military for his new found fame in the NBA. As Whitney Ray tells us, Bernard James never would have made it to the pros, had he not joined United States Air Force.

Bursts of patriotism and excited chants greeted FSU star Bernard James as he was drafted into the NBA last week.

Before finding fame on the hardwood James served six years in the US Air Force, including three tours of duty in Afghanistan, Iraq and Qatar. He might still be there had it not been for his military supervisor.

“He asked me if I played basketball, and I was like no, not really and he was like, you do now,” said James.

James dropped out of high school at 16, having never played organized basketball. One year later he joined the Air Force. He was 6’5. During his service James grew five more inches, catching the attention of FSU scouts.

“Really the plan was to get a college degree and go back in the Air Force as a commission officer,” said James.

James rose to the rank of staff sergeant, but his athletic accolades began to overshadow his military service. James lead FSU to the Sweet 16 his junior year and won a conference championship the next. NBA scouts noticed, and last Thursday, with the crowd cheering him on, James became a professional basketball player.

“I’m a patriot. I love seeing other people’s patriotism. So, it was big to see all of the fans come together and chant USA when I was drafted,” said James.

From the battlefield to the basketball court, James is now in the national spotlight and continues to serve his country as an ambassador for the US military. He even has a patriotic nickname… His fans call him, The Sergeant.

James was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers, but later traded to the Dallas Mavericks where he will begin workouts June 11th. The Mavs won the 2011 NBA championship beating the Miami Heat in the finals.

This Independence Day Florida is honoring US soldiers by waiving some state fees for veteran entrepreneurs.

Starting this week the Department of Business and Profession Regulation is eliminating business licensing and application fees for any veteran honorably discharged during the past 24 months. DBPR Secretary Ken Lawson says the program could benefit thousands of returning soldiers.

“If you can create your own business and possible employ other people, that will help our economy, not only the state but this country and it will help these veterans by reaching out to our program and starting businesses. That helps serve this nation,” said Lawson.

The waivers could save veterans a hundred bucks or in some cases more than a thousand depending on the type of business license they’re seeking.

A group of human rights activists and politicians are fighting for the voting rights of former felons.

The group made up of a human rights activist, a former sheriff and Leon County Supervisor of Elections Ion Sancho is asking Congress to pass a bill allowing former felons to cast ballots in federal elections. Currently, ex-felons have to wait five years and then ask the state clemency board to restore their civil rights. Sancho says the current law is creating second class citizens.

“There are 100s of thousand of Floridians forced to walk around with an invisible F for felons branded permanently on their identity,” said Sancho.

An estimated 500-thousand Floridians have lost their civil rights and can’t vote, hold public officer or own a gun. The group had asked the governor and state cabinet to automatically restore the rights of nonviolent offenders, but state leaders denied their request.