MIAMI — A police report said the confrontation that led to an unarmed black teenager in Florida being shot dead by a neighborhood watch volunteer was “ultimately avoidable.”

The report on the Trayvon Martin case was released Thursday along with an autopsy of the 17-year-old, which revealed traces of marijuana in his body.

Martin was killed by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman on the night of February 26 as he was returning to his father’s home after buying iced tea and candy, in a gated community in the city of Sanford.

The racially-charged case has attracted national attention, with Zimmerman — who was later charged with second-degree murder — claiming he shot Martin in self-defense and police initially decided not to press charges. — AFP