George Zimmerman's lawyers say they are no longer representing him

By: Julia Dahl
Topics: Daily Blotter

Attorneys Craig Sonner (left) and Hal Uhrig at a news conference announcing that they are no longer representing George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who Trayvon Martin, April 10, 2012.

/ CBS News

(CBS) Hal Uhrig and Craig Sonner, the two attorneys for George Zimmerman, announced today that they are no long representing the man who says he shot Trayvon Martin in self-defense.

Pictures: Trayvon Martin shooting

Uhrig told reporters at a press conference Tuesday that he and Sonner have not been able to contact Zimmerman since Sunday and are "concerned for his emotional safety."

"I can't keep talking to the media and saying I'm representing George Zimmerman...when he's doing things without consulting me," said Sonner, who admitted he has never met Zimmerman in person.

Uhrig told reporters that Zimmerman did not contact either attorney before setting up the website TheRealGeorgeZimmerman.com to solicit funds from the public. He said they also learned on Tuesday that Zimmerman had contacted Fox News host Sean Hannity and spoke with him off-the-record. However, "the final straw" for the lawyers was when they learned Zimmerman had reached out to the special prosecutor without consulting them.

Special prosecutor Angela Corey is currently investigating the Martin shooting.

Uhrig and Sonner both said they would be happy to represent Zimmerman in the future but that they feel they must step down due to lack of communication.

Asked how much money the PayPal account set up to collect funds for Zimmerman's defense has yielded, Uhrig said he has "no idea."

Complete coverage of the Trayvon Martin case on CBS News