NPR News

Civil rights groups cheered the news that the Justice Department would look into the case of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed black teen shot by a man on neighborhood watch in Sanford, Fla.

But the bar for the Justice Department to make a federal case is high. Ultimately, it has few options at its disposal when it comes to investigating the teen's death.

Former prosecutors say one key tool passed early in the Obama administration might apply in this case: the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act.

Here's the first of more than 5,600 comments we saw this morning when we went to Texas Gov. Rick Perry's Facebook page and opened up a post on his wall thanking those who supported his bid for the Republican presidential nomination:

"Governor Perry, I am experiencing mid-cycle cramping. Is this a punishment from god for not getting pregnant this month?"

Good morning.

Our early headlines:

-- Trayvon Martin's Killer Had Been Accused Of Violence In The Past.

-- Suspect Surrounded In France, Claims Al-Qaida Ties.

Like leap year, talk of a brokered convention seems to surface every presidential cycle. Unlike leap year, the brokered convention itself rarely seems to happen in the end.

But this time around, as the GOP candidates grind it out delegate by delegate, the prospects seemed greater than at any time in the past few decades. As recently as Monday, Rick Santorum insisted he could collect enough delegates to deny rival Mitt Romney the 1,144 needed to clinch the nomination outright.

As national attention continues to be focused on the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla., last month and the questions it resurrects about race relations in the U.S., The Orlando Sentinel today adds to what's known about George Zimmerman, the 28-year-old man who pulled the trigger.