Six women were selected Thursday to serve on the Florida jury that will decide if George Zimmerman is guilty of second-degree murder in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.
The jurors — five of them white and one who is black or Hispanic, according to prosecutors — were identified in court only by number on the ninth day of selection.
Four alternates – two men and two women – were also chosen.
The panel will be sequestered during the trial, which will begin with opening statements Monday at 9 a.m. and is expected to last between two and four weeks.
Zimmerman, 29, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and says he shot Martin, 17, in self-defense after the unarmed teen attacked him during a confrontation in Sanford, Fla., on Feb. 26, 2012.
Jury selection began June 10. By Wednesday, the pool had been winnowed to 40 potential jurors who were asked about crime, guns, self-defense, reasonable doubt and other topics by prosecutors and defense lawyers.
The fact that the final six are all women should not be a “major factor” in the outcome of the trial, legal analyst Kendall Coffey told NBC News.
“But the to the extent it tilts either way, the prosecution should not be unhappy about an all-women jury,” he said.
He said that in general, women’s attitudes about guns and “people engaging in confrontations instead of relying on authorities” might favor the prosecution’s argument that Zimmerman was in the wrong.
“And in a perfect world, the prosecution would want to see a jury of mothers,” Coffey said.
Zimmerman defense lawyer Mark O'Mara said he didn't have a strong opinion on the gender make-up of the jury.
"The one thing I am certain about with juries is I will never be able to tell what they're thinking," O'Mara said in a press conference after the selection was made. "So six women, three men, three women — I don't think that it really matters."
Related: Meet the Zimmerman jury
Editor’s note: George Zimmerman has sued NBCUniversal for defamation. The company has strongly denied his allegations.