The jury was absolutely right

[onenote]

20. The defense only had to put forward evidence, not proof.

It was the state's burden to put forward proof. Unless and until the law is changed in that regard, that's the way it is in Florida and many many other states.

Interesting note about Stand Your Ground that most people probably don't realize (I didn't learn this until a short while ago and don't recall seeing it):

If a defendant wants to assert immunity from prosecution under the Stand Your Ground provision, the defendant has to ask the court for a pretrial hearing on the issue and, unlike the burden of proof during a jury trial, the burden of proof in this pretrial hearing is on the defendant (by a preponderance of the evidence).

Which may explain further why Zimmerman's defense team decided to waive the pretrial hearing on SYG (before a judge, not a jury) and argue self defense (of which SYG is substantively a part) before a jury.