Beyonce holds moment of silence for Trayvon Martin following case verdict

Pop superstar Beyonce held a minute of silence during her concert in Nashville, Tennessee on Saturday (13Jul13) in honor of slain Florida teen Trayvon Martin following the acquittal of a man accused of murdering him.

Martin, 17, was shot dead in February, 2012 by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, who went on trial last month (Jun13).

Zimmerman claimed he shot the teenager in self-defense and on Saturday (13Jul13) a jury acquitted him of murder.

Beyonce paid tribute to Martin during her show at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena, telling the crowd, "I'd like to have a moment of silence for Trayvon."

Zimmerman's acquittal has caused controversy in the U.S., and a number of stars took to their pages on Twitter.com to complain about the verdict.

In a post, Rihanna writes, "This is the saddest news ever!!! What's justice... Pray 4 (sic) the Martin family", Nicki Minaj added, "Our taxes paid for that trial. We just paid to see a murderer walk free after killing an innocent unarmed little boy" and Miley Cyrus declared, "I feel sick."

Kim Kardashian shared, "My heart goes out to Trayvon Martin's family & loved ones. Thought & prayers being sent their way. No justice", Ellen Page exclaimed, "Well that was a horrible and devastating decision", while Mandy Moore lamented, "My heart is heavy... for all who knew and loved Trayvon Martin. His life mattered. This is shameful".

Chris Brown simply declared, "Bulls**t!" and will.i.am added, "There are black people in prison serving 10 to 20 years for petty drug crimes... and Zimmerman walks for killing a younge (sic) black man??? Ouch."

Olivia Wilde, Kat Dennings, Sophia Bush and Whoopi Goldberg also admitted they were shocked by the verdict, while Russell Simmons called for a change to gun laws in the U.S.