On Monday, the man who shot George Zimmerman claimed self-defense.
According to lawyer Mark NeJame, the man involved, Matthew Apperson, “simply maintained that he acted in self-defense. We see everything to suggest that is correct and nothing to suggest otherwise but we do not think it is appropriate to get into any of the facts specifically right now.”
After the incident, Apperson reportedly went to a local medical facility and asked them to call 911 because he had shot Zimmerman, reports the Orlando Sentinel.
“He said, ‘My name is Matt Apperson and this has been an ongoing dispute between George and I. This isn’t the first time, this is the third incident and I shot him,'” said Kenneth Cornell, the staff member who made the call.
Watch Apperson’s lawyer, family address the incident below:
[youtubevid video=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=4Psov16scNQ” id=”4Psov16scNQ” w=”640″ h=”360″]
As Apperson told dispatchers, this is not the first time the two men have clashed. In September, Apperson claimed that Zimmerman had threatened him, saying, “Do you know who I am?”
Although further details have not yet been released, NaJame insisted that his client had been “legally justified to shoot” and that he had a concealed-carry permit. Neither man has been charged in the incident.
The self-defense argument should be familiar to Zimmerman, who used the same defense when he was acquitted of second-degree murder in the death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin.