July trial set in Michigan porch shooting case

DETROIT (AP) — A July trial is scheduled for a Detroit-area man who fatally shot an unarmed woman last fall on his porch.

Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Dana Hathaway on Wednesday set Theodore Wafer's trial for July 21. It's expected to last about three weeks.

A final conference is June 20.

Last week, Wayne County Circuit Chief Judge Pro Tem Timothy Kenny removed Judge Qiana Lillard from the case. Hathaway was drawn to take over.

There's no dispute that Wafer shot Renisha McBride in the face on Nov. 2 in Dearborn Heights. His lawyers insist he opened the front door and fired in self-defense, fearing that the drunken 19-year-old was trying to break into his home before dawn.

Prosecutors, however, say he should have called 911 and kept the door shut.