Self-defense disputed at close of Florida trial over loud music shooting
By Susan Cooper Eastman JACKSONVILLE Fla. (Reuters) - A middle-aged white man on trial for murder in the shooting death of a black teenager during a dispute about loud music told a Florida jury on Tuesday he thought his life was in danger and showed little remorse as he described pulling the trigger. "I meant to pull it 50 times if that’s what it took to save my life," said Michael Dunn, 47, a software engineer who is being retried for first-degree murder in the death of 17-year-old Jordan Davis. "I deliberately defended myself. There was nothing accidental about it," Dunn added. While Dunn said he was not shooting to kill, prosecutors said in closing arguments that his actions went well beyond self-defense. Dunn fired 10 rounds at an SUV carrying Davis and three friends at a Jacksonville gas station in November 2012, barely a minute after asking them to turn down their rap music. "Jordan Russell Davis didn’t stand a chance," said assistant state attorney Erin Wolfson. "He was a sitting duck with nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, as Michael Dunn fired round after round into their car." Jury deliberations are expected to begin on Wednesday. In a February trial, a jury deadlocked on the murder charge but convicted Dunn on three counts of attempted murder for firing at the three teens in the vehicle, who survived. Dunn could face 60 years in prison for those convictions. Sentencing has been postponed until after his retrial. Dunn said on Tuesday he was sure that he saw a gun as a teenager appeared to emerge from the SUV making verbal threats against his life. Davis was unarmed, prosecutors said, and no weapon was found. A forensic expert testified on Monday that Davis was struck by three bullets while leaning away from the gunfire. Asked why he never called 911, Dunn blamed fear and shock. "We weren't in our right minds," he said, tearing up as he described comforting his fiancée when she learned of the death. The case has drawn comparisons to that of another Florida man, George Zimmerman, who was acquitted of murder last year in the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teenager. "Mr. Dunn didn't shoot Jordan Davis because his music was loud. He didn't shoot Jordan Davis because he cussed at him," said defense attorney Waffa Hanania in her closing statement. "He shot Jordan Davis because he threatened to kill him." (Writing by Letitia Stein; Editing by Ken Wills; Editing by Jim Loney and Mohammad Zargham)
