TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Attorneys for a Titusville man accused of shooting three men, killing two of them, during a neighborhood feud are arguing that the charges against him should be dismissed under Florida's "stand your ground" law.
Defense attorney Robert Berry described in great detail Monday morning all the alleged harassment and petty vengeances suffered by his client, William Woodward, 46, including lewd sexual comments aimed at his daughter
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"But that is not why he shot them," Berry said.
Instead, he said Woodward waited until three shooting victims said they were going to "get him, and "end this," before he took action.
Woodward is accused of shooting and killing Gary Lee Hembree and Roger Picior and wounding Bruce Timothy Blake on Sept. 3, 2012.
His attorneys showed hours of home surveillance video to the judge Monday afternoon.
They claim it shows Hembree, Picior and their families yelling obscenities and taunting the Woodward family.
They also called survivor Bruce Blake to the stand, where he admitted he could be heard shouting among the crowd, but he claims he doesn't remember much of that night because he was drunk.
Woodward faces two charges of first-degree premeditated murder with a firearm and one charge of attempted first-degree murder stemming from the Labor Day weekend incident.
Woodward is attempting to use the "stand your ground" defense. Judge James Earp is overseeing the argument.
Prosecutor Gary Beatty described the behavior of the victims as disgusting, but he said it gave the defendant no right to leave his property and go and kill them.
Beatty's team still calls Woodward's actions "a revenge killing," and they're seeking the death penalty.
The Stand Your Ground hearing will pick up Tuesday morning, and it will likely last all week.