ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – The man accused of shooting and killing a teen who police said was trying to rob him of a cellphone faced a judge Wednesday afternoon.
The judge granted Curtis Fulcher a $50,000 bond. This comes four months after Orlando police said he shot and killed 16-year-old Denim Williams
The suspect was able to post bond on Wednesday.
Fulcher and his pregnant wife met the teen in January to sell him a cellphone. Police said Williams tried to steal it.
Fulcher's wife said her husband thought Williams had a gun and he feared for their lives. Fulcher pulled out his own gun and shot Williams, killing him.
Orlando police turned the case over to the State Attorney's Office, which filed the manslaughter charge.
His wife told News 6 she was shocked to learn about the charge, but our legal analyst Steven Kramer said state prosecutors must believe they have a case.
"They looked at the facts in this case. They looked at the investigation, the witness testimony. They looked at everything involved in this case and they decided the highest possible charge they could file against Fulcher was this charge of manslaughter," Kramer said.
Prosecutors sealed Fulcher's arrest warrant. It's unknown how the state came to its decision to file the manslaughter charge.
Kramer said Fulcher will most likely use stand your ground for his defense, but it is going to come down to evidence.
Police said Williams was shot in the back. It's unclear if that happened during a struggle or while he was running away.
"If Fulcher shoots this man and they're in the middle of a struggle and somehow this man gets shot in the back in the course of the struggle, Fulcher has a very good defense," Kramer said. "On the other hand, if this robber is 20 feet away running, making a run for it, and his back is fully turned to Fulcher and Fulcher is arguably no longer in danger, Fulcher is going to have a tough time making that defense."
Kramer adds Fulcher could have a strong claim for self-defense, depending on the evidence.
"That could be a persuasive argument. I believe it certainly was persuasive to law enforcement in putting off the determination to arrest him. It's going to be potentially persuasive to the jury and it may be persuasive to the judge and it may be persuasive to the viewing public," Kramer said.
News 6 called and emailed the State Attorney's Office multiple times seeking comment and more information about the decision to file the manslaughter charge against Fulcher. We have not heard back.