Charges detail what led to murder of Adreian Payne
Former NBA player Adreian Payne was fatally shot while sitting in the driver's seat of a car in Florida early Monday morning, according to charges filed in Orange County.
The alleged killer, 29-year-old Lawrence A. Dority, has been charged with first-degree premeditated murder. The charging documents say he fatally shot Payne, who was unarmed and posed no threat.
The deadly shooting happened at 1:33 a.m. Monday on the 2500 block of Egret Shores Drive in Orlando, with police arriving at the scene to find the 31-year-old Payne suffering from a gunshot wound in a black Chevy sedan. Fire Rescue medics rushed Payne to Advent Health Hospital East, where he died at 2:23 a.m.
A witness told investigators that she and Payne arrived at the residence to be a "mediator" between Dority and his girlfriend, who have a history of frequent arguments, the complaint says.
Dority's father witnessed the shooting. He told police that Dority and the driver of the black Chevy sedan, whom he described as "very tall, possibly seven feet," were talking before Dority went inside his home and returned with a gun.
Another witness said Dority walked away from the conversation with Payne at the car and went inside, returning outside with what she thought was a gun under his shirt.
The witness said Dority "took a shooting stance, both arms leaning forward." She told him to put the gun down, but Dority fired one shot, fatally striking Payne.
Surveillance video captured part of the incident, confirming that the female witness told Dority to put down the gun.
After shooting Payne, Dority called 911 and claimed Payne had a gun. Investigators determined that Payne was unarmed. No gun was found in his vehicle or on his possession, and the witness told investigators that she didn't see Payne make any threats towards Dority.
"This man tried coming to my house, he cut around my block, and he tried shooting me," Dority told police, according to the criminal complaint. It goes on to quote Dority saying "he act like he got a gun, and I shot him" and "he reached for his gun, I ran inside my house, and I shot him."
Dority claimed his actions were "justified" because he was "protecting his family and protecting his home," according to the charges.
Payne played five years in the NBA, including three seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves from 2014 to 2017. He was drafted 15th overall by the Atlanta Hawks in 2014.
Related: Ex-Timberwolf Adreian Payne murdered in Orlando, Florida
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