Homophobic hate killer blames victim for ‘not walking away’
Elliot Morales says his victim āescalatedā the situation and should have ājust walked awayā.
A man who witnessed the fatal shooting of his best friend street had to endure a grilling by the suspect yesterday.
Defendant Elliot Morales ā who is representing himself at his own murder trial ā brazenly tried to blame murder victim Mark Carson and his friend Danny Robinson for provoking the attack, reports the New York Post.
āYou could have avoided all of this from escalating to the level it did, if you and Mr. Carson just went along with your own business?ā asked Morales ā who had hurled anti-gay slurs at the strangers as they walked down the street in May 2013.
āThat is so offensive,ā Robinson said, shaking his head as prosecutors objected.
The incident began after a drunken Morales asked the pair āare you, gay wrestlers?ā and called them āfaggotsā.
The men turned around and confronted him, according to prosecutors.
Morales then walked around the corner with the two men following. They exchanged more words before Morales shot Carson in the face, as Robinson begged him not to.
However, Morales claimed that the incident could have been avoided if the men had walked away.
āWouldnāt you agree, seeing this firearm and telling me to put it down, wouldnāt you consider that to be more instigating the whole situation?ā he asked.
āYou could have kept going?ā
āYeah, we could have easily kept going while we see a guy standing there with a gun,ā Robinson said incredulously. āThat doesnāt make sense.ā
Morales then played the 911 call where a blast can be clearly heard in the background, then Robinson saying, āSome guy just shot my friend!ā
āI didnāt hear it,ā Morales said in court of the gunshot, cueing the tape again. āPoint it out to me.ā
Robinson bowed his head and muttered, āOh my Godā before complying.
Morales then tried to suggest that he only pulled the trigger when Robinson reached into his pocket for his phone.
As Robinson exited the courtroom, he wiped tears from his eyes.
Morales ā who is charged with second-degree murder as a hate crime ā insisted in his opening remarks that heās not a bigot.
The trial continues.
