Defendant Describes Shooting ‘Bully’ Over Video Game Argument

Paul Myers took the stand on his own behalf in the fatal shooting over a video game Monday, saying his brother-in-law Jason Weaver was a “bully” who could have “pounded” him.

Myers, 30, described firing a handgun six times in rapid succession after a minor altercation over a Nintendo game in the driveway of his parents’ house last August. Myers said he didn’t notice that Weaver was fleeing as he fired the final four shots.

Defense attorney James Blatt opened his case Monday, telling jurors they would hear evidence of Myers’ mental illness, which he said includes delusions of grandeur, paranoia and obsessive, distorted beliefs.

James Myers, the defendant’s father and a Los Angeles Police Department sergeant, described his son’s conversion to Orthodox Judaism and his belief in the Holy War that would soon be fought in Israel, something Paul Myers also testified about.

“I feel there’s a possibility I would be the one to lead the Jewish people the way Moses did,” the defendant testified.

Earlier in the case, the defense had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity but withdrew that plea.

The elder Myers said he asked his son to seek mental help and that he had forbade him from using the three or more weapons kept in the home. He added that he hid his son’s rifle to keep him from using it.

“I thought the weapons were hidden,” he said. “If I could do it again, I would buy a safe to put them in.”

Still, Paul Myers testified, he often went hiking in the hills behind his parents’ Moorpark home, always carrying a weapon--a rifle if it was dark and a handgun during the day. “There’s a mountain lion that lives back there, and coyotes make me nervous,” he said.

Wearing a black suit with a red tie, Paul Myers seemed composed and well-spoken when he took the stand. He described feeling threatened by the 26-year-old Weaver, saying, “I didn’t like him because he was a bully. His whole demeanor was . . . like, ‘Bow down to me or you’re gonna get smacked.’ ”

He testified that he was wearing his gun on the day of the shooting because he was preparing to walk in the hills. When the confrontation over the game began, Myers said he told Weaver, “Give me four feet,” and after a few more words, the 6-foot-4, 275-pound man stepped aggressively forward. Then Myers pulled out his gun and quickly fired six shots.

Myers then went upstairs, changed clothes, said some prayers and was arrested shortly after, he said.

“It’s not murder because it was self-defense. I was very shook up,” Myers said.

He described Weaver as being short-tempered, antagonistic and very threatening. He said he feared that once the gun was out, if he didn’t shoot, Weaver would have taken the gun and shot him.

The defense called several witnesses, including a neighbor to testify about previous incidents involving Weaver. Betty and Brad Herrah, who lived across the street from Weaver, told jurors about an argument over nicks on a skateboard.

“It was a really bad situation,” said Betty Herrah. “He stepped up to me saying, ‘Why do you have to have such an attitude?’ . . . I was really scared.’ ”

The trial continues today in Ventura County Superior Court.