PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — A Port Charlotte man accused of shooting and killing his neighbor over fireworks will not be allowed to use the ‘stand your ground’ law in court.
Detectives say James Gainvors shot and killed Matthew Hanson on Corinne Avenue after they got into a fight on July 5.
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Gainvors’ motion for immunity said Hanson was yelling at him in his front yard while armed with a knife. He told a judge he believed Hanson was going to hurt his family so he needed to protect them.
That’s why Gainvor’s attorneys filed a motion to grant him immunity from prosecution.
Robert Foley is an attorney at Foley & Wilson Law Firm. He said that if the judge approved immunity, there would be no trial and Gainvors would walk free.
Gainvors’ own Ring doorbell camera captured the shooting. He thought the video would help him but it is now being used against him.
After viewing the video, hearing from witnesses and crime scene supervisors, a judge denied the motion on Thursday and said that stand your ground doesn’t apply.
“He would have had to be in fear of imminent death or great bodily harm and evidently the video showed otherwise,” said Foley.
The judge said the video showed Gainvors pointing the gun in a tactical position, while Hanson had his hands on his hips, encouraging Gainvors to shoot until he did. Hanson was not armed, but court documents confirm the two were standing in Gainvor’s yard.
Gainvors will now go to trial in December on second-degree murder charges unless he takes a plea deal.
“Just because he lost today doesn’t mean that the argument is over. A jury can consider whether or not the self-defense defense applies,” said Foley.
Foley said there has been a significant amount of investigation done in the case and a trial on it would likely be lengthy.