ORLANDO, Fla. _ George Zimmerman and Matthew Apperson, who is accused of trying to kill Zimmerman in a road rage shooting in 2015, argued the year before over the death of Trayvon Martin, Apperson's attorney said in opening statements Tuesday.
Apperson faces charges in connection with a May 11, 2015, altercation with Zimmerman. He shot a single bullet into Zimmerman's truck as the two drove alongside each other in Lake Mary. Apperson maintains he acted in self-defense, but prosecutors say he instigated the violence.
Tension between Zimmerman and Apperson started the year before, when both were driving in Lake Mary and Apperson thought Zimmerman was pointing at him. Apperson, 37, of Winter Springs, said Zimmerman followed him to a gas station and threatened him.
According to Apperson's attorney, Michael Lafay, Zimmerman said during the argument: "'You know what, I'm gonna kill you, I'm gonna shoot you just like I did that kid.'"
Apperson responded, LaFay told jurors, "'You were wrong to shoot that little boy,'" and then called 911. Zimmerman was acquitted of murdering the unarmed black teenager.
Assistant State Attorney Stewart Stone in his opening statement Tuesday called Apperson the aggressor in the May incident for which Apperson is on trial.
"From the evidence you'll see that it was Mr. Apperson who had it out for George Zimmerman," Stone said. "You'll see from the evidence that he had an intense dislike for Mr. Zimmerman, but in this case, he took it one step further, and he acted out on that dislike and hostility."
Zimmerman testified Tuesday that he was driving eastbound on Lake Mary Boulevard to get to a doctor's appointment when he noticed an Infinity sedan behind him, flashing the lights and honking.
Zimmerman said he changed lanes in his Honda truck, but the car followed. He testified he thought someone may be harassing him, which had happened before.
"I felt concerned," Zimmerman testified. "I didn't know what their intent was, but I knew at that point, it was not simply to get by me ... I felt scared."
Zimmerman said Apperson yelled from his car and he soon recognized the man from the 2014 encounter.
Zimmerman said he called Apperson a "clown" and Apperson hurled expletives at him.
After he saw the barrel of a gun pointed at him and heard the shot, Zimmerman said he thought he was shot and would bleed out.
The bullet missed Zimmerman, lodging itself in the truck's metal frame, but he suffered facial lacerations from shattered window glass.
LaFay, in his opening statement, said Apperson feared Zimmerman.
"He's been threatened before by Mr. Zimmerman," Lafay said. "He believes that Mr. Zimmerman is a menace, and he believes that Mr. Zimmerman is capable of shooting him or anyone else who gets in his way."
Security at the Seminole County courthouse was ramped up Tuesday ahead of Zimmerman's appearance. Sheriff's deputies searched bags and put an extra metal detector in place for anyone attending the trial.
Attorneys on Monday selected a jury to hear the case. The questioning of potential jurors took time, in part, due to Zimmerman's notoriety. Opening statements and witness statements are expected to take all day.
Apperson is charged with attempted second-degree murder with a firearm, shooting into an occupied vehicle and aggravated assault with a firearm.
