JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 44-year-old Jacksonville woman who says she shot and killed her husband in self-defense testified in her "stand your ground" hearing Friday.
Callie Adams broke down in tears several times as she told the judge what happened. She said she pulled the trigger two times because her husband wouldn't stop punching her in the back of the head.
"I had fear of great bodily harm for my life," Adams said. "He just started hitting me, and he could have really hurt me, and I didn't know if he was going to kill me. I wasn't sure. I didn't know. I didn't know. I was scared."
Adams said she didn't intend to kill her husband, Rodney Adams; she only wanted him to stop punching her while she was behind the wheel of the family car.
Defense attorneys say Adams was beaten by her husband on numerous other occasions during their 22 years of marriage, but this time, Adams said she'd had enough.
"I was shooting to get him off of me, and if it hit him, I wanted him off of me," she said. "He was hitting me, he was hurting me, and I just wanted him off of me."
Adams admitted to the court that she she never once considered calling police to report the physical abuse that she alleges went on for decades. Prosecutors pointed out she had some bruises and minor abrasions, leaving to question if Adams had to use lethal force.
"Do you believe a reasonable, prudent, cautious person in the exact same circumstances would have thought to open the door and get out of the car rather than aim a firearm and kill their husband," a prosecutor asked.
"No," Adams said.
Prosecutors said Adams could have screamed for help or simply got out of the car and ran. They also question whether she was really being punched or slapped.
"Did you turn around and see if his hand was open versus closed?" a prosecutor asked.
"No, I know the difference between a punch and a slap," Adams said.
The judge is expected to make a ruling next week.