© 2024 WRVO Public Media
NPR News for Central New York
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

George Zimmerman Injured After Gun Is Reportedly Fired At His Car

George Zimmerman, seen here in a Seminole County Sheriff's Office photo in January, was reportedly shot at while in his car Monday.
Getty Images
George Zimmerman, seen here in a Seminole County Sheriff's Office photo in January, was reportedly shot at while in his car Monday.

A roadway shooting in Central Florida occurred Monday that involved George Zimmerman, police confirm. Zimmerman reportedly suffered minor injuries from shattered glass after a bullet was fired into his car's passenger window. Early reports indicated that Zimmerman had been shot; we're not seeing evidence of that.

Update at 4:10 p.m. ET: Police Say Both Parties Reported Shooting

Lake Mary Police Department says its officers are awaiting the arrival of lawyers before questioning those involved in Monday's incident. No arrests have been made and there's no word yet about potential charges over the shooting, which occurred just before 1 p.m. ET.

Lake Mary Police Public Information Officer Bianca Gillett said Zimmerman flagged an officer down to report that he had been shot at — and that almost simultaneously, the incident was called in to the city's 911 system by Matthew Apperson, who identified himself as the other party in the shooting.

Apperson apparently has a history with Zimmerman: In September, he said that Zimmerman had threatened him as he drove on a road in Lake Mary. At the time, Apperson told a dispatcher that Zimmerman "said he was going to shoot me dead," according to The Orlando Sentinel.

The newspaper adds that in that case and another that followed soon after, Apperson did not press charges.

Our original post continues:

Pictures from the scene in Lake Mary, a town near Orlando, show Zimmerman's grey Honda SUV on the side of the road, with a bullet hole in its passenger window.

Local TV news WESH reports:

"Zimmerman's attorney Don West said a bullet missed Zimmerman's head, but he was sprayed with glass from his vehicle's windshield and other debris.

"West said Zimmerman has been released from the hospital."

The shooting is the latest in a string of incidents that have required police to talk with Zimmerman, who was acquitted of murder in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin, 17, in Sanford, Fla. In January, he was charged with aggravated assault after allegedly throwing a wine bottle at a woman in his home.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Bill Chappell is a writer and editor on the News Desk in the heart of NPR's newsroom in Washington, D.C.