CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. — The family of a murdered man became emotional in court Tuesday after hearing the 911 call made just after he was shot.
Clayton County prosecutors say Eric Smith shot and killed Eric Hernandez, 22, in June 2013 after the two got into a fight. Now, Smith faces murder charges and his trial is underway.
On the first day of testimony, prosecutors played a 911 call Hernandez brother-in-law made after Hernandez was shot on Brandon Hill Way just after midnight.
"My neighbor shoot my brother-in-law. Your neighbor did what? Shoot my brother-in-law," is what Juan Vargas said to the operator that night. "Is your brother breathing?” “Yes," Vargas responded on the call.
The recording sent one Hernandez family member after the other running from the courtroom in tears. Vargas, who was on the witness stand when the recording was played, also wept.
"What's your neighbor's name?" the operator asked. "Eric," Vargas replied.
Vargas says his neighbor Eric Smith shot his brother-in-law after the two got into a fight outside their home.
Prosecutors say there was bad blood between the longtime neighbors.
Clayton County Assistant District Attorney Jeff Gore said Smith would curse at the Hernandez family and would wave a gun at them. He says the night of the shooting Smith kept cursing at his neighbors and Hernandez and Smith got into a fight when he wouldn't stop.
Vargas says he helped break it up. "Eric, Eric. Don't fight. Let's go home. It is not worth," he testified through an interpreter.
Prosecutors say when Hernandez got off Smith and began to walk away, Smith shot him in the back.
"The fight was over. It was just a senseless killing," Gore said during opening statements.
Smith's attorney says his client was defending himself and Hernandez was the aggressor.
"How many punches does he have to take before he decides his life's in danger?" Kevin Schumaker asked.
Vargas said they were walking away and there was no threat. He testified he was just trying to get his brother-in-law back in the house when he heard a gunshot.
"My brother in law said to me, ‘I think I got hit,’" he said.
A neighbor testified Smith brandished a gun and threatened to shoot somebody that night. Another neighbor testified Smith said this won't be done until someone ends up dead.
WSBTV
