Gainesville Man Arrested for Shooting: Self Defense or Jealous Rage?
Elisha Isaiah Williams, 25, was arrested early Saturday morning and charged with aggravated battery.
On Friday, Williams was accompanying his girlfriend, the witness, to a child custody exchange with the child’s father, the victim.
Williams had been made aware of the victim flirting with the witness during a previous custody exchange where he wasn’t present.
When Williams and the witness arrived, the victim walked out of his house to pick up his kid. Williams questioned the victim over him “making passes” at the witness.
After a brief verbal exchange, Williams pulled out a gun and fired two shots at the victim. The first shot missed, but the second shot hit the victim in his lower back.
Williams went towards the victim after he fell to the ground with his gun drawn, but the victim’s family came outside, causing Williams to disengage. Williams got back in his car with the witness and left the scene.
18 minutes after the shooting, Williams called 911, stating he shot the victim in self-defense. Gainesville Police Department (GPD) officers contacted Williams and the witness at a gas station and interviewed them at the police station.
Williams told police the victim was “edgy” and “making movements with his hands” that led him to believe he had a gun. Williams stated he was “in fear for his life, believing the victim was definitely going to pull a gun out.” Williams did not say he saw the victim with a gun.
Williams asked if the victim had been shot, not knowing if his bullets hit him. Williams reportedly became “worried” after learning he had shot the victim.
The witness told police she did not anticipate Williams confronting the victim over his flirting.
The witness said the victim was making “movements with his hand indicative of having a gun” but confirmed she did not see the victim holding a gun.
Footage from a Ring camera revealed the victim did have a gun on him during the incident but that he did not pull it out. The footage showed the victim passing his gun to a family member after Williams left the scene.
The victim was honest with police about having a gun on him and said he could tell Williams “had something planned.”
GPD Officer Shawn Barnes reports “The victim knew that the gun was fixing to come out, and when it did, the victim did not even remember turning around. That was how fast this incident happened. The victim stated he did not reach for his own gun, as there was not time.”
Barnes reported the Ring camera footage shows Williams “quickly pulls his gun out of his waistband and is seen already moving to his right before the victim appears to move at all. [Williams] moves to his right, ducks down some, and points his gun at the victim all in one second, and before the victim starts to react…. [Williams] also shoots when the victim has visibly retreated several feet backward, already turned around.”
Williams’ bond is set at $500,000.
