LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — A Lake County man was arrested after an argument over a thrown beer can led to a deadly shooting on Friday, May 12.
Wallace Kirkland, 59, faces charges of manslaughter and aggravated battery with a firearm, arrest records show.
Lake County Sheriff's Office deputies responded to a 911 call on a report of a person shot last Friday. The man was taken to Waterman Hospital in Eustis with a gunshot wound to the chest, however, he later died, according to an arrest affidavit.
Based on interviews with witnesses, detectives said Kirkland, his wife and another neighbor were standing outside when the man was driving a Can-am dune buggy type of vehicle was driving past them.
Kirkland and the man knew each other and the two had several arguments in the past, the affidavit says.
As the man drove by, Kirkland allegedly threw a beer can toward him that went over the vehicle. That's when the man exited the dune buggy and approached Kirkland and stated something along the lines of "I'm going to kill you," the affidavit reads.
Witnesses told deputies they did not see any weapons in the man's hands. The affidavit notes that the man was outnumbered and smaller than Kirkland. As he got within 4 feet of Kirkland, witnesses reported hearing a gunshot.
The man got back in his car and drove a short distance and appeared to lose consciousness, authorities said.
Authorities recovered a firearm at the scene after conducting a search warrant and concluded it was consistent with a description given at the time of the shooting.
Kirkland was booked into the Lake County jail with a bond set at $40,000 on May 13. He bonded out the same day.
