Defendant Justifies Shooting of Actor

by Thom  Mrozek

The man accused  of attempted murder for shooting actor Jameson Parker said  Wednesday that he was completely justified in firing at the former star of "Simon & Simon."

Robert St. George, a 53-year-old Studio City plumbing contractor, is on trial facing  charges of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon in the Oct. 1, 1992, shooting of Parker, who is best known for playing the role of A. J. Simon, the clean-cut younger brother on the CBS television series "Simon & Simon."

St. George's testimony Wednesday contradicted nearly every detail of Parker's testimony--except the fact that Parker was at St. George's house and that  he stumbled away after being hit once under his left arm and once in his right arm.

In St. George's  version of the incident, an uninvited Parker walked into St. George's home  armed with a gun "pointed at my lower extremities," the defendant  testified.

But Parker testified last week that he went to St. George's house to discuss an argument that St. George had earlier in the day with Parker's wife. St. George, Parker said, was angry because the couple's dog had relieved  itself on his lawn.

Parker said he was shot while trying to back away from St. George, who had begun yelling  obscenities at him and calling him names. St. George said Wednesday that  he didn't know why Parker was at his house. He said he opened his door to  investigate noise outside, and found the actor there. St. George contended that the actor threatened to shoot him, but St. George grabbed the gun  away.

"And what  happened when you took the gun?" asked defense attorney Elliot  Stanford.

"I shot him,"  St. George replied.

Parker has strenuously denied that he was armed that night. St. George also told  Deputy Dist. Atty. Kathleen M. Cady that he fired the gun by reflex, even though the second shot was fired at Parker from behind.

After the  shooting, he placed the gun on a ledge inside the front door, St. George  testified, but he could not explain why police did not find the weapon  when they arrived at the home less than 30 minutes after the shooting.

 

Copyright (c)  1993 Times Mirror Company, Thursday, September 9, 1993 Valley Edition Section: Metro Page: B-3,edited for length