Teshaun Hightower, the former Georgia and Tulane basketball star who was arrested for murder, is an innocent man, according to his lawyer Averick Walker. Hightower was dismissed from the Tulane basketball program after being charged with murder, aggravated assault, battery and possession of a firearm for his rule in the incident which left 24-year-old Devante Anthony Long dead.
But according to Hightower’s attorney, it was Hightower’s brother who pulled the trigger and he was acting in self-defense.
“He’s innocent,” Walker said. “He didn’t shoot anybody. It’s sad that this detective sought to make him out to be a monster and he’s not. When it’s all said and done, it will come out in the wash that the person who did fire the gun shot the gun to protect Teshaun.
“Teshaun’s brother actually fired the weapon and fired in self-defense. The victim came out of the house with a gun in his hand and turned his weapon toward Teshaun to shoot him. That’s why the victim was shot himself.”
From the report:
Police accused Teshaun Hightower of being shooter when six men confronted Long in a breezeway at an apartment complex near Stockbridge. Officers responded to the building at 600 Spindletop Way before 11 a.m. ET April 8 after a call about someone getting shot, the AJC said in citing the police report. Long’s girlfriend allegedly witnessed Hightower in possession of the gun and heard gunshots.
“(The woman) said Teshaun pulled out a turquoise and black handgun out of his pocket,” the arrest warrant said, according to the AJC. “(She) ran into the apartment and hid behind the wall next to the door.”
The warrant added that Tyreek Farmer, another suspect, had a fistfight with Long the morning of the shooting. Farmer claimed he was pistol-whipped by Long and called several friends for assistance, authorities said, with Hightower and others arriving at the apartment complex shortly afterward.
Hightower had averaged a team-high 15.9 points per game this past season. He had previously played for the Georgia Bulldogs before transferring from the program.
