Brett Parker's Attorney Cites 'Stand Your Ground' Law in Motion

A motion filed Friday claims Brett Parker, an Irmo man accused of killing his wife and business associate last year, acted in self defense when he shot the man, several media outlets report. 

Parker's attorneys have requested a hearing to determine whether he is exempt from prosecution under South Carolina's Protection of Persons and Property Act for killing Bryan Capnerhurst, WIS-TV reports. 

Under the state's act, also known as a "Stand Your Ground" law,

A person who is not engaged in an unlawful activity and who is attacked in another place where he has a right to be, including, but not limited to, his place of business, has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand his ground and meet force with force, including deadly force, if he reasonably believes it is necessary to prevent death or great bodily injury to himself or another person or to prevent the commission of a violent crime as defined in Section 16-1-60. 

On April 13, 2012, Richland County Sheriff's Department deputies found Parker's wife, Tammy Parker, and Capnerhurst, in the Parkers' Tackeria Court home in the Ascot Estates subdivision with multiple gunshot wounds.  

Parker, who was charged with two counts of murder, told detectives that Capnerhurst shot his wife and then he shot Capnherhurst in self-defense. 

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Friday's motion could delay the trial, which is scheduled to start the week of May 6, by several months, according to a report from The State. (Read more here (subscription required).