Adreian Payne, a former Orlando Magic player, was attempting to calm a domestic dispute in 2022 when he was fatally shot. On Friday, Aug. 29, his killer received his sentence.
Lawrence Dority, 32, of Orlando, was sentenced to life in prison for Payne’s death, according to online jail records. Dority had been found guilty of second-degree murder with a firearm on July 30, court records show.
Following his May 2022 arrest, Dority pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder. He claimed self-defense, telling police that Payne threatened him and appeared to reach for a gun, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by NBC Sports.
Payne, 31, who played with the Magic during the 2017-2018 season, was shot and killed on May 9, 2022, outside Dority’s townhouse complex near Orlando, according to court documents cited by ESPN.
The former Michigan State University star had driven there with his girlfriend to help her friend, Tatiana Mesa, mediate a domestic dispute — something she had done before, according to the affidavit, NBC Sports reports.
Later that night, Dority returned home around 1:30 a.m. after a Mother’s Day celebration with his 10-year-old son. He told authorities he saw Payne sitting in a car outside, Fox 35 Orlando reports.
Dority alleged that Payne told him, “I’ll smoke you, bruh,” before appearing to reach for a weapon, according to the affidavit cited by ESPN.
He told investigators that, feeling threatened by the 6-foot-10 Payne, he went inside, retrieved his gun, and fired a single shot, ESPN reports. However, authorities later confirmed no weapons were found in Payne’s car.
Witnesses offered a different account. One said Payne made no “threatening motions” toward Dority, according to the affidavit, ESPN reports.
A video of the incident captured Payne’s girlfriend pleading with Dority, saying, “Do not pull your gun out” and “We were asked to come here” moments before the shooting, CourtTV reports.
During the trial, Dority testified that he fired because he feared for his son and his father, who had driven them home, CourtTV reports.
His attorney argued in closing statements that Dority acted in self-defense, invoking Florida’s Castle Doctrine and claiming his client was protecting his home, CourtTV reports.
