04/01/26 11:28:00
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04/01 11:26 CDT Quadruple amputee cornhole player acted in self-defense when
shooting car passenger, lawyer says
Quadruple amputee cornhole player acted in self-defense when shooting car
passenger, lawyer says
By BRIAN WITTE
Associated Press
LA PLATA, Md. (AP) --- A quadruple amputee professional cornhole player acted
in self-defense when he shot and killed a passenger in his car during a heated
argument, his attorney said Wednesday.
Dayton James Webber, 27, appeared in Charles County District Court via
videoconference for the bail review Wednesday, where Judge Patrick Devine noted
that he left Maryland after the March 22 shooting of 27-year-old Bradrick
Michael Wells and ordered Webber to remain jailed without bail.
Webber, who was extradited from Virginia and is charged with first- and
second-degree murder, hasn't entered a plea yet and is due in court for a May 6
preliminary hearing. He also faces assault and firearm charges.
Defense attorney Andrew Jezic told the court that Webber acted in self-defense
and that he anticipates "a lengthy trial" to prove it.
After the hearing, Jezic told reporters that his client was "terrified."
"The truth here is that he would have been a murder victim if he had not acted
immediately in defense of his life," Jezic said.
Family members of Webber declined to comment after the hearing.
Webber, whose arms and legs were amputated when he was 10 months old to save
his life after he contracted a serious blood infection, is accused of shooting
Wells, of Waldorf, twice in the head during an argument, according to police
charging documents.
Karen Piper Mitchell, a deputy state's attorney, said witnesses in the car told
authorities the argument was over a gun that a friend of Wells had stolen from
Webber, and that Webber was upset Wells was still friends with the thief.
In arguing that Webber should remain in custody, Mitchell noted that he drove
to Virginia after the shooting and owns firearms.
According to the charging documents, Webber pulled over after the shooting in
La Plata, Maryland, and asked two backseat passengers to help pull the victim
out, but they refused, got out of the car and flagged down police officers.
Webber fled with the victim still in the car, the Charles County sheriff's
office said. Two hours later, a resident in Charlotte Hall, about 10 miles
(16-kilometer) away, found Wells' body in a yard along a road and notified
officers.
Detectives tracked down Webber's car in Charlottesville, Virginia, and found
Webber at a hospital where he was "seeking treatment for a medical issue," the
sheriff's office said.
Webber was featured by ESPN in 2023 in a story of inspiration, noting he rode
dirt bikes, wrestled and played football before becoming a professional
cornhole player. The same year, he wrote an essay for the "Today" show about
how he became a professional competitor. He said he learned to grab the bean
bag by the corners and throw it using his amputated arms.
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