lesser charges??? what?

[bmac]

I haven't been following this much, but I think there's a good chance they convict him of something. Aside from what TM allegedly said ("you gonna die tonight"), doesnt this boil down to a man getting his butt whipped and then pulling out a gun and shooting the guy who kicked his butt?

GZ was not in his home, so castle doctrine wouldn't apply (castle doctrine afaik means your house is considered a place you don't have to flee from), so in this case they could say that GZ could have fled the area. No weapons found on TM really hurts GZ case.

Of course it could turn out like Bernard Goetz, the guy on the subway who shot 4 thugs with an unlicensed pistol. wikipedia says Goetz was acquitted of murder, attempted murder but was convicted on a unlicensed firearm charge. One of the guys he shot was paralyzed and won a $43 million judgement against Goetz in civil court. No doubt there is a civil case being built against GZ already.

Bottom line is GZ life is probably screwed now either financially or criminally.