INDIANAPOLIS (WTHR) — The man who shot two judges in Downtown Indianapolis last year is claiming self-defense.
Brandon Kaiser is facing a series of battery charges stemming from the May 1 fight and shootings.
Kaiser claims that as he tried to go into the White Castle, judges Andrew Adams and Bradley Jacobs came at him in a "hostile manner."
He claims the judges slammed him down on the concrete, shoved his face into the ground and choked him repeatedly.
Kaiser claims Judge Adams kicked him in the head while he was being held down by Judge Jacobs.
He goes on to claim that he repeatedly tried to escape and that Judge Sabrina Bell even tried to get Judge Jacobs off of Kaiser twice.
The defense claim goes on to say that Kaiser was right to fear for his life when he shot the judges.
Kaiser is set to go on trial in March.
A man who was with him that night and also involved in the fight with the judges, Alfredo Vazquez, was given a suspended sentence of a year and placed on probation for a year.
In September, Judge Adams pled guilty to battery resulting in bodily injury as part of a plea agreement. He was given a suspended sentence of 365 days with no probation.
Judge Jacobs was not criminally charged.
In November, the Indiana Supreme Court suspended judges Andrew Adams, Bradley Jacobs and Sabrina Bell over the incident.