And an onair spanking. How samuel l. Jackson reacted when he believed he was mistaken for another black actor. A whats in your wallet black guy. Well show you a live and very public lesson that one anchorman will never forget. No question about that. Keep it right here, america. Nightline is back in just 60 seconds. Good evening. Today the defense started presenting its case in a murder trial that contains a combustible mix of race and guns and is playing out in the same state where Trayvon Martin died, florida. The accused is a 47yearold white Software Developer named michael dunn. The victim, an apparently unarmed black 17yearold named jordan davis. The alleged motive . Loud rap music. Abcs ryan owens is on the story for our series crime and punishment. Reporter is it possible this rap song could be a motive for murder . Infrared, yeah, we love them possible that a 17yearold is dead because he wouldnt turn down the volume . Thats the stunning accusation of prosecutors in the state of florida versus michael dunn. Michael david dunn pointed a semiautomatic pistol at four unarmed kids from a distance much closer than you and i. And then drove off. Reporter police say the Software Developer fired ten shots at that suv, killing jordan davis back in november of 2012. Prosecutors rested their case earlier today, ending with graphic testimony from the medical examiner. How many separate gunshot wounds did you find to jordan daviss body . Three gunshot wounds. Reporter the m. E. Displayed jordan daviss clothes for the jury. The bulletriddled tanktop, the bloodstained tshirt. So right about here is where the bullet entered. Reporter noticeably absent for this testimony, daviss parents. Theyve been here every day, but their civil Attorney Says they just couldnt sit through this. It wasnt until today that they decided that theres a line there and the photographs that came from that was across that line. It cant be easy for them to even be in the same room as the man who admits to killing their son. Its not. And it hasnt been for the past year. Reporter they did watch in dramatic fashion as a firearms expert showed the jury the semiautomatic pistol that ended the teens life. But the most powerful part of the prosecutions case came from a most unlikely source, Michael Dunns fiancee. And what did the defendant say . I hate that thug music. Reporter rhonda rouer testified those are the last words she heard her fiance say before he opened fire on the suv parked right next to him. The couple had stopped at this jacksonville gas station to buy wine after the wedding. She went inside. Thats her on the store surveillance tape with a bottle of wine. Next, gunfire. [ gunshots ] oh, my god, somebodys shooting. Somebodys shooting out of their car. I heard pop, pop, pop. Reporter rouer says she ran outside and dunn told her to get back in the car. Did you see a firearm at that point in time . Yes. Michael was putting it into the glove box. Reporter prosecutors say dunn hit the suv nine times including several shots to the back of the vehicle as the driver was pulling away. Rouer was a reluctant witness for the prosecution, sobbing and shaking throughout her testimony that the state hopes will put her fiance away for life. She described how after the shooting dunn left and never called for help. That instead they went to this hotel, ordered pizza, and shared more drinks. Rouer testified it was her idea to head back to their home in Central Florida without telling a soul what happened. After seeing the reports of the teenagers death on the news. Why did you decide that you all needed to go home . Because i thought i was going to be arrested too. Reporter when police did arrest dunn the next day, he told officers he fired in selfdefense. I was so afraid that i didnt have time to think. I only reacted. Reporter that he felt threatened and thought he saw a weapon. It was either a barrel or a stick. But sir, there theyre like, were going to kill you. Reporter no weapon was ever found in the teenagers car. Still, dunns Attorney Says jordan davis was the aggressor and threatened his client. Youre dead [ bleep ]. This is going down now. With a shotgun barrel sticking out of the window. Or a lead pipe. Whatever it was, its a deadly weapon. Reporter this afternoon on day four of this highprofile trial the defense began its case. Calling character witnesses to say quite simply dunn is a good guy. Are you aware of mr. Dunns reputation for peacefulness . Yes. Very nice guy. Reporter the defendants son, chris dunn, took the stand to defend his dad. Hes my father. Reporter the defense showed the jury wedding pictures from the night chris got married. It was just after michael dunn left the reception that the shooting happened. Dunn himself has not commented publicly on his side of the story. But since being in jail he has written many letters. Theyve now been submitted as evidence. In a letter dated july 14th, presumably to his fiancee, he writes, i just got off the phone with you and we were talking about how racist the blacks are up here. The more time i am exposed to these people the more prejudiced against them i become. In another letter to his grandmother he complains, the blacks seem to be calling the shots in the media and the courts. In yet another letter he acknowledges comparisons to the Trayvon Martin shooting. Cory, my attorney, says i have a much stronger case of selfdefense than zimmerman does. This case does seem to have a lot of parallels to the George Zimmerman trial. Right down to the prosecutors. Jordan davis gasping for air. Reporter these are the same two who tried to get a conviction against zimmerman. I dont see how stand your ground applies there. But in this case, with michael dunn, its just straight defense. How reasonable was he in reaching into his glove compartment, pulling out a 9millimeter, and then pulling the trigger not once like George Zimmerman but two, three, four, ten times. Reporter to make his defense stick, many legal experts believe dunn needs to get up before this jury and explain what happened that night. The family wants answers. And only michael dunn can give those answers. So it seems odd, but they actually want to hear from their sons killer . They do. Its unfortunate in america that the young black child doesnt get the benefit of the doubt. Reporter the defense says they only have one or two witnesses left. The question remains tonight, will michael dunn be one of them . Im ryan owens for nightline in jacksonville, florida. An important case and one we will continue to cover here on abc news. And coming up next here on nightline, the allamerican Football Player making an announcement sending reverberations through an american bastion of machismo. 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From whole natural to wasabi and soy sauce. And once good gets going, theres no stopping it. Get your good going. Blue diamond. Snack nut of the u. S. Ski team. In 2014 gay marriage is on the march across america and gays and lesbians are now allowed to serve proudly in the u. S. Military. But tonight one young man is attempting to go where no openly gay man has gone before an nfl locker room. His name is michael sam. Hes an allamerican defensive lineman with a fascinating back story. And ever since he came out on espns outside the lines, reaction has been pouring in from across the league. Not all of it positive. Heres chris connelly. Sam taking it in for the mizzou touchdown this is just telling someone that hey, im gay and thats it. Its nothing its not a big deal to me. Right there because thats all it takes. Reporter it has proven to be a big deal to everyone else. Michael sam, now the first openly gay nfl draft prospect, out and proud, he says. Speaking with ease about dating another man back at the university of missouri. I know what i want. I know that i can have a relationship now with a man. We went out publicly. We had dinners together. Movies. Holding hands. Reporter will others in the nfl have a problem . The sports world is keen to see how the leagues 32 franchises, not all of them known for cuttingedge social awareness, will deal with an s. E. C. Defensive player of the year, a quarterbacksacking force, poised to become the first openly gay player in the history of the league. What kind of reaction do you anticipate getting . You know, there will be negative reactions all around. I expect it. But there are going to be positive. That was michael sam reporter there are also uncertainties as the pro football world confronts a new reality. Many sounding unsure about how they think others might react. For me to sit here and say 32 organizations will say no, it doesnt raise a red flag, that wouldnt be the truth. I think some organizations will look at it and ask themselves this question, do we want the drama . Do we want the drama of the media blitz thats going to happen when he ariefsz rives on campus . And thats what some teams will wrestle with. Taken down for a loss by michael sam. By announcing his Sexual Orientation before the draft in may, sam defused a Whisper Campaign that he feels might have commandeered his story. Why do you think its important for the nfl to know this about you before the draft . Once scouts came and asked about me, you know, they told about like michael sam is gay. And but i didnt know how many media actually knew. And i was afraid it would leak out without me actually owning my truth. I wanted to let the world know and tell them hey, im gay, let me tell my own story. Reporter in fact, as they sought to learn more about the players eligible for the draft this spring, many nfl scouts were already aware that sam was gay. Agents approached by scouts with questions like whats his girlfriend like . When you spend time with him, are there girls around . There were questions that they didnt get about anybody else. And they realized very quickly that it was the worstkept secret in football. Reporter an official statement from the nfl praised sam for his honesty and courage. Yet some nflers question if locker rooms were ready for an openly gay man. On sportscenter former linebacker Antonio Pierce said hed heard from some current players. To say that they were will be comfortable with it was what i got out of them. I wouldnt be really comfortable. Youre watching what you have to say and Different Things of that nature. Remember, this has not been in the locker room in the National Football league knowing ever. Reporter just before the super bowl in 2013, San Francisco 49ers cornerback Chris Culliver made these comments on the artie lange show. I dont do the gay guys, man. I dont do that. Are there any on the 49ers . No. They aint got no gay people on the team. You know, they got to get up out of there if they do. Cant be with that sweet stuff. Really . Is that true . Yeah, its true. Culliver later apologized for the comments and said they are not how i feel. And in a recent interview with the nfl network Jonathan Vilma said this about the prospect of having a gay teammate i think that he would not be accepted as as much as we think he would be accepted. I dont want people to just naturally assume like oh, were all homophobic. Its really not the case. I imagine if hes the guy next to me and, you know, i get dressed naked, taking a shower, the whole nine, and it just so happens he looks at me. How am i supposed to respond . How prepared do you think you are for what that locker room experience will be like . Its a workplace. Its a business workplace. And we have to act professional. And i mean, i know that i am not ive never been attracted to my teammates because i dont want that problem. Reporter if sam seems unconcerned about the whole thing, it may help to know a little about the obstacles hes already had to overcome. There were some hardships. There was some tragedy and some adversity. Telling the world im gay is nothing compared to that. Reporter sam grew up in hitchcock, texas, a small town outside galveston. And to say he had a tough childhood would be a bold understatement. I endured so much in my past, i so much tragedy. And growing up seeing my older brother killed from a gunshot wound. Seeing my knowing that my oldest sister died when she was a baby and i never got a chance to meet her. My older my second oldest brother went missing in 1998 and me and my little sister was the last ones to see him, and we pronounced him dead two years later. Reporter in High School Sam says he suspected that he might be gay but says he wasnt certain until he got to college. Last august he came out to his missouri teammates during a preseason meeting. I used the opportunity just to tell them that i was gay. And their reaction was like michael sam finally told us, even though they knew, it was out, it was public, it was news. What was it like to tell your teammates at mizzou . I was kind of scared even though they already knew, but i was still scared of telling them. And just to see their reaction was awesome. Reporter mizzou head coach gary pinkel discussed that on the mike and mike radio show. The next morning he came in and, first of all, i gave him a hug and told him i loved him. And you know, youve got our 100 support. And we have to talk about now, you know, what do you want to do . Do you want to come out now . Do you want this to after the season . You know, after the nfl draft . Whatever. What are you thinking here, michael . Reporter his teammates were free to share sams story but did not. Its just something that, you know, you kind of just kind of figured it out as you got to know michael as a person. Its just something that just kind of you know, we became comfortable with as a team. And you know, it was no big deal to us. Personally, id known for a few years. So it wasnt a big deal to me. I still support mike. I love him. Hes family. But definitely before the draft i thought it was a big deal for him to come out because that could affect his draft stock. Reporter some franchises may not think they can handle an openly gay player. Others may worry about sams size. He is just 62. As he transitions to the nfl. Being picked later in the draft can cost a player millions. All sam wants, he says, is the opportunity to play the game he loves. Is there a franchise or a city that you might be uncomfortable going to in the draft . No. I just want to go to the team who wants who drafts me because i know that team knows about me, knows that im gay, and also knows that i work hard and am just an awesome person. Thats the team i want to go to. Reporter for nightline im chris connelly, espn. By the way, Jonathan Vilma went on cnn today to say that he actually has no problem showering with a gay teammate. Coming up next here on nightline, what happened on Live Television when samuel l. Jackson believes that an anchorman mistook him for another black actor. Im not Laurence Fishburne we dont all look alike when jake and i first set out on our own, we ate anything. But in time you realize the better you eat, the better you feel. These days we both eat smarter. And i give jake purina cat chow naturals. Made with real chicken and salmon, its high in protein like a cats natural diet. And no added artificial flavors. Weve come a long way. And whatevers ahead, well be there for each other. Naturally. 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