Local

Family hires attorney after deputies knock on wrong door, kill armed man

LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — The family of an innocent Lake County man, who was shot and killed by deputies after they knocked on the wrong door, has hired an attorney. He talked exclusively to WFTV Thursday night.

Deputies killed Andrew Scott on Sunday when he answered the door with a gun in his hand, but deputies were at the wrong home.

Family were too distraught to talk, but their lawyer said they have a lot of questions and now want answers from authorities at the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

"Someone knocked on the door, and an innocent man died in his house, so there are a lot of questions," said attorney Jason Recksiedler.

Recksiedler told WFTV he plans to launch his own investigation into what happened.

This news comes as Scott's friends protested in front of the Lake County Sheriff's Office demanding answers.

"I think he did what he thought he should do to protect his family. He was scared," said Scott's friend, Michelle Evey.

Recksiedler said the family is also puzzled by authorities' constantly changing story.

They first said deputies announced themselves at the door, and later said they didn't.

Deputies claimed they were after an attempted murder suspect, when dispatch recordings show they were really after former Groveland police officer Jonathan Brown on a less serious offense.

"That forces us to dig deeper to get the truth of what actually occurred," said Recksiedler.

He said it's too early to say whether the family will file a wrongful death lawsuit.

For the first time on Thursday, the sheriff defended the actions of the deputy and said he had no choice when Scott answered the door with a gun.

"At that point he defends himself and shoots. It's an unfortunate situation," said Sheriff Gary Borders.

The sheriff also said his heart goes out to Scott's family and he plans to reach out to them after some time has passed.