Florida man accused of killing neighbor after cat wandered on property

[Mentally Unstable Voters For Biden]

A Florida man is accused of fatally shooting a neighbor whose
cat walked onto his property, authorities said.

Clifton Anthony Bliss Jr., 58, was arrested Wednesday and
charged with second-degree homicide, the Marion County Sheriff's
Department said.

"Mr. Bliss was so upset that his neighbor’s cat had wandered
over into his yard that he went, retrieved a rifle, leaves his
home, goes across the street to the victim’s home" before
opening fire on the victim, sheriff's Sgt. Paul Bloom told NBC
affiliate WFLA.

No one answered a phone number listed under the suspect's name
Friday night. Two members of the Marion County Public Defenders
Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The sheriff's department identified the victim as 41-year-old
James Arland Taylor Jr. His home was near the central Florida
city of Umatilla.

A probable cause affidavit in the case cited a witness who said
Bliss tried to find the cat and was followed by Taylor who asked
Bliss to leave. At that point, Bliss shot Taylor twice, or
"double tapped" the .22 rifle he allegedly used, the witness
said in the document.

Bloom added that Taylor had pleaded, "Please don't kill my cat,"
before gunfire erupted.

A neighbor who drove by after the shooting saw Taylor on the
ground and asked if he was all right. "No, I'm dying," he
responded, according to the affidavit.

Neighbors alleged Bliss was a "troublemaker," "hot head," and
someone who, armed with a gun, had threatened people over their
pets in the past, the document states.

Bliss' wife told investigators the suspect called her right
after the shooting and alleged that Taylor had assaulted him
before he opened fire in self defense, according to the filing.

Detectives don't believe Bliss' account because he was known to
"instigate fights with members of the community," Cpl. J.
Lightle wrote in the document.

Bliss remained in the Marion County Jail on Friday and was being
held without bond.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/florida-man-allegedly-kills-
neighbor-over-cat-his-property-n1282199