Patrick McBride says his gun fired during contact with a salesman, while Juan Hoffman says he was turning away when shot.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — An 80-year-old Scottsdale man has pleaded not guilty after a 21-year-old door-to-door salesman was shot in the lower back during a confrontation in a gated community, a case now centered on sharply different accounts of whether the gunfire was an act of self-defense, an accidental discharge or an unjustified shooting.

Patrick McBride faces criminal charges stemming from the Sept. 13 shooting of Juan Hoffman, a Washington resident who had traveled to the Phoenix area to sell window-cleaning services. Hoffman suffered a spinal injury and initially told police he could not feel his legs. He has since spoken publicly from rehabilitation about the possibility that he may not walk again. McBride was arrested after the shooting, posted a $150,000 bond and has denied wrongdoing through his attorney. The defense says McBride believed Hoffman was about to strike him while approaching on a motorized Segway. Hoffman says he saw McBride display the gun, turned to leave and was shot from behind.

The defense sharpened its account in October, when attorney Jefferson M. Simmons said McBride had asked Hoffman to leave the private neighborhood and later encountered him still inside the community. Simmons said Hoffman approached McBride “aggressively” on the Segway and raised one hand while holding an object. McBride, who was on foot, drew his handgun and held it at his side, according to the attorney. Simmons said McBride then raised his arm because he believed he was about to be struck and that the weapon discharged when the two made contact. The defense maintains that the shooting was not an intentional shot at a fleeing man.

Hoffman has described the confrontation differently. He told police and later local reporters that McBride confronted him a second time after he had remained in the neighborhood to look for a missing wallet. Hoffman said he saw the handgun, began turning away and then heard a gunshot. Police records cited in news reports say Hoffman was struck in the lower back. Hoffman later recalled that he could not move his legs after falling. He has rejected the claim that he raised his hands toward McBride in a threatening way and has questioned how the shooting could be considered self-defense if he was struck from behind.

The encounter began with a much less confrontational request, according to both the police account and Hoffman. Hoffman was moving through the north Scottsdale neighborhood on an electric Segway while offering window-cleaning services. He stopped at McBride’s home because he was hot and wanted water. McBride told investigators that he became suspicious of why Hoffman was inside the private community and told him he was not permitted to be there. McBride also said he saw Hoffman point a cellphone toward the house as he left and thought Hoffman might be recording or photographing the property. Hoffman left the immediate area but later said he realized his wallet was missing and retraced his route.

What happened during the roughly 10 minutes that followed has become important to both sides. According to the police account, McBride and his wife decided to check whether Hoffman had left. McBride retrieved a handgun from a safe and carried it in a holster on his left hip. His wife drove through one part of the neighborhood while he walked through another. The defense has emphasized that Hoffman remained in a community marked with a “No Trespassing” sign and says police had earlier told him that he needed a permit to solicit in Scottsdale. Those circumstances form part of McBride’s explanation for why he viewed Hoffman with suspicion, but they do not by themselves resolve the disputed circumstances in which the gun was fired.

Investigators also documented details involving the firearm and the scene that could become significant as the case proceeds. Police said McBride’s handgun had a cracked or partially broken trigger guard after the encounter. McBride was also found with a spent shell casing, according to court records cited by local news organizations. He told investigators he had picked it up to preserve evidence. McBride told police that he did not initially realize Hoffman had been shot after the weapon fired. Hoffman, however, has said McBride continued ordering him to get up even after he was unable to move. The available public reporting does not establish what forensic testing, if any, has concluded about the precise mechanics of the discharge.

There are also competing descriptions of what happened in the moments after Hoffman went down. Court records say McBride’s wife called 911 after seeing her husband near the injured salesman, and reports say she helped Hoffman while emergency crews were summoned. Hoffman has said McBride picked up his cellphone and the shell casing before going back toward his house. Simmons disputes that version, saying McBride did not take Hoffman’s phone or leave him and that McBride’s wife recovered the phone from the ground when Hoffman wanted to call his family. McBride remained at the scene and was taken into custody after police arrived.

Hoffman’s medical condition has given the criminal case consequences extending far beyond the disputed seconds of the confrontation. After the shooting, he was taken to a hospital with a spinal injury. Surgeons later removed the bullet from his back, according to his account to Arizona’s Family. He has been undergoing rehabilitation and said one of his immediate goals was simply being able to transfer to a wheelchair without assistance. Hoffman said he had previously been highly active and had come to Arizona to earn money while considering college and a future in electrical engineering. Doctors had not given him certainty about whether he would regain the ability to walk, according to interviews published after the shooting.

McBride’s release conditions have also received court scrutiny. A Maricopa County judge denied a request that would have allowed him to travel, with local reporting saying the judge regarded him as a flight risk. He had already posted the $150,000 bond set after his arrest. McBride’s attorney has stressed his client’s background, including his service as an Air Force veteran, and has urged the public not to treat the indictment as proof of guilt. The defense says the disputed facts should be decided through evidence and sworn testimony in court. Hoffman, meanwhile, has said he is focusing on his recovery rather than demanding a particular punishment.

The criminal case will ultimately require prosecutors and the defense to address the central factual conflict: where each man was positioned and moving at the instant the weapon fired. McBride has said Hoffman was coming toward him and that the gun discharged during physical contact. Hoffman says he was moving away. The lower-back wound is undisputed in the available reporting, but public records reviewed by news organizations have not supplied a complete forensic reconstruction resolving how the shot was fired. A criminal charge is an accusation, and McBride is presumed innocent unless proved guilty.

For the court, the next phase is procedural rather than speculative. McBride has pleaded not guilty, and the prosecution must prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. The unresolved issue is whether witness testimony, physical evidence and any additional forensic analysis can establish what happened in the moments before Hoffman was shot. Local reporting has indicated that the case is expected to move toward trial in 2027.

Author note: Last updated Oct. 21, 2026.