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Ellsworth Colbert was sentenced Wednesday to 17 years in prison for killing a neighbor whose dog he believed defecated on his property, Homicide Watch D.C. reported.

Colbert, who at the time of the murder was volunteering for Ward 7 D.C. Council candidate Kevin Chavous Jr.’s campaign, pleaded not guilty to killing Robert L. Wright, saying he stabbed his neighbor in self-defense.

According to a press release from the U.S Attorney’s Office, Colbert and Wright got into a argument in March 2012 after Wright walked his dog on Colbert’s property. “Colbert became enraged and brandished a knife and a walking stick,” the release said.

Colbert later cut Wright in the neck with a knife, leading Wright to grab a shovel. Colbert then stabbed his neighbor to death.

There’s no evidence that Wright’s dog actually defecated on Brown’s property, according to the Post.

Colbert, 56, had a history with anger issues, once allegedly threatening former D.C. Council Chairman Kwame Brown and a staffer inside the Wilson Building. Colbert was subsequently banned from the Wilson Building for a period of time.

“It’s difficult to make sense of the situation,” Judge Herbert Dixon told Colbert during sentencing, according to Homicide Watch.