The man charged with murdering a Cathedral Catholic High School teacher took the witness stand in his own defense Wednesday. Jesse Alvarez testified he shot the teacher in self defense following an “altercation” in North Park. Alvarez, 33, started out on the witness stand telling the jury he was autistic and obsessive compulsive. “I do have some kind of mental disability,” he testified. He said he met Amy Gembara, who was a teacher at Cathedral Catholic High School in Carmel Valley, on a dating app. “On our first date, that first week of June 2015, I invited her to a concert and I picked her up in my car and brought her some red roses,” Alvarez testified. The couple dated on and off for years, and Alvarez said he was heartbroken when they broke up in 2019. FULL STORY: https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/defendant-accused-murdering-cathedral-catholic-teacher-testifies/509-c79e61ab-59e5-4a3d-a407-c64e61905981