On Feb. 2, after 10 hours of deliberation over three days, a jury convicted a man for injuring a gay teenager on the San Diego Trolley and for stabbing another man who was trying to protect the teen.

Exodus Bolton, 36, acted as his own attorney after firing his court-appointed lawyer, and was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon, mayhem, two counts of misdemeanor battery and resisting arrest.

The jury, consisting of seven women and five men, deadlocked 7-5 for conviction on a charge of making a criminal threat to a woman on the trolley.

Bolton faces a maximum 10 years in state prison, according to Deputy District Attorney Oscar Garcia. San Diego Superior Court Judge Frank Brown set sentencing for March 6. Bolton remains in county jail without bail.

Bolton sparred with Brown and the prosecutor repeatedly about how to ask witnesses questions, court procedures and closing arguments. He also got into arguments with the victims he assaulted, causing the judge to repeatedly step in as a referee.

Rey Harris, 17, testified that he was riding the trolley on Oct. 17 of last year when he heard Bolton call him “a fag” and “a bitch” after Harris accidentally bumped into Bolton’s girlfriend.

“I’m gay, so I found it offensive,” Harris said. “He [referring to Bolton] said, ‘Only fags show disrespect to women. Fags hurt women.’”

“I told him fags don’t hit women – assholes do,” Harris said.

Bolton then spit on Harris’ shoes, shirt and face, according to Harris and other witnesses.

“He said, ‘Mind [your] own business.’ He turned around and punched me in the face four or five times,” Harris said. “I put my hands over my face.”

Passenger Victor Mendoza, 49, intervened, and Bolton pulled a knife and stabbed Mendoza in the arm

“I’m an assassin,” Harris quoted Bolton as saying.

“If Mendoza hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t have been able to get away,” Harris said. “You were hitting me.

“Nobody should have to sit there and hear [derogatory comments] about one’s sexuality, race or religion,” Harris added.

When Mendoza testified, Bolton argued repeatedly with him and claimed Mendoza was the one with the knife.

“You sliced my hand. You had that knife in your hand,” said Bolton, adding that he acted in self-defense.

The judge told Bolton he must ask questions and not testify through his questioning.

“I didn’t have a knife,” Mendoza said.

“You were on something,” replied Bolton, a comment which the prosecutor objected to, and the judge told the witness not to answer.

“I was hearing you give your arguments. You were the aggressor,” Mendoza said. “You were aggravating everybody.”

Amanda Gavin, a trolley passenger, testified she saw Bolton spit on Harris and “sucker punch” him.

“The older male stepped in to protect the kid,” she said.

Bolton was convicted of injuring another man on the trolley three days prior to the stabbing incident.

Bolton was originally charged with committing a hate crime against the gay teenager, but a judge dismissed that charge on Dec. 1. The judge said Bolton used a string of unrelated epithets that often did not apply to the people he was insulting.

He has been convicted twice of domestic violence in the past.