The Orange County District Attorney will not file charges against a homeowner who shot and wounded an intruder on Christmas morning, the office confirmed Monday.

Nathanael Blair shot 29-year-old Jeremy William Bell from behind with a shotgun after he was allegedly attacked by Bell in the garage of his Anaheim Hills home.

OCDA spokeswoman Roxi Fyad said Blair will not face charges.

“We believe he acted in self-defense and there is no evidence to support a charge,” she said in the statement.

The announcement comes a week after the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office announced it will not file charges in a similar case, where an 80-year-old Long Beach man shot and killed a robber as she fled from his home on July 22.

In December, Blair said he discovered Bell in his home in the early hours of Christmas morning. Bell allegedly struck him in the jaw with a wrench, at which point Blair said he ran upstairs to grab his shotgun before racing outside to open fire on Bell. Bell, injured, was later found hiding in a nearby garage.

Blair at the time said he was “terrified” during the initial confrontation and was worried that Bell would return to the home.

“I’m glad I could protect my family,” Blair told the Register shortly after the incident.

While several legal and self-defense experts questioned whether the shooting was justified, many concluded that the District Attorney would not file charges against the homeowner.

Lawrence Rosenthal, a former federal prosecutor and criminal law professor at Chapman University, said prosecutors would have a tough time convincing a jury that homeowner committed a criminal act.

“Once the burglary is over, the right to use deadly force disappears, but as a practical matter, jurors are going to be very much on the side of the homeowner, thinking, ‘I probably would have done the same thing in those circumstances’ and they will want to acquit,” Rosenthal said.

Bell has pleaded not guilty to felony burglary and assault charges. He’s due back in court today for a bail review hearing, according to court records.

Contact the writer: kpuente@ocregister.com