Spike Lee apologized on Twitter for retweeting what turned out to be the wrong address for George Zimmerman, who shot unarmed Flordida teen Trayvon Martin.
The tweet left an elderly Florida couple who lived at the address, David and Elaine McClain, afraid for their safety.
“I deeply apologize to the McClain Family for retweeting their address. It was a mistake," Lee tweeted. "Please leave the McClains in peace. Justice in Court.”
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The director did not address the issue of whether the initial retweet encouraged vigilantism against Zimmerman. The Smoking Gun revealed Thursday that Lee had shared the wrong address with his more than 250,000 followers.
The McClains' son's name is reportedly similar to Zimmerman's.
Elaine McClain told the Smoking Gun that she was scared that her family would be targeted, and that they had already received a disturbing letter.
“We're keeping everything locked,” she said.
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The original tweet was sent to Lee and celebrities like Will Smith on Friday by Marcus Davonne Higgins with a request to repost the address.
Zimmerman's father said in an interview with an Orlando Fox affliate that he was surprised by the "hate" from President Obama, the Congressional Black Caucus, and the NAACP toward his son. He did not provide examples of the hate.
Obama famously said that if he had a son, "he would look like Trayvon," but the president expressed no hatred toward Zimmerman.