Kathryn Knott, the suspect convicted in the brutal bashing of a gay couple in Philadelphia in September 2014, is now claiming self-defense in a civil trial.

Knott's attorney, Wayne Maynard, released a statement that said Knott “asserts the affirmative defense of self-defense, and to the extent plaintiffs sustained the injuries and damages as alleged in plaintiffs’ complaint, said injuries and/or damages were sustained while [Knott] was in the process of defending herself from the real and perceived threat of bodily injury arising from the actions of plaintiffs and their friends.”

This is a change from Knott's original story where her attorney made the claim that she never “touched a soul” and actually tried to protect the victims, Andrew Haught and Zachary Hesse, from her friends.

Hesse and Haught, the victims who suffered the brutal gay-bashing that left one of them lying unconscious on a Philadelphia sidewalk, filed a civil suit against the three assailants charged in the horrific homophobic beating.

Two of the assailants, Kevin Harrigan and Philip Williams, escaped jail time by pleading guilty to conspiracy and simple assault. As part of the plea deal, they were sentenced to probation and banned from the gay-friendly neighborhood where the attack took place.

The third assailant, Knott, the daughter of a rural Pennsylvania police chief, tried her luck at court and was found guilty. She’s served a five-month prison sentence after being chastised by a judge for requesting a reduced sentence.

All three suspects were apprehended after Internet sleuths identified the aggressors from police-released surveillance footage by using Facebook. Details of the attack, partially captured on that footage, outraged Philadelphia residents in the days after.

The victims have now filed a civil claim, seeking at least $500,000 in damages, and they are also suing Harrigan and Williams.

An attorney for Haught and Hesse filed a reply on July 6, denying all of Knott’s claims.

According to Philadelphia Gay News, a settlement conference in the case is scheduled for Sept. 13. If one isn't reached "a pretrial conference is tentatively scheduled for Nov. 6, with a jury trial set for Dec. 4."