Logical? William Shatner has been defending himself on Twitter after missing his frequent costar Leonard Nimoy’s funeral on Sunday, telling fans he felt “really awful” but stood by his decision.

Nimoy, best known for his role as Spock on the same Star Trek series where Shatner originated the character of Captain Kirk, passed away Friday after a battle with COPD. His family planned a funeral service for Sunday in Los Angeles.

As CNN reported, Shatner tweeted on Saturday, “I am currently in FL as I agreed to appear at the Red Cross Ball tonight. Leonard’s funeral is tomorrow. I can’t make it back in time.” He further explained, “I feel really awful. Here I am doing charity work and one of my dearest friends is being buried.”

Multiple people leapt to criticize Shatner for the failure to attend, arguing that he should have been at the funeral. Outraged fans tweeted him to ask why he hadn’t hired a private jet or cancelled the charity appearance.

Shatner responded by promising his daughters had attended the funeral. He also retweeted an image of a paper calling him “Captain Jerk” and asked his followers to discuss. He wrote, “I chose to honor a commitment I made months ago to appear at a charitable fundraiser. A lot of money was raised. So here I am; tell me off.” Many of his fans then stepped forward to support him.

He ended his tirade by asking, “Wouldn’t you have calling me a jerk for leaving a charity high and dry?”