Convicted Playmate -- My Husband Slapped Me ... So I Shot Him

The Playboy Playmate who shot her husband in the chest last year told police she only pulled the trigger AFTER he slapped her in the face ... this according to new court docs obtained by TMZ.

66-year-old Victoria Rathgeb -- who was the 1968 Playmate of the Year under the name Angela Dorian -- spoke with investigators following the shooting ... who claim she never "expressed remorse or regret for her actions."

Officers say Victoria told them she and her husband had gotten into an argument inside their Hollywood apartment ... and after he grabbed his things and started to leave, she grabbed her gun and followed him.

Victoria claimed her husband then slapped her in the face, so she shot him. The victim also spoke to police about the incident, but made no mention of slapping her. He DID say that Victoria had been constantly accusing him of cheating ... and often verbally abused him.

Investigators concluded that Victoria "has a serious and violent anger management problem, and lacks impulse control. This type of behavior cannot be minimized, tolerated or justified."