06/14/2024
So, I had a case wherein I thought my client should never have been arrested. It was a clear stand your ground case. The State persisted and we fought it. It was visitation dispute between the deceased's girlfriend, who was also the mother of my client's child, and my client. My client did not want to watch her daughter as well, as they were going to a water park.
He was threatened by the deceased and others with gun violence. The demanded that he meet them somewhere, and he refused. He called the police for help and they came and told him to "be the bigger man". That cop who said that initially did not admit her words on the stand, but I found a 5 second clip on her body cam video wherein she recounted that statement to the other officer that was with her when she said it. She never told the detective that she had been there minutes before the shooting . Her body cam footage from the initial call was not preserved.
The lead detective never went to the scene or interviewed two neighbors who were eye witnesses. They testified to seeing the deceased and his friend arriving and cocking their guns and putting them into their pants. When asked why he didn't talk to them, the detective said "they could not see whatever they say they saw". This, despite him never talking to them or going to their vantage point. He also did not interview the officer who said, "be the bigger man", despite the client telling him that she was right outside the interrogation room.
When the deceased and friends arrived, the client asked them what they were there for, and the deceased said, essentially, "You know what I am here for". His friend, who had been tugging at the gun that he had in his pants, approaced the deceased and gave him "a signal". My client, upon seeing that, fired his weapon and there was a brief shoot out.
The gun that the deceased had was found on the ground in front of my client's home. It was his girlfriend's gun and she positively identified it , plus we introduced evidence that it had been returned to her by a judge after my client failed to get a restraining order against her. The detective claimed not to know to whom the gun belonged and insisted the deceased was unarmed even though everyone said that he was armed.
My client was arrested and indicted for murder and the State vigorously contested our immunity motion. I still do not understand why.
We just received the order GRANTING our immunity motion. That's right, WE WON. But, should we have had to fight that at all?
