THE TRIAL OF RT: "Evidence can point toward guilt or innocence with equal force, depending on the predisposition of the viewer."

As a State employee with the Mississippi Department of Corrections, RT supervised people who were convicted of crimes and on House Arrest. RT was also a part-time Courtesy Officer at the apartment complex where he lived. Ray lived in the top apartment and below him lived a man named Owen. Owen lived with his two kids and girlfriend. As a courtesy officer RT's job was to help the apartment manager keep the apartments safe and clean so it would be a suitable place for people to live and raise a family.

Owen and his girlfriend were constantly fighting. The fighting was loud and violent. On seven (7) prior occasions RT was forced to report Owen to the apartment manager and call the police. In March of 2014, RT called the police due to the fighting. The police arrived and while talking to Owen they found a pound of marijuana in his apartment. He was arrested and was given a thirty (30) day eviction notice.

Once again, on April 27th, 2014, Owen and his girlfriend were having a violent fight inside their apartment. RT heard the fighting and believed he had no choice but to call the police. After calling the police RT walked downstairs to await their arrival.? Suddenly, RT heard a horrible scream from a woman coming from the apartment. Fearing that a woman was being violently injured, RT pulled a pistol from his holster and kicked open the door of Owen's apartment.

At this point, the testimony at trial diverged into 2 different stories. According to Mr. Owen's girlfriend and his two (2) kids, there was no violent screaming, only arguing. They testified RT kicked in the door, snatched Owen up with the collar, dragged him outside, and kicked him while RT took him to the parking lot to await the police. In the parking lot, six (6) witnesses claimed RT shot Owen while his hands were raised, and he was asking RT to leave him alone.

After spending months with RT and getting to know him, my partner Chuck Mullins and I did not believe the story of these witnesses. There was more to this story than what the prosecution's witnesses telling us. There had to be another story. After a thorough investigation and speaking to RT, we came to believe RT shot in self-defense. In Mississippi and many other states, a person may shoot another in self-defense based on a real or apparent danger of suffering serious bodily harm. But the belief must be "reasonable." The jury is the body of people who decide the reasonableness. So, for RT to be justified in his self-defense, he must have had a reasonable belief that Owen was going to do him real or apparent serious bodily harm. The accused does not have to prove self-defense, rather the prosecution must disprove self-defense beyond a reasonable doubt.

Chuck Mullins and I set about developing RT’s defense. According to RT, Owen was a constant source of problems at the apartment complex. He and his girlfriend were always fighting, and he was verbally violent and aggressive with other people at the apartment. RT had to call the police multiple times. On the day of the shooting, RT called the police and waited for their arrival. He heard a blood-curdling scream from a woman inside Owen's apartment. In a split second, he decided to kick in Owen's apartment door. Once RT opened the door, he ordered Owen to step outside to await the police. Owen began cussing and threatening RT. As they walked toward the parking lot Owen continued resisting and making threatening comments like "You better be glad you got that gun." When they reached the parking lot Owen jumped into a boxing stance and began coming at RT. RT ordered him back. At this time RT testified he was thinking, "If this man hits me and gets my gun, he is going to kill me." Owen made more comments, and his hand began to reach into his pocket. Ray begged him to stop reaching into his pockets or he would be forced to shoot. Owen ignored the warnings, and quickly reached into his pocket while saying, “I got something for your ass." ?Fearing for his life, Ray fired his pistol.

All the prosecution's witnesses claimed Owen’s hands were completely empty, raised up by his chest, and he never reached into his pockets. We knew this was untrue because Owen's keys were seen inches from his hand. It was clear to us that the prosecution's witnesses were very slanted and biased. We determined that people in the huge apartment complex did not like RT, because he wanted the complex to be family-oriented. He ran people off who had drugs. He stopped drunks from using the bathroom on the sidewalk. Some residents did not like RT because he represented order and structure at the apartment complex. Chuck and I highlighted this bias, motive, and interest without directly attacking the witnesses. We called RT and his wife as witnesses and rested. We had an expert witness on reaction times. The expert could testify how quickly a person can pull a weapon from a pocket and shoot, but we decided not to call that witness.

We rested with two (2) witnesses and argued the case. The two Assistant District Attorney made marvelous closing statements. After they finished Chuck and I knew we had to summon our best skills at marshaling the facts and presenting them in a way the jury could understand. Our theme was along the lines:?No Good Deed Goes Unpunished. We explained how RT went into the apartment to help a woman, and in the end, everyone turned on him. The prosecution argued RT was responsible for the entire chain of events. We argued that if Owen had not been beating his girlfriend and had followed directions, none of this would have ever happened. Owen put RT in a position where he had to act in apparent self-defense. After over two (2) hours of jury deliberations, the jury found RT not guilty.

This was a hotly contested case. It could have gone either way. In America, we have an adversary system of justice. That means each side has an adversary, whose job is to present the facts most favorable to his or her side. I remember a phrase from a Sherlock Holmes story: "Evidence can point toward both guilt or innocence at the same time, with equal force, depending on the disposition of the viewer of that evidence." In America, we have great legal principles like the?presumption of innocence, the?right not to testify, and the rule that guilt must be?proven beyond a reasonable doubt. These great principles make America what it is in terms of freedom and opportunity. In the case of RT, the jury utilized these principles, and they were persuaded that RT's self-defense beliefs were reasonable. It was an immense pleasure representing RT.

Coxwell & Associates, PLLC, Coxwell Mullins, is proud of the 44 years it has served the legal needs of Mississippians. The law firm represents people in auto accidents, injury cases, criminal defense, and civil rights. Many firms claim, “they only handle accident cases.” We have always thought that if you can fight and succeed against the State or Federal Government, then fighting an insurance company on behalf of an injured person is easy. We understand that results Matter.

?