1

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT

OF HINDS COUNTY, MISSISSIPPI

STATE OF MISSISSIPPI PLAINTIFF

VERSUS NO. 22-0-549

WILLIAM ERVIN EDWARDS DEFENDANT

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

TRANSCRIPT OF THE PROCEEDINGS HAD AND DONE IN THE BOND

HEARING IN THE ABOVE-STYLED AND NUMBERED CAUSE BEFORE

THE HONORABLE E. FAYE PETERSON, CIRCUIT COURT JUDGE, ON

THE 5TH DAY OF OCTOBER, 2022.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

APPEARANCES:

Present and Representing the Plaintiff:

HONORABLE JAMIE K. McBRIDE

HONORABLE JODY E. OWENS, II
HONORABLE JOSEPH S. HEMLEBEN
Hinds County District Attorney's Office
Post Office Box 22747
Jackson, Mississippi 39225-2747

Present and Representing the Defendant:

HONORABLE THOMAS M. FORTNER

Lowrey & Fortner, PA
525 Corinne Street
Hattiesburg, Mississippi 39401

Reported by: LINDSEY McINTOSH, CCR

Official Court Reporter
Post Office Box 327
Jackson, Mississippi 39205
CCR #1732
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1 BY THE COURT: We're now on the record

2 in Cause Number 22-549, State of Mississippi

3 versus William Edwards. We're here this

4 morning on a motion for bond filed by counsel

5 for the defense.

6 Before we begin with the matter for bond

7 this morning, the Court was reminded this

8 defendant has appeared before this jurist

9 before on a prior felony matter. At that

10 time the district attorney's office recused

11 themselves because they indicated in that

12 motion that he had been -- had a confidential

13 relationship as an informant at that time and

14 so counsel was -- special counsel was

15 appointed to preside over that case. I have

16 not seen a similar motion having been filed

17 this time, and I guess my concern out of an

18 abundance of caution is whether or not that

19 standing and basis for recusal still applies

20 in this case.

21 BY MR. McBRIDE: Your Honor --

22 BY THE COURT: If you'll use the

23 microphone so I can hear you, it would be

24 appreciated.

25 BY MR. McBRIDE: Your Honor, the

 3

1 standard for that recusal was specifically

2 for the other case. There is absolutely no

3 reason for the district attorney's office to

4 be recused in this case, and we're not

5 seeking recusal.

6 BY THE COURT: All right. Just so that

7 the record later is clear on that point

8 because typically once there's a conflict and

9 you have recused yourself, that continues

10 forward. If the State -- I would ask the

11 State to file something for the record

12 indicating that you do not deem that that

13 conflict still exists in this matter

14 especially given the consideration that the

15 type of penalty that this defendant is facing

16 in this charge and also that request was not

17 so remote -- it was a 2020 -- it was filed in

18 August of 2020, just two years ago.

19 So to be careful and to be sure that that

20 is not an issue for later, I don't want to

21 get six months or eight months down the road

22 and this issue pops its head up and has not

23 been properly addressed.

24 BY MR. McBRIDE: Absolutely we will do

25 that, Your Honor. And just for the Court,

 4

1 that issue was specific to a contraband case

2 that happened many years -- I mean, more than

3 two years ago, and it was specific solely to

4 that case. So the DA's office has no reason

5 to recuse itself. We are not seeking

6 recusal, and to my knowledge no one's asked

7 us to recuse ourselves either.

8 BY THE COURT: All right. And I

9 appreciate your response, and I wanted to

10 have some kind of a response on that just

11 because it was -- I was the same judge that

12 presided at that time as well. So we'll make

13 sure that something is in the record to

14 clarify on that point. I just know that --

15 like for judges, once we recuse, we're

16 forever recused.

17 BY MR. McBRIDE: Yes, Your Honor.

18 BY THE COURT: All right. The next

19 thing we have is the motion to set bond.

20 Mr. Fortner, this is your motion. You may

21 proceed.

22 BY MR. FORTNER: Thanks, Judge. And let

23 me apologize for being late, first of all,

24 and then if you don't mind, your statements

25 and questions of the district attorney's

 5

1 office just now is the first time I've ever

2 heard about anything like that involved with

3 Mr. Edwards. So I want to go forward with

4 this bond motion today because I need to, but

5 I do want to let the Court know or ask the

6 Court for permission to come back and

7 readdress this issue about the possible

8 conflict of interest that you've brought up

9 with them because I don't -- I don't know

10 anything about that, and I have never heard

11 anything about that. And I'm going to need

12 some time to talk to my client about it to

13 figure out whether or not I think there's an

14 ongoing conflict of interest with this

15 district attorney's office and this

16 prosecution or not because I just can't

17 address that right now.

18 BY THE COURT: I don't consider the

19 matter waived by the defense --

20 BY MR. FORTNER: Okay. Thank you.

21 BY THE COURT: -- Mr. Fortner. I was

22 just aware because as I indicated, I was the

23 judge that presided over the prior proceeding

24 and was aware that they had recused

25 themselves. And so the Court is considering

 6

1 that inquiry for information sua sponte.

2 BY MR. FORTNER: Great. And I really

3 appreciate you announcing that and letting me

4 know because otherwise I wouldn't have known

5 about that.

6 Okay. Judge, we're here today on this

7 indictment, 22-549. It's a two-count

8 indictment. One is a murder charge, count

9 one; and count two appears to be a felon in

10 possession of a firearm charge. And all

11 we're here for today is for me to request the

12 Court to set a reasonable bond because at

13 this point as I understand it bond has been

14 denied completely. And I don't know of any

15 hearing which has tested the State's ability

16 to prove that my client is either a flight

17 risk or that he -- or that there is a reason

18 to believe, a reasonable reason to believe,

19 that he might be a threat to a particular

20 individual or a threat to the community at

21 large in this particular case nor do I know

22 of any evidence that's been presented at this

23 point to indicate that the proof of guilt is

24 great or that there should be -- the Court

25 should indulge in a presumption against him

 7

1 based on the evidence in the case. I simply

2 don't know about any of that.

3 So basically I'm here to ask the Court to

4 consider the categories or the factors set

5 forth in our Rules of Criminal Procedure to

6 decide whether or not Mr. Edwards should have

7 a bond. I understand as best I can tell that

8 my client has a prior felony conviction, but

9 it is not -- it is old and there may be two.

10 They are not crimes of violence. As far as

11 I'm aware, one I think involves a controlled

12 substance. Evidently Your Honor is aware of

13 some charge that existed in 2020 that did

14 not, as far as I know, proceed to conviction.

15 And I don't know what happened to that case,

16 but of course your information is the first

17 I've heard about it so I'll find out. But

18 this is not -- Mr. Edwards is not a notorious

19 criminal or anything like that.

20 In addition to that, he is somewhat well

21 known in the community. This was not well

22 known to me, but I've become educated about

23 it. But he is a public figure -- not an

24 elected official but a public figure in this

25 through some type of blog in which he makes

 8

1 political comments, comments about

2 politicians and actions they may or may not

3 have taken. And as I understand it, those

4 comments sometimes have engendered animosity

5 toward him or support of him. I think it

6 falls on both sides of the fence as far as I

7 can tell.

8 But at any rate, the truth of the matter

9 is his public notoriety through that, through

10 social media and his blog on social media

11 make him particularly the focus of attention

12 by the public at large and by the system at

13 large and that notoriety and that focus of

14 attention falls in his favor on bond

15 consideration. It would be impossible if

16 this man were released on bond for him to

17 move about in this community without people

18 knowing him and without people seeing him and

19 without people reporting him if he were to do

20 something amiss. If he were to get out of

21 line from any of the Court's conditions that

22 it might place on a bond, it would be

23 impossible for him to avoid detection, and I

24 think that's worth considering in this case

25 as far as a threat or risk of flight.

 9

1 I know what the argument is -- the

2 argument that's going to be made about risk

3 of flight is that he was arrested 36 hours

4 after this alleged murder occurred in

5 New Orleans, in downtown New Orleans. But on

6 the other hand, the State is more than

7 willing, I believe, to admit that he had been

8 in communication with law enforcement during

9 that 36-hour time period. He had been

10 attempting to communicate with attorneys to

11 represent him and turn him into the police so

12 that he was -- his rights would definitely be

13 protected by an attorney when he did that.

14 So that 36-hour period was not spent

15 running from the police. He didn't go to the

16 airport. He didn't buy any plane tickets or

17 train tickets or bus tickets. He didn't

18 leave other than going across the

19 Louisiana/Mississippi line. That's as far as

20 he went. And he didn't run from the police

21 when he was approached at a gas station in

22 New Orleans. Our position would be he was

23 putting gas in a truck so he could drive back

24 to Jackson and turn himself in. Their

25 position probably would be that he was

 10

1 putting gas in a truck so that he could head

2 west, but he would have headed west a long

3 time before this if he were going to try to

4 escape or run away.

5 So quite frankly, Judge, his actions do

6 not -- it's going to be an argument I'm sure

7 at trial about whether or not they can

8 introduce some sort of flight -- get some

9 sort of flight instruction or flight evidence

10 because it's a very contested issue. So all

11 of that is going to be contested at trial.

12 But the fact of the matter is he was arrested

13 within 36 hours and he's been in jail ever

14 since that time and there's no reason to

15 believe that he's going to run. And if he

16 did try to run, there's no reason to believe

17 he wouldn't be immediately detected.

18 And, of course, the Court has the power

19 to electronically monitor him at any time the

20 Court wants to under any kind of conditions

21 the Court wants to do that on.

22 The second thing, Judge, is that the

23 evidence as far as I know and I'm sure

24 there's going to be other evidence uncovered

25 and disclosed to me at some point during the

 11

1 course of this case -- but as far as I know,

2 there is only one witness who has any direct

3 testimony against my client as far as direct

4 evidence is concerned. And as far as I know,

5 that one witness has a prior conviction for

6 manslaughter involving the shooting of a --

7 that arose out of a relationship that witness

8 had unrelated to this case, unrelated to my

9 client.

10 So that witness's credibility already

11 comes under some sort of microscope, and it's

12 going to come under a microscope. But

13 there's no reason at least under these

14 circumstances right now to believe or

15 disbelieve that witness. I mean, her

16 testimony is highly questionable at this

17 point, and it was a former boyfriend as I

18 understand it that was the victim in her

19 previous conviction. And in this particular

20 case it was a former boyfriend that is the

21 victim in this case of her, not of my client.

22 So my suggestion by all of that is that

23 the proof of guilt is not great in this case

24 at this point nor is there any reason based

25 on the evidence that the State has provided

 12

1 to me up to this point that you should engage

2 in any sort of presumption against the

3 defendant at this point. And under those

4 circumstances, the fact that he is from

5 Jackson; he has lived here all of his life.

6 He has -- I believe his father is still

7 living. I believe his mother is deceased.

8 No. They're both still living. He has a

9 sister -- two sisters, a former wife,

10 children. He is connected to this community

11 both privately and publicly.

12 It is not reasonable to believe that he

13 would run if he's released on bond, and the

14 Court does have the power to place huge

15 restrictions on him and monitor his presence

16 here in this community in whatever way the

17 Court wants to. And because of that -- and

18 let me say one other thing, Judge. I

19 understand there's for whatever reason, which

20 I am not involved in, but there's a lot of

21 attention on this case publicly. And I

22 understand that this man has made statements

23 on his blog or on social media or however

24 people do that that have offended some people

25 in Jackson and humored some people in

 13

1 Jackson. I don't know the history of all of

2 that.

3 However, I do know my history with this

4 community, and I have represented a lot of

5 people over the years charged with murder.

6 Now, I'm not taking a murder charge lightly.

7 I'm not suggesting that it should ever be

8 taken lightly or that the Court should take

9 it lightly, but I have been involved in

10 enough of these types of cases to be speaking

11 from experience and that is that people do

12 receive bonds on these types of cases. All

13 over the state of Mississippi they receive

14 bonds. Just because a person is charged with

15 murder doesn't mean that that's a reason not

16 to grant them a bond.

17 And in this case, all we have right now

18 is a person charged with murder and that's

19 not a reason to deny him bond at this point.

20 Thank you.

21 BY THE COURT: Thank you for your

22 statements, Mr. Fortner. Do you intend on

23 calling any witnesses?

24 BY MR. FORTNER: I do not.

25 BY THE COURT: All right. Now, to the

 14

1 State.

2 BY MR. McBRIDE: May it please the

3 Court, Your Honor.

4 BY THE COURT: You may proceed.

5 BY MR. McBRIDE: Your Honor, the State

6 opposes bond obviously in this particular

7 case. This defendant has been indicted for

8 first degree murder. He's been indicted for

9 being a felon in possession of a firearm.

10 Pursuant to Article 3 Section 29 of the

11 Constitution where the State can make --

12 where a defendant is faced with a crime that

13 carries more than 20 years and the proof and

14 presumption of guilt is there as well as the

15 fact that they would pose a special danger to

16 the community, bond is to be denied.

17 Your Honor, in this particular case the

18 State intends to call one witness from the

19 Clinton Police Department to put on the

20 record what happened in this case. There's

21 evidence that on this particular morning this

22 defendant left his house. He was armed with

23 a gun even though he was a convicted felon.

24 He made threats on his way over to this house

25 where Ms. Robinson -- where Shadow Robinson

 15

1 was. He gets there.

2 According to an eyewitness, which is

3 Ms. Robinson, he guns down Mr. Davis in cold

4 blood. And then while Mr. Davis is on the

5 ground, he gives him a coup de grâce

6 execution style by putting several rounds

7 inside him. We have cell phone pings that

8 also put him there.

9 After he leaves there, we track him via

10 cell phone pings to Lexington. There's a

11 confidential informant in Lexington that has

12 provided information that Mr. Edwards told

13 him that he had just committed a murder.

14 Thereafter Mr. Edwards runs -- runs

15 ultimately to Louisiana. The testimony will

16 include that he taunted the police with

17 numerous calls saying he was going to turn

18 himself in and he did not. He lied about

19 where he was. They knew he was in Louisiana.

20 He told them he was not.

21 Moreover, there's testimony from some of

22 the witnesses which included his family

23 members that he possessed the gun --

24 BY THE COURT: Let's do this -- let's do

25 this Mr. -- I'm sorry -- McBride.

 16

1 BY MR. McBRIDE: Yes, ma'am.

2 BY THE COURT: Rather than just giving

3 me a recitation so that we can move this on

4 along --

5 BY MR. McBRIDE: Yes, ma'am.

6 BY THE COURT: -- let's go ahead and

7 call your witness and see what your

8 witness --

9 BY MR. McBRIDE: Yes, ma'am. And then

10 we would have some brief argument at the end.

11 Your Honor, at this time --

12 BY THE COURT: That'll be fine.

13 BY MR. McBRIDE: At this time the State

14 would call Officer Keith Barnett (sic) from

15 the City of Clinton Police Department.

16 BY THE COURT: Officer Barnett.

17 KEITH BURNETT,

18 called as a witness on behalf of the State, having first

19 been duly sworn, was examined and testified as follows,

20 to-wit:

21 BY THE COURT: Officer Barnett, while

22 you are testifying, you are allowed to remove

23 your face covering. If you'll just make sure

24 that microphone is on, please.

25 BY THE WITNESS: Testing.

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1 BY THE COURT: All right, Mr. McBride,

2 you may proceed.

3 BY MR. McBRIDE: Yes, Your Honor.

4 DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. McBRIDE:

5 Q. Detective, can you state your name for the

6 record?

7 A. Keith Burnett, Jr.

8 Q. And where are you employed, sir?

9 A. Clinton Police Department.

10 Q. And you're aware of the events that occurred

11 on May 1st of 2022 involving the defendant, Mr. Edwards;

12 is that correct?

13 A. Yes, sir.

14 Q. Do you see Mr. Edwards here in the courtroom?

15 A. Yes, sir.

16 BY MR. McBRIDE: Your Honor, I'd ask

17 that the defendant --

18 BY MR. McBRIDE: (Continuing)

19 Q. Will you pick him out for the Court, please?

20 A. Sitting right there (indicating), white

21 shirt, blue mask and glasses.

22 BY MR. McBRIDE: Your Honor, we'd ask

23 the record reflect that this witness has

24 identified the defendant.

25 BY THE COURT: The record may so

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1 reflect.

2 BY MR. McBRIDE: (Continuing)

3 Q. Tell us about the investigation -- the murder

4 and investigation around it.

5 A. May 1st, 2022, officers responded to

6 216 Hannah Drive, Clinton, Mississippi, in reference to

7 a shooting that had just taken place. Upon arrival,

8 officers located a victim later identified as Mr. Davis

9 laying on the floor in the hallway on the southside of

10 the residence.

11 I responded from home and proceeded in my

12 investigation. After talking to an eyewitness,

13 Ms. Shadow Robinson, she advised that it was Mr. William

14 Edwards who committed the murder at the time and said

15 that he was driving a black Ford F-450 dually. She

16 stated that he had a black T-shirt on, white pants,

17 black shoes. She stated that she heard someone knock at

18 the door. Mr. Davis went to the door and that's when

19 she heard the gunshots start being fired.

20 As she turned the corner in the hallway, she

21 observed Mr. Edwards standing over Mr. Davis and firing

22 the last shots and stating "motherfucker" and placing

23 the handgun back in his waistband before leaving.

24 At this time we had determined after talking to

25 her that Mr. Edwards was our suspect -- well, possible

 19

1 suspect at the time. We then began to try to locate

2 Mr. Edwards. I believe one of our officers at the time

3 contacted him on the phone because when it came out, it

4 came out as Mr. Edwards being the victim and he stated,

5 "No, I'm on the road."

6 So after doing an investigation, we obtained video

7 footage of that black F-450 dually traveling eastbound

8 on Highway 80 from Funtime Skating Rink that is

9 approximately half a mile from the 216 Hannah Drive

10 address. We also received a phone ping from the

11 cellphone tower at Newk's -- Newk's Restaurant on

12 Highway 80 at Mt. Salus, which is approximately a

13 quarter mile from that said address, within minutes of

14 the 911 call coming about that -- the shooting.

15 Further pings and investigation located that

16 Mr. Edwards was in Holmes County, Lexington, Mississippi

17 the night of the actual murder. And we have -- we were

18 able to get in touch with a witness that stated that

19 Mr. Edwards came to his house and told him that, "Hey, I

20 committed this murder."

21 And so we conducted a search warrant of multiple

22 addresses at this time, one of them being Mr. Edwards's

23 apartment at 300 West South Street, Jackson,

24 Mississippi. And then we obtained -- well, when we

25 arrived, his son and two daughters were on scene. After

 20

1 further searching that apartment, we obtained video

2 footage from his indoor cameras and Ring doorbell

3 camera. We obtained a box from a handgun. There was no

4 firearm inside of it, but we did obtain ammo at the

5 time -- live ammo from the kitchen table that matched

6 the headstamp of the casings that we found on scene of

7 the murder.

8 Q. And let me ask you about the box that you

9 found. Did you get a statement from one of the children

10 that he had a particular type of gun and it was a usual

11 nine-millimeter?

12 A. It was an off-brand name, or I do not

13 remember the name of the actual handgun, but he did --

14 his son did state that he did have a firearm.

15 Q. And that's what the box was for, an off-brand

16 firearm, was it not?

17 A. Yes, sir. A nine-millimeter handgun, Luger.

18 Q. All right. Continue. I'm sorry.

19 A. And once we obtained that -- as we were there

20 with Hinds County Sheriff's Office, we received a phone

21 call -- I forgot who exactly received the phone call,

22 but we did receive a phone call from Mr. Edwards and --

23 as well as his ex-wife showing up on scene stating that

24 she had talked to him.

25 But we received a phone call from Mr. Edwards

 21

1 saying that he was going to turn himself in. And one of

2 our officers mentioned, "Hey, we know that you're in

3 Louisiana," and he stated that he was not in Louisiana.

4 Further phone pings prove that he was in New Orleans,

5 Louisiana at the time of the phone call.

6 After further review of the footage that we

7 received on scene at the search warrant, we noticed that

8 on one video Mr. Edwards could be seen walking out of

9 his front door with what appears to be a firearm tucked

10 in his waistband. At the same time as we're on scene

11 too I received pictures from Ms. Robinson's attorney of

12 Mr. Edwards sitting in Ms. Robinson's bedroom in a blue

13 suede chair with -- holding a handgun taking a picture.

14 There's multiple days that he can be seen walking

15 out of that door and the day of the murder, the morning

16 of the murder, with what appears to be a bulge and a

17 handgun sticking on the side of his pants.

18 We noticed that that day he had a pretty regular

19 schedule of leaving and coming back to his apartment.

20 He did not return after that morning of the murder to

21 his apartment, and he had the same black shirt, white

22 pants that Ms. Robinson described.

23 After further getting a ping, we were assisted by

24 Louisiana State Police, and they ended up taking

25 Mr. Edwards into custody. He was in possession of that

 22

1 black F-450 dually. It's a one-ton truck. It was

2 registered to Mr. Pickett. He was in possession of the

3 clothing that Ms. Robinson described him having on the

4 day of the murder and the clothing that he was seen

5 walking out of his apartment that same day of the

6 murder. There were live rounds found inside of that

7 pickup truck which matched the same ammo that we found

8 at the apartment and found at the scene of the murder,

9 the spent shell casings at the scene of the murder.

10 Louisiana State Police took him into custody

11 there. He was at a gas station, I believe, and he was

12 extradited back to Clinton, Mississippi.

13 Q. Now, did you have an opportunity to talk to

14 Mr. Pickett? Did Mr. Pickett --

15 A. Mr. Pickett advised that he did lend

16 Mr. Edwards his truck, I believe it was around July of

17 2021, to do some work because he's into like remodeling

18 businesses, painting and all that, so he let him use

19 that truck to haul around his enclosed trailer.

20 Q. And that was the same truck the night of the

21 murder -- the night after the murder -- the night of the

22 murder that was seen in Lexington; is that correct?

23 A. The same truck that was seen in Lexington.

24 The same truck that was seen on Highway 80.

25 Q. Now, you had an opportunity to talk to

 23

1 Ms. Robinson, did you not?

2 A. Yes, sir.

3 Q. Did she give you any information regarding

4 Mr. Edwards stalking her and/or breaking into her home?

5 A. She stated on April 30th, the night before

6 the murder, Mr. Edwards came to her residence and

7 blocked her into her driveway. They had a little

8 confrontation, exchanged words, then she asked him to

9 return her Porsche key because she didn't know how he

10 got it. She said -- well, she stated that she didn't

11 know how he got the key. He said he did not have it,

12 and she was asking for a check that she had given him to

13 pay one of her contractors out.

14 Ms. Robinson stated that she followed Mr. Edwards

15 back to his apartment on 300 South Street that night to

16 retrieve that key and that check. And once she returned

17 there, he gave her the key. She said she left there,

18 and she was en route to Rondo Street, Jackson, which is

19 Mr. Davis's address to pick up her two kids.

20 She stated that when she made a turn onto I

21 believe it was Gallatin or somewhere, Mr. Edwards text

22 her saying, "Why did you make that turn?" She said

23 further going to there -- once she made it to

24 Mr. Davis's address on Rondo Street, she observed

25 Mr. Edwards in the black F-450 make a pass on one of the

 24

1 neighboring streets and received a screenshot -- well,

2 received a text of the land roll taxes and asking about

3 him renting a house there on Rondo Street.

4 She stated that she left there and went and

5 somehow made contact with Mr. Edwards at a nearby

6 stoplight and they exchanged words. Ms. Robinson stated

7 that later that she received a text from her son stating

8 that Mr. Edwards was at the residence because he had

9 gone to get something and when he returned Mr. Edwards

10 was at the residence. She stated that she advised her

11 son that he needed to leave. And once she got home, she

12 noticed that her camera system was unplugged at the

13 residence and she received a picture or a selfie as she

14 called it from Mr. Edwards inside of her home.

15 Q. And so the camera system was actually working

16 the day before the murder, right?

17 A. According to Ms. Robinson, it was.

18 Q. And then based on your investigation,

19 Mr. Edwards disabled it the night before the murder?

20 A. According to Ms. Robinson, yes.

21 Q. Okay. Now, you received a bunch of different

22 messages, both texts, Facebook and things --

23 A. Yes.

24 Q. -- from Mr. Edwards. And do you recall

25 those?
 25

1 A. A couple of them, yes, sir.

2 Q. Just prior -- just minutes before the murder

3 on what would have been his way to Ms. Robinson's house,

4 did he make a post?

5 A. There was a post made on Facebook. I'm not

6 sure if it was minutes before the murder, but it was

7 definitely within a couple of days, I believe. He

8 stated that -- one post stated that, God, forgive me

9 for -- it was either, God, forgive me for the things

10 that I'm about to do or -- or don't forgive me for the

11 things that I'm going to do but look after the people

12 that I'm going to send to you. I can't phrase it

13 verbatim, but it's actually in the report for sure.

14 BY MR. McBRIDE: And, Your Honor, if I

15 may approach for a second.

16 BY THE COURT: You may.

17 BY MR. McBRIDE: (Continuing)

18 Q. Officer, I'm going to ask you to review that

19 document and see if that refreshes your recollection as

20 to the time of the murder and the time of a statement

21 that Mr. Edwards posted.

22 A. (Examining.) Yes, sir, that would be

23 correct.

24 Q. Okay. What time did the murder occur?

25 A. It was approximately 5:13 p.m. that we

 26

1 received a 911 call.

2 Q. And based on the investigation of the City of

3 Clinton Police Department, what was the post that

4 Mr. Edwards made?

5 A. He stated that, "God, I don't need you to

6 forgive me for nothing I do. Save that for the ones

7 that I'm going to send to you."

8 Q. And when was that sent?

9 A. At 4:46 p.m. that day.

10 Q. So about 20 minutes before the murder?

11 A. Yes, sir.

12 BY MR. McBRIDE: If I may approach,

13 Your Honor.

14 BY MR. McBRIDE: (Continuing)

15 Q. Now, there were other text messages that you

16 got or you received from Ms. Shadow Robinson and/or her

17 attorney; is that correct?

18 A. Yes, sir.

19 Q. Can you tell us some of those, please?

20 A. One was saying something about I'm going

21 hunting and then -- or immediately after that, that was

22 for fat boys, which I don't know if he was referencing

23 Mr. Davis or whatever. Just seeing the prior history of

24 those two going back and forth, there was numerous text

25 messages that I received from them, but I cannot

 27

1 recollect them all at this time.

2 Q. From your investigation was it your

3 understanding that Ms. Robinson is very fearful of

4 Mr. Edwards?

5 A. She appeared to be fearful of him at the

6 time.

7 Q. Okay. And --

8 BY MR. McBRIDE: Court's indulgence.

9 (PAUSE IN PROCEEDINGS)

10 BY MR. McBRIDE: Your Honor, that's all

11 the questions I would have at this time. I

12 tender the witness.

13 BY THE COURT: Mr. Fortner.

14 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. FORTNER:

15 Q. Is it detective or officer?

16 A. Detective.

17 Q. And, Detective, is it Burnett or Barnett?

18 A. Burnett.

19 Q. Okay. Detective Burnett, what is

20 Ms. Robinson's criminal history?

21 A. She had a prior history of --

22 BY MR. McBRIDE: Your Honor, I object to

23 relevancy for this hearing.

24 BY THE COURT: Objection will be

25 overruled. He may answer.

 28

1 A. I believe she had a homicide on her.

2 BY MR. FORTNER: (Continuing)

3 Q. A homicide?

4 A. Yes, sir.

5 Q. A conviction?

6 A. Yes, sir.

7 Q. For killing whom?

8 A. Her ex-boyfriend or husband, something like

9 that. Madison County.

10 Q. How long ago?

11 A. It was approximately ten, eleven years ago.

12 Q. And what was her relationship -- what is the

13 name of the victim in this case?

14 A. Bobby Davis.

15 Q. What was her relationship with Mr. Davis?

16 A. Ex-girlfriend.

17 Q. She was convicted of a homicide for killing

18 her ex-boyfriend?

19 A. Yes, sir.

20 Q. Mr. Davis in this case was her ex-boyfriend?

21 A. One of them, yes, sir.

22 Q. Do you have any sort of video evidence that

23 places my client inside Ms. Robinson's house at the time

24 of the alleged shooting? Well, it's not alleged.

25 Somebody got shot. So at the time of the shooting.

 29

1 A. No video evidence of that, no, sir.

2 Q. Other than Ms. Robinson, do you have any

3 evidence that places him inside that dwelling at the

4 time of the shooting?

5 A. No, sir, plac- -- I have geographical phone

6 pings and video footage of his vehicle within a

7 parameter of that area, yes, sir.

8 Q. With how big a parameter are we talking

9 about?

10 A. I have video footage approximately two

11 minutes after that of the said vehicle that he was in --

12 approximately --

13 Q. On Highway 80?

14 A. Yes, sir. Half a mile from that residence

15 and then the geographical ping on the cell phone tower

16 was about a quarter mile from that residence.

17 Q. Okay. Now, Ms. Robinson has disclosed to you

18 that she had an intimate relationship with Mr. Edwards;

19 is that correct?

20 A. Yes, sir.

21 Q. Okay. And I assume that she's disclosed to

22 you that that relationship was over at the time of this

23 shooting?

24 A. Yes, sir.

25 Q. And it had been over for how long, according

 30

1 to her?

2 A. She did not disclose how long, but she had

3 stated like it was on and off or --

4 Q. It was kind of on and off?

5 A. Yes, sir.

6 Q. And there was still contact between them

7 then --

8 A. Yes, sir. He was doing work for her.

9 Q. -- during this time period?

10 A. Yes, sir.

11 Q. And she was having contact with her

12 ex-boyfriend at the same time?

13 A. Yes, sir.

14 Q. The Facebook posts that you've made mention

15 to and discussed this morning, how are those from an

16 investigator's point of view provable to Mr. Davis -- I

17 mean, to Mr. Edwards? Excuse me.

18 A. It came from one of his many Facebook

19 accounts that he does have.

20 Q. And is he the sole person authorized to post

21 on those accounts or the account you've looked at or --

22 A. I don't know.

23 Q. -- are there other people who can make posts

24 on those accounts?

25 A. I'm unaware if anyone else has access to

 31

1 those accounts, but I know he does.

2 Q. You don't know if anyone else does?

3 A. No, sir.

4 Q. You don't know if perhaps Ms. Robinson does?

5 A. No, sir.

6 Q. You just don't know?

7 A. No, sir.

8 Q. What time did this shooting happen?

9 A. We received a 911 call at 5:13 p.m. that

10 evening. She stated she called immediately after it

11 happened so...

12 Q. And she said she actually saw Mr. Edwards

13 shoot Mr. Davis; is that correct?

14 A. She said when she rounded the corner, she

15 could see him firing the last couple shots.

16 Q. And did she explain to you how Mr. Davis came

17 to be at her dwelling that evening?

18 A. She stated that he was bringing food for her

19 kids because he always looked after -- and that her kids

20 were just at his house that night prior.

21 Q. Her kids were at Mr. Davis's house?

22 A. Yeah, the night prior when she stated that

23 Mr. Edwards followed her to his house.

24 Q. Okay. Are there any witnesses that put

25 Mr. Edwards at her house other than her at the time this
 32

1 shooting happened?

2 A. No, sir. Her kids were on the far side of

3 the house. And the way that house is laid out, you

4 cannot see where she said he was, I guess, at the time.

5 Q. And how old are her children?

6 A. She had two juveniles that were -- I'm not

7 sure of their age. They're twins. They're younger kids

8 and --

9 Q. Like younger. How younger? Like --

10 A. Around ten, 13 --

11 Q. Okay.

12 A. -- somewhere in there. And she had an older

13 son who was on his -- in his bedroom which is on the

14 northside of the home. He's somewhere between 18 and

15 21, somewhere in there.

16 Q. Okay. And he didn't see anything?

17 A. No, sir.

18 Q. You've talked to him?

19 A. Yes, sir, we talked to him.

20 Q. Okay. So did she tell you how long

21 Mr. Edwards -- did she know Mr. Edwards was in the house

22 before she saw him shoot Mr. Davis?

23 A. She stated that she saw him walk up to the

24 house and she heard the knock and that's when Mr. Davis

25 advised he'll take care of it. So he went to the door.

 33

1 Q. Did Ms. Robinson have firearms in her house?

2 A. Upon completing our search warrant, we did

3 not locate any firearms in the house.

4 Q. Did you ask her?

5 A. I asked her, yes, sir.

6 Q. And did she say no?

7 A. She stated no. Yes, sir.

8 Q. Okay. She didn't tell you that Mr. Edwards

9 routinely carried a firearm around her?

10 A. No, sir.

11 Q. Had she ever seen Mr. Edwards with a firearm

12 before that night?

13 A. I assumed so. There was a picture of

14 Mr. Edwards in her bedroom holding a firearm taking a

15 picture, so I'm going to assume that she --

16 Q. And when was that picture taken?

17 A. She did not give me that exact date on that

18 picture, but it was sent to me. But it was consistent

19 with the pictures that we took. Investigation shot of

20 that bedroom, the same chair, same back wall, closet and

21 everything.

22 Q. Right. And who took that picture? Do you

23 know?

24 A. I'm not aware. I -- I don't know.

25 Q. But Ms. Davis -- I mean, Ms. Robinson sent

 34

1 that picture to the police?

2 A. She had her attorney send it to us, yes, sir.

3 Q. Okay. So she's got counsel? She has an

4 attorney?

5 A. Yes, sir.

6 Q. Ms. Robinson is the sole eyewitness who says

7 they saw Mr. Edwards shoot Mr. Davis, correct?

8 A. Yes, sir, that's correct.

9 Q. She has an attorney, and she is the one that

10 sent you the photograph of my client with a gun inside

11 her bedroom?

12 A. Yes, sir.

13 Q. She had an intimate relationship with my

14 client, Mr. Edwards?

15 A. Yes, sir.

16 Q. She had an intimate relationship with

17 Mr. Davis?

18 A. Yes, sir.

19 Q. They were ongoing relationships at the same

20 time or do you know?

21 A. I can't say for sure, but that's what it

22 seemed -- appeared to be, just back and forth with each

23 one.

24 Q. Mr. Davis I assume when you found him was not

25 armed?
 35

1 A. No, sir.

2 BY THE COURT: Just a moment.

3 BY MR. FORTNER: I don't know what that

4 is, Judge.

5 BY THE COURT: I don't know who has a

6 cell phone in my courtroom but please silence

7 it or the bailiffs will take it and you'll

8 get it back in three days. Thank you,

9 Counsel.

10 BY MR. FORTNER: Thank you, Judge.

11 BY THE COURT: You may proceed,

12 Mr. Fortner.

13 BY MR. FORTNER: (Continuing)

14 Q. And this sole witness has a previous

15 manslaughter or homicide conviction involving the

16 shooting death of her ex-boyfriend?

17 A. Yes, sir.

18 Q. And this is in Madison County?

19 A. Yes, sir, Madison County.

20 Q. All right. Now, I understand the pinging and

21 all of that stuff. But Mr. Edwards -- during the 24 to

22 36 hours -- oh, I don't know if you can give me this

23 information or not, but who is this unknown person in

24 Lexington, Mississippi?

25 BY MR. McBRIDE: Your Honor, I object at

 36

1 this --

2 BY THE COURT: Sustained.

3 BY MR. FORTNER: All right.

4 BY MR. FORTNER: (Continuing)

5 Q. But that is a witness that actually tells you

6 or some other investigator that my client told him that

7 he had shot this person?

8 A. Yes, sir.

9 Q. And what's his background, this unknown

10 witness?

11 A. I was unaware. I was not the detective that

12 spoke with that --

13 Q. You were not involved in that?

14 A. No, sir.

15 Q. Who was?

16 A. Detective Mitchell and Detective Anthony Fox.

17 Q. And did you get pings in Lexington,

18 Mississippi also?

19 A. Yes, sir, Lexington, Mississippi. Holmes

20 County.

21 Q. Okay. All right. So my client was in touch

22 with police officers on the telephone, is that correct,

23 during this 24 to 36-hour period?

24 A. Yes, sir, there was multiple times.

25 Q. Multiple times that he talked to officers

 37

1 with the Clinton Police Department?

2 A. Yes, sir.

3 Q. And during those conversations I think you

4 said that it was noted that he was saying, "I was going

5 to turn" -- "I'm going to turn myself in. I just need

6 to get my attorney" or just need to talk to an attorney?

7 A. Yes, sir. I can't say verbatim because I

8 wasn't the one that talked to him on the phone but --

9 Q. Understand. But something like that?

10 A. But he did say that he was going to turn

11 himself in.

12 Q. On multiple -- more than one time?

13 A. But when he was advised about where -- his

14 whereabouts, he stated, no, he's not there so...

15 Q. So he wouldn't tell the police where he was?

16 A. Yes, sir.

17 Q. He did tell you that he was seeking

18 counsel --

19 A. Yes, sir.

20 Q. -- getting an attorney? And that he was

21 planning on turning himself in?

22 A. He stated he was going to turn hisself in. I

23 believe it was that May 2nd.

24 Q. He just didn't turn himself in when he said

25 he was going to turn himself in?

 38

1 A. No, sir. No.

2 Q. Okay. And he didn't tell you where he was?

3 A. No, sir.

4 Q. Okay. He lied about that?

5 A. Yes, sir.

6 Q. All right. Ultimately you found him where it

7 appears he was for most of the time from the shooting

8 until his arrest?

9 A. Yes, sir.

10 Q. Do you know whether or not he attempted to

11 contact an attorney?

12 A. I'm not sure.

13 Q. You don't know?

14 A. No, sir.

15 Q. Okay. So what are my client, Mr. Edwards'

16 prior felony convictions? Do you know?

17 BY THE WITNESS: Do you mind if I refer

18 to my notes?

19 BY THE COURT: You may.

20 A. There was one Smith County District Court in

21 Texas, 114th District, January 2013, a conviction for

22 possession of marijuana more than 50 pounds, less than

23 2,000 pounds with a sentence of eight years in custody

24 of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

25 BY MR. FORTNER: (Continuing)

 39

1 Q. Anything else?

2 A. I'm not sure on that one.

3 Q. So a substantial amount of marijuana case?

4 A. Yes, sir.

5 Q. And as far as we know, that may be it?

6 A. Yeah. Yes, sir.

7 Q. Do you know anything about this -- what's

8 been alluded to in 2020 about something the DA's office

9 was involved in?

10 A. No, sir, I do not know about it.

11 Q. So one felony marijuana -- felony marijuana

12 and that's it as far as we know?

13 A. As far as I know.

14 Q. Okay.

15 A. The other detectives, they did their side of

16 things.

17 Q. They did their own thing?

18 A. Yes, sir.

19 Q. Okay.

20 BY MR. FORTNER: Can I have just one

21 minute, Judge?

22 (PAUSE IN PROCEEDINGS)

23 BY MR. FORTNER: (Continuing)

24 Q. Detective Burnett, do you know how many --

25 approximately how many times during that period from the

 40

1 shooting to the arrest -- how many times that

2 Mr. Edwards had telephonic communication with your

3 officers?

4 A. I'm not sure.

5 Q. More than once, I presume?

6 A. Yes, sir, more than once. Yes, sir.

7 Q. Several times --

8 A. Yes, sir.

9 Q. -- at least?

10 A. Yes, sir.

11 Q. Was it always with Officer Fox?

12 A. I do believe he called -- I know for sure he

13 called Officer Fox one time -- Detective Fox one time.

14 Q. But there were other detectives he talked to

15 also?

16 A. He talked to Clinton PD detectives more than

17 once. He never called me personally.

18 Q. Right. I understand.

19 A. Yes, sir.

20 Q. And you never talked to him during that time?

21 A. No, sir, I did not.

22 Q. But other detectives, more than one with the

23 Clinton PD, had telephonic communication with him?

24 A. Yes, sir. I know Detective Jones spoke with

25 him on the phone, and I know Detective Fox for sure.

 41

1 Q. So Mr. Edwards was calling them or they were

2 calling him or both?

3 A. The first time -- like I said, it came out as

4 Mr. Edwards being the victim when we received the call.

5 We received text notifications about the incident that

6 had taken place --

7 Q. Okay.

8 A. -- and it placed Mr. Edwards as being the

9 victim of the shooting. So that's when Detective Fox I

10 know for sure called him to check on him and say, "Hey,

11 what's going on?"

12 Q. And that started up this communication?

13 A. That's when the communication stream started

14 but --

15 Q. And the communication went on throughout the

16 time -- at different times throughout the time he was

17 not arrested --

18 A. Yes, sir.

19 Q. -- until he was --

20 A. I know he -- he contacted his ex-wife or

21 wife. I don't know their current relationship status.

22 He contacted her. He used three different cell phones,

23 and there was three different active numbers for him

24 when we started pinging his phones.

25 Q. And so he had three different cell phones,

 42

1 and you were aware of the three phone numbers he was

2 using?

3 A. They're somewhere in this report, yes, sir.

4 Q. All right. And so you were able to try to

5 track those ping -- doing this pinging, cell tower

6 pinging thing?

7 A. Yes, sir. I do know that he contacted

8 Mr. Dwayne Pickett at some point --

9 Q. The reverend?

10 A. -- yes, sir --

11 Q. Uh-huh (affirmative response).

12 A. -- because he was asking about his truck.

13 And then I do know that he advised Mr. Pickett that he

14 was going to turn himself in too.

15 Q. Let me just ask you. For somebody who's

16 trying to escape --

17 A. Yes, sir.

18 Q. -- he's talking with you guys an awful lot --

19 A. Yes, sir.

20 Q. -- isn't he? And for somebody who might be

21 trying to escape or avoid arrest, he's giving you a lot

22 of information that you can use to find his location,

23 correct?

24 A. That could be --

25 Q. I mean, you were able to find his location --

 43

1 A. Yes, sir, we were.

2 Q. -- based on information that he gave you, the

3 phone numbers, the telephone calls, all of that?

4 A. He didn't --

5 BY MR. McBRIDE: Objection, Your Honor.

6 I don't believe he testified that he gave him

7 any phone numbers.

8 BY THE WITNESS: No, he did not -- it

9 was --

10 BY THE COURT: Just a moment.

11 BY THE WITNESS: He did not -- oh, I'm

12 sorry. Yes, ma'am.

13 BY THE COURT: I'm actually going to

14 sustain the objection, Counsel. That's the

15 purpose of argument.

16 BY MR. FORTNER: And I'll withdraw that,

17 Judge. Thank you, Detective. I appreciate

18 it.

19 BY THE WITNESS: Yes, sir.

20 BY THE COURT: Any redirect?

21 BY MR. McBRIDE: Yes, Your Honor.

22 REDIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. McBRIDE:

23 Q. Now, Detective, when we're talking about

24 these three cell phones and you're pinging the cell

25 phones, you're getting that information from the towers,

 44

1 are you not?

2 A. Yes, sir, the cell phone providers and

3 towers. Doing a search of the -- just basically off of

4 the people that knew him and doing a search of his

5 history, we were able to locate some cell phone numbers

6 that were associated with him.

7 Q. So you weren't getting information from

8 Mr. Edwards as to his location, as to his phone numbers,

9 as to anything, were you?

10 A. No, sir. He never gave us, "Hey, this is my

11 phone number. This is where I am." It was all on the

12 investigative side indirectly with him.

13 Q. And I gathered from your testimony on cross

14 that the officers on many occasions when Mr. Edwards

15 called them asked him to turn himself in; is that

16 correct?

17 A. Yes, sir.

18 Q. And did Mr. Edwards ever turn himself in?

19 A. No, sir. He was arrested by Louisiana State

20 Police.

21 Q. And with regards to the pings, other than the

22 pings the night of the murder which puts him in

23 Lexington, I believe --

24 A. Yes, sir, Lexington, Mississippi.

25 Q. -- which is consistent with what the witness

 45

1 said who said, "I saw him in Lexington," correct --

2 A. Yes, sir.

3 Q. -- ever since those pings -- were all the

4 other pings leaving the state of Mis- -- I mean, leaving

5 the area of Lexington, leaving the area of Clinton and

6 getting further and further from Clinton and the state

7 of Mississippi?

8 A. Yes, sir. They were constantly traveling

9 south that night.

10 Q. Southwest, right?

11 A. Yes, sir.

12 Q. And he actually did cross state lines?

13 A. Yes, sir.

14 Q. And did he say anything about getting an

15 attorney in Louisiana?

16 A. He did not say anything about an attorney in

17 Louisiana.

18 Q. Okay.

19 A. No, sir.

20 Q. Again, with regards to his criminal history,

21 you're aware, are you not, that he's been arrested at

22 least 17 times in Hinds County, Mississippi?

23 A. Oh, I am aware of that, yes, sir.

24 Q. Okay. And you are aware that he has multiple

25 felony convictions?
 46

1 A. Yes, sir. I just could not name them.

2 Q. Okay. If I was to tell you that he had a

3 conviction in 1996 for possession of cocaine in this

4 courthouse, the Hinds County courthouse, would you --

5 does that sound accurate?

6 A. I would have no reason to argue that, no,

7 sir.

8 Q. If I told you in 1997 he had a conviction for

9 false pretenses, again in Hinds County, would that sound

10 accurate to you?

11 A. Yes, sir.

12 Q. If I were to tell you then later in 2018 he

13 was convicted in Madison County for false pretenses,

14 would that sound correct?

15 A. Yes, sir.

16 Q. And also in 2019 he was convicted for

17 cyberstalking in Madison County. Would that also be

18 correct?

19 A. I can't argue it, no, sir.

20 Q. So he has more than just the one conviction?

21 A. Yes, sir.

22 Q. And with regards to your evidence of a felon

23 in possession of a firearm, you testified that on the

24 morning of the murder on the video from Mr. Edwards'

25 house, you can see him leave with a firearm?

 47

1 A. Yes, sir.

2 Q. You have pictures of Mr. -- you've seen

3 pictures of Mr. Edwards in Ms. Robinson's house with the

4 firearm?

5 A. Yes, sir, sitting in a chair in her room.

6 Q. And I'm sure this is subsequent to 1996?

7 A. Oh, yes, sir. Yes, sir.

8 Q. Okay. Now, with regards to Ms. Robinson, I

9 know there was some talk about whether or not -- what

10 her criminal record was and I think you said homicide.

11 Would it be more accurate to say she was convicted of

12 manslaughter?

13 A. Yes, sir.

14 Q. Okay. So it wasn't an intentional murder?

15 A. No, sir.

16 Q. Okay. And what is Mr. Edwards charged with

17 in this case?

18 A. Homicide. Murder.

19 Q. Premeditated first degree murder?

20 A. Yes, sir.

21 Q. Okay. And Ms. Robinson with regard -- I

22 think you were asked with regards to where the people

23 were in the house, and I think you said there were other

24 people but they were either in other rooms or back

25 rooms; is that correct?

 48

1 A. Yes, sir.

2 Q. And tell us again exactly what did

3 Ms. Robinson say that Mr. Edwards did.

4 A. She stated that she heard the knock at the

5 door. Mr. Davis was like, "Hey, I'll go take care of

6 it." Mr. Davis went to the door and that's when she

7 started hearing gunshots. She stated that she was, I

8 guess, turning the corner at the time of the whole

9 altercation, and she noticed Mr. Edwards firing the last

10 two shots and stand over him and say, "Motherfucker,"

11 tuck the gun into his waistband and walk away casually.

12 Q. She saw him execute him?

13 A. Yes, basically.

14 Q. And the shell casings you found -- I mean,

15 the live rounds you found in Mr. Edwards's car in

16 Louisiana are consistent with the ones or the shell

17 casings found at the scene, is that correct, the crime

18 scene?

19 A. Yes, sir. Once the truck was returned --

20 towed back to Clinton Police Department where we

21 conducted a search warrant on it, we did find live

22 rounds with the same headstamp on the shell casing, the

23 backside of the shell casing, that matched the ones that

24 were found in his apartment and at the scene of the

25 crime.
 49

1 Q. And that was also consistent with the shell

2 casings -- I mean, or the ammunition you found in his

3 home?

4 A. Yes, sir.

5 Q. And you did have testimony from his own son

6 that he possessed a firearm?

7 A. Yes, sir.

8 Q. And that was supported by the fact that you

9 found the box for the particular firearm; is that

10 correct?

11 A. Yes, sir. It was sitting on the kitchen

12 table.

13 Q. And did you learn any information from

14 Ms. Robinson that the defendant told her around the same

15 time that he was going to make her famous?

16 A. He did. Yes, sir.

17 Q. What exactly do you know about that?

18 A. He sent a text. I can't remember the exact

19 date and time of it, but it was prior to the murder

20 that, "Hey, I'm going to make you famous." And there's

21 a screenshot of, I guess, her and him in the bedroom --

22 like a screenshot of a video that he sent to her. But

23 he was like, "Hey, I'm going to make you famous."

24 Q. And he has, has he not?

25 A. Sir?
 50

1 Q. And he has made her famous?

2 A. Yes, sir.

3 BY MR. McBRIDE: Court's indulgence.

4 (PAUSE IN PROCEEDINGS)

5 BY MR. McBRIDE: Your Honor, all we

6 would have is argument at this point.

7 BY THE COURT: All right. You may step

8 down.

9 (WITNESS EXCUSED)

10 BY MR. McBRIDE: And if it may please

11 the Court, Your Honor, co-counsel

12 Mr. Hemleben will handle the argument.

13 BY THE COURT: You may.

14 BY MR. HEMLEBEN: May I proceed?

15 BY THE COURT: You may proceed.

16 BY MR. HEMLEBEN: May it please the

17 Court, Your Honor. My name is Joe Hemleben.

18 I'm here on behalf of District Attorney Jody

19 Owens and the citizens of Hinds County.

20 I want to start as Mr. Fortner did with

21 the flight risk. As noted -- as Mr. McBride

22 noted, Article 3 Section 29 provides that the

23 defendant is not entitled to bond when no

24 condition or combination of conditions will

25 reasonably assure the appearance of the

 51

1 person as required.

2 Now, here the defendant has already fled

3 from justice once. I will note that of the

4 17 times the defendant has been booked

5 through the Hinds County jail as an adult,

6 four of those times were for failure to

7 appear warrants. So he was ordered to appear

8 at a court proceeding, did not appear and a

9 bench warrant was issued and that is

10 certainly what we're trying to prevent today.

11 And before I get to the other argument,

12 Your Honor, I would just like to note that

13 the State is concerned that the defendant is

14 being treated preferentially. The State's

15 unaware of any order or motion for the

16 defendant to be in street clothes in court,

17 and we're just not sure how that occurred.

18 And we just want to note for the record that

19 he is in custody.

20 So here -- so in addition to his flight

21 risk, we would also note that during his

22 flight he did dispose of the weapon. He did

23 fly -- flee to Lexington and then to

24 Louisiana and the law enforcement were able

25 to track all of his phone movements.

 52

1 The other factor to consider is the

2 threat to the community or, no, I'm sorry.

3 The proof is evident, the presumption is

4 great of his guilt. And as we just heard,

5 the State expects at trial that the evidence

6 will show that the defendant left his

7 apartment shortly before the murder wearing a

8 black shirt with white pants with what

9 appeared to be a firearm tucked into his

10 waistband. He posted on social media, "God,

11 I don't need you to forgive me for nothing I

12 do. Save for the one I'm going to send you."

13 The defendant went to Shadow Robinson's

14 house, and when he knocked on the door and

15 the victim opened the door, he gut shot the

16 defendant and then fired upwards of seven to

17 ten rounds into his prone body which would be

18 nine millimeter rounds which was the same

19 caliber that was -- the box subsequently

20 recovered at his house.

21 The defendant then proceeded or -- I'm

22 sorry. Shadow Robinson did later identify to

23 the police that he was wearing a black shirt

24 and white pants as the police confirmed on

25 the surveillance and then -- that his vehicle

 53

1 was spotted less than half a mile in less

2 than one minute from the 911 call fleeing the

3 area and then the defendant fled to Louisiana

4 or to Lexington and Louisiana. The police

5 when they arrested him were able to trace the

6 pings of his cell phone from the scene of the

7 murder each step along the way to Lexington

8 and to Louisiana. So they were able to

9 backtrack his location to the murder scene.

10 And so the State would just submit that

11 the proof is -- is great concerning his

12 guilt, and the State would also note that he

13 does pose a threat to the community, to

14 citizens of Hinds County or a threat to the

15 community of whatever community that he will

16 flee to if he is granted bond.

17 This was a particularly heinous and

18 cold-blooded murder. There's a lot of

19 premeditation. As the officer testified, he

20 didn't shoot him and run away. He shot him

21 and casually walked to his truck and got in

22 and fled. So, Your Honor, for those reasons

23 the State would just submit that there is no

24 reason why this defendant should not be held

25 with bond to -- without bond both to protect

 54

1 the community and to secure his attendance at

2 trial. Thank you, Your Honor.

3 BY THE COURT: Mr. Fortner.

4 BY MR. FORTNER: Thanks, Judge.

5 Your Honor, and I certainly respect the

6 differences of opinion that two different

7 offices might have in this case.

8 If I want to avoid arrest for a crime

9 that I have committed, I'm going to leave the

10 jurisdiction. I'm not going to take my

11 phones with me, my phone or phones, whether I

12 have one phone or five phones. I'm not going

13 to be on the phone having communications with

14 police officers who are investigating the

15 case who are from the same department that's

16 investigating the case. I'm not going to

17 allow a technology that elementary school

18 children are aware of about being able to

19 find somebody based on cell phone tower

20 location. I'm not going to do any of those

21 things that my client apparently did and that

22 they know that he did when he went to

23 New Orleans.

24 I'm not going to turn myself in if I

25 believe the police are trying to arrest me

 55

1 for murder without an attorney if I can do

2 that. If I can find an attorney to come with

3 me to the police station and turn themselves

4 in, that's what I'm going to do if I'm not

5 trying to avoid arrest. If I'm not trying to

6 avoid arrest, I'm going to have those

7 conversations. If I'm not running away from

8 the police, if I'm not trying to become a

9 fugitive from justice, I'm not going to be

10 doing all the things that my client did.

11 This is -- and there is no magic to

12 crossing a state line in this country.

13 There's no magic presumption that all of a

14 sudden arises because a person who has a

15 warrant for their arrest and lives in

16 Natchez, Mississippi goes across the

17 Mississippi River Bridge to Vidalia. There's

18 no all of a sudden presumption that that

19 person's trying to flee the jurisdiction.

20 It's nothing like that at all, and the

21 Court's aware of that.

22 My client could have crushed all of his

23 cell phones, gotten out of the vehicle that

24 he was in, gotten on an airplane in

25 New Orleans and flown away and nobody could

 56

1 have stopped that. So there's no evidence at

2 all that he was trying to flee from arrest or

3 detection or avoid arrest or detection. He

4 was trying to get an attorney to represent

5 him when he turned himself in. He was trying

6 to negotiate with the police to turn himself

7 in.

8 You know, I may or may not think that's a

9 great idea. I do think it's a great idea for

10 somebody who's wanted for some crime of

11 violence like this to get an attorney before

12 he turns himself in. I do think that's a

13 really good idea, and I've advised anyone

14 that I've had a chance to advise that that's

15 a good idea. And I'm sure the Court is aware

16 of that too.

17 They haven't put on any evidence

18 whatsoever to indicate that this man is a

19 threat to anyone if he's released. They

20 haven't put on any evidence whatsoever that

21 if you place the electronic bracelet on him

22 and ordered him to remain in house that he

23 wouldn't do exactly what you told him to do.

24 In fact, there's no evidence that's been

25 presented that he won't do exactly what he's

 57

1 ordered to do by this Court if you set bond.

2 All we're asking for is the presumption

3 of innocence even if it may just be

4 temporary. I don't know. But the

5 presumption of innocence and the right to be

6 released on a reasonable bond under

7 reasonable conditions set by this Court,

8 whatever this Court determines them to be

9 unless they've proven to you that he is a

10 threat to this community or that he's a

11 danger to some specific person or they've

12 proven to you that he is definitely a flight

13 risk. And they've done none of those things.

14 Thank you.

15 BY THE COURT: All right. In the matter

16 of State of Mississippi versus William

17 Edwards, before this Court this morning is a

18 motion for bond or for this Court to set some

19 conditions of pretrial release for this

20 defendant. The defendant is charged by way

21 of a two-count indictment with the first

22 count being murder by deliberate design and

23 count two being a convicted felon in

24 possession of a firearm.

25 The Court in weighing the decision on

 58

1 whether or not to grant bond considers the

2 factors laid out in Rule 8.2(a) of the

3 Mississippi Rules of Criminal Procedure which

4 set out some 15 factors that the Court may

5 use in its discretion in determining whether

6 or not a bond should be granted to a

7 defendant as well as any other facts or

8 circumstances that the Court believes weigh

9 in on the issue of nonappearance or on the

10 danger to others.

11 Now, the defendant in count one is

12 charged with deliberate design murder. The

13 information provided to the Court by the

14 State would show that the proof is evident

15 and the presumption is great the defendant

16 having been -- the matter been presented to a

17 grand jury that there is sufficient cause for

18 this to proceed to trial before a jury on the

19 charge of murder. The State has put forth

20 some information that this homicide did not

21 occur in a vacuum. That there is some

22 information that a reasonable person could

23 assume that it was premeditated in that the

24 defendant armed himself while at his

25 residence, drove some 20 minutes to another

 59

1 location, and then upon arriving at that

2 location from the information the Court

3 received, an unarmed person who happened to

4 answer the door was shot some seven to ten

5 times. There was no information provided to

6 this Court that there was any issue of

7 defense as the defendant was not the person

8 on the premises, but it would appear to have

9 been the initial aggressor.

10 As to count one, the State also produced

11 some information that there had been some

12 prior, for lack of a better term, stalking of

13 another individual who resided at that

14 residence who was a witness to the offense.

15 For these reasons from the evidence presented

16 to the Court it would appear that he does

17 pose somewhat of a danger to that person who

18 was a witness in this matter and who might be

19 intimidated by the acts of the defendant if

20 he were placed on release. Sure, it is

21 enough to say that the defendant could be

22 placed on an ankle monitor and ordered not to

23 go near that person; however, this Court is

24 very much aware that in issues regarding

25 domestic violence, a piece of paper won't

 60

1 stop a bullet.

2 The other concern is as to count two,

3 being a convicted felon in possession of a

4 firearm. This factor weighs much greater to

5 this Court in its consideration of this

6 defendant's ability to comply with the law

7 than the first count actually because it

8 appears from the evidence in this matter that

9 I've heard that the defendant was in

10 possession of ammunition, something a person

11 convicted of a felony should not have; that

12 he had a firearm, had had it for a long time,

13 was often seen with it. He knows being 55

14 years of age at the time of this offense that

15 you cannot as a convicted felon have in your

16 possession a firearm.

17 I further heard no proof presented that

18 the weapon used in this matter which was

19 allegedly in his possession that he was seen

20 leaving his home with on the day of the

21 incident not 20 minutes before the homicide

22 has ever been recovered which means that it

23 may be in a location accessible to this

24 defendant with the ability for him to use it

25 again. And that is why as to the two counts,

 61

1 it is the count two, the willful, deliberate

2 alleged possession of a firearm by a

3 convicted felon that creates in this Court's

4 mind the presumption that the defendant does

5 continue to pose a danger to persons who may

6 have been involved in this incident.

7 The Court will not turn a blind eye to

8 the fact that the defendant did leave the

9 jurisdiction. Although either side can place

10 whatever arguments they want as to why it

11 shows he is a flight risk and one that shows

12 he does not, the Court only looks at this as

13 to the actual incidents that occurred. This

14 defendant could have surrendered himself and

15 said, "I'm waiting for my lawyer." They

16 would have allowed him to do that. That is

17 not an excuse. The defendant could have

18 stopped in Jackson, Clinton, Holmes County.

19 He could have stopped in Warren County. He

20 could have stopped in Simpson County. He

21 could have stopped at any law enforcement

22 agency, surrendered himself and said, "I need

23 to call my lawyer." That would have not

24 exhausted any resources. But the moment

25 information was provided that he had left the

 62

1 state of Mississippi, had not turned him in,

2 there's no explanation that would satisfy

3 this Court that that was not an actual flight

4 and that there was no intent to not leave the

5 jurisdiction.

6 For these reasons as I've done in any

7 other case with any other defendant, once the

8 Court is informed that the person has

9 absconded themselves after committing an

10 offense and being fully aware that they are

11 being sought, this Court, I don't grant bond

12 because they have established to this Court

13 that they are a flight risk. So for the

14 reasons presented, bond as to count one will

15 be denied and as to count two, bond will be

16 denied.

17 This concludes the matter of State of

18 Mississippi versus William Edwards. We'll

19 take a five-minute recess. Please clear my

20 courtroom so that I may proceed with other

21 matters.

22 BY MR. MCBRIDE: Thank you, Your Honor.

23 (END OF HEARING)

24

25
 63

1 COURT REPORTER'S CERTIFICATE

3 STATE OF MISSISSIPPI

4 COUNTY OF HINDS

6 I, Lindsey P. McIntosh, CCR, Official Court

7 Reporter for Hinds County Circuit Court, do hereby

8 certify that the foregoing 62 pages, and including this

9 page, constitute a true and correct transcript of the

10 proceedings had upon the bond hearing in the above

11 entitled and numbered cause before the Honorable E. Faye

12 Peterson, Circuit Court Judge, on the 5th day of

13 October, 2022.

14 I do further certify that my certificate annexed

15 hereto applies only to the original and certified

16 transcript. The undersigned assumes no responsibility

17 for the accuracy of any reproduced copies not made under

18 my control or direction.

19 Witness my signature, this the 28th day of

20 October, 2022.

21

22

23 LINDSEY P. McINTOSH, CCR

Official Court Reporter
24 CCR NO. 1732

25