Self defense or wanton slaying? Richmond court to decide

[allingeneral]

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/rtd/news/ ... 06/320377/

RICHMOND, Va. -- Richmond prosecutors argued yesterday that Eric G. Driver Jr. illegally killed a man to protect his girlfriend's property, while Driver's attorney called the shooting a desperate act of self-defense.

The prosecutors told a jury that Driver, 25, fatally shot Jamall Holman, 24, after he broke into Driver's girlfriend's car in the city's East End last April, opening fire on the unarmed man after he tried to retreat.

It was the second time that day that someone had broken into Driver's girlfriend's 1996 cherry-red Honda Civic near the apartment she shared with Driver.

"Eric Driver armed himself because he was angry, he armed himself because his girlfriend's car had been broken into previously that day, and he had had enough," prosecutor Thomas L. Johnson Jr. said in his opening statement yesterday on opening day of the two-day trial.

But Driver's attorney, John W. Luxton, said Driver was afraid for his safety and that of his girlfriend when he encountered Holman wearing a black mask and reaching into a bag for a dark-colored item.

"He thought he was going to die," Luxton said of his client. "He really thought reasonably that he was in grave danger."

Driver faces charges of second-degree murder and use of a firearm in a felony in connection with the shooting April 22 outside his home near North 22nd and East Leigh streets.

Driver and his girlfriend at the time were students at Virginia Union University, and both had exams that morning.

Prosecutors said Driver's girlfriend discovered about 8 or 8:30 that morning that her car had been broken into and a window shattered. Then about 4 p.m., she went outside and saw a man in her car.

She asked him what he was doing, Johnson told the jury, and he replied, "I'm getting my girlfriend's stuff." Driver's girlfriend saw the man pull a mask over his face. He repeatedly told her, "Don't do it."

Driver emerged from the second-floor apartment with a handgun after his girlfriend was safely away from the car and confronted Holman, Johnson said.

The prosecutors, citing witness accounts, said Driver fired his .40-caliber handgun twice and that Holman fell down and dropped some items, but regained his footing. Holman at some point backed away with his hands in the air -- as if using them to deflect bullets -- and fled along Leigh Street, with Driver pursuing and firing at least four more shots, prosecutors said.

Autopsy results indicate Holman was struck three times, authorities said last summer.

Police officer James Peck testified that he heard a gunshot while patrolling the area and encountered Driver when he arrived. Peck said Driver told him, "The dude just tried to break into my girlfriend's car, and I have a gun." Police found Driver's gun in his waistband.

Peck said Driver also told him that Holman had been armed, but police combed the area with a firearm-detection dog and didn't find a second gun.

Johnson, who is trying the case alongside Commonwealth's Attorney Michael N. Herring, told the jury it is illegal to use deadly force on a fleeing suspect or to protect personal property.

Luxton said Driver had bought the gun about a year earlier in St. Louis, where his mother had been robbed. The attorney said his client confronted Holman after Driver's girlfriend told him either that the man in her car had a gun or that he was going to kill her.

"Her face was red with fear," Luxton said. "She was horrified. She was terrified."

Luxton said Holman did not say anything to Driver and did not run away, but that he reached into a bag for a dark object. Driver thought that "if he stopped firing, the man, Mr. Holman, would fire at him," Luxton said.

Luxton also said Holman grabbed Driver by the throat and tried to grab his gun.

The trial resumes today at 9 a.m. in Richmond Circuit Court.


Contact Reed Williams at (804) 649-6332 or rwilliams@timesdispatch.com .

[Flavet]

Driver seems to be a good shot; we need him. Dismissed.

[MountainCat]

snip...snip...snip

-- and fled along Leigh Street, with Driver pursuing and firing at least four more shots, prosecutors said.

Somebody in fear of life and limb normally would not pursue. Somebody who is pissed off would possibly pursue.

[WRW]

Was Holman struck in the back or the front?

[jadedone4]

Driver seems to be a good shot; we need him. Dismissed.

Driver (the boyfriend) is a Dumb Shot; we don't need him.

First two shots seemed to be appropriate and supported by accounts given.

Last four shots AS the assailant was RUNNING AWAY was just plain DUMB - the threat was removed.

If you really want to split-hairs here; once girlfriend was "out-of-danger" and not near vehicle the threat was no longer viable - call cops. Instead Driver (boyfriend) gets gun, heads to car and confronts.

Seems to be a bad-shoot IMHO..... had the BG accosted the girlfriend, or directly engaged/threatened her ("dont do it.." isn't a threat, so unless thre is "more" here i.e. comes out at testimony) so Driver (boyfriend) wasn't justified in using the gun; phone would have been better, until such time a threat was realized.

[Username]

Murder if he chased him down, and since he was running, (if that was the case) then I assume he was shot in the back, i.e., murdered. The important thing here is that emotion plays no part in self-defense, it's as simple as one of those fancy if:then questions.

Deadly threat + Possibility of Death = Armed & Acting in Self Defense

He's not law enforcement, it's not his job to run the bad guy down. I would be the bad guy would not return after being shot at twice with a .40 cal, or perhaps he would return, for revenge, I don't know.

Either way, the mistake was made when he chased him down Leigh street firing at at someone who was clearly no longer a threat.

Who witnessed him running the guy down I wonder if the guy was dead?

[nickf829]

Im sure this will come back on the shooter. IMO him chasing the perp while shooting is probably going to be what puts him behind bars. He MIGHT have had a case had he only shot him twice because he was reaching for a "dark-colored item", but even then it would be a crap shoot depending on the jury and prosecutor.

Was that article from earlier today? I wonder if they reached a decision yet?

[Vahunter]

For once I read about a shooting in the east end that is not drug related. I agree with jadedone, the shooter screwed up.

[zephyp]

Murder if he chased him down, and since he was running, (if that was the case)

That's my vote...given the cited circumstances if he chased him down and shot him repeatedly while he was running away that aint self defense...thats for sure...

[Username]

I thought there was a thread about this already, but here is the result of the trial here in Richmond about a gentleman who fired on a car jacker, chased him down, and killed him.

Jury carefully deliberated before giving no jail time in slaying
By Reed Williams
Published: January 31, 2010
» 8 Comments | Post a Comment
vote
nowBuzz up!

Richmond jurors felt obligated to convict a man of voluntary manslaughter last week yet recommended no fine or jail time, concluding that the shooter acted in the heat of passion and out of fear, the jury's foreman said.

Eric G. Driver Jr. had been charged with second-degree murder, and it took jurors more than three hours to find him guilty of the lesser charge in a case that hinged on whether Driver was justified in using lethal force on an apparently unarmed man.

Testimony in the trial showed that the victim, Jamall Holman, 24, of Henrico County, was shot after Driver's then-girlfriend caught him breaking into her car April 22 outside Driver's apartment near North 22nd and East Leigh streets in the city's East End.

After finding him guilty of the lesser charge Wednesday, the jury spent an additional hour before deciding that jail time would serve no public good, foreman Robert Johnson said when reached by phone Friday. Efforts to reach each of the 11 other jurors who decided the case were unsuccessful Friday.

The voluntary-manslaughter charge carried a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $2,500 fine. Jurors concluded that Driver, a 26-year-old college student, poses no danger to the community and therefore decided it would do no good to lock him up, Johnson said. Members of the panel were outraged at the idea of recommending even the maximum fine because it was too little and only would have devalued the victim's life.

"Even if the money did go to the victim's family, it wouldn't pay for a decent funeral," Johnson said.

The case has sparked debate about how far people should be allowed to go to defend themselves or their property, and Johnson said the panel gave careful thought to what kind of message Wednesday's verdict would send.

Commonwealth's Attorney Michael N. Herring said Friday that he was not surprised that the jury convicted Driver of manslaughter, but he added that the defendant should have been sentenced to "some months in jail."

"You take a man's life as the result of an overreaction, and you should spend some time behind bars," Herring said Friday.

Defense attorney John W. Luxton noted that the manslaughter conviction means that Driver will carry the label of felon for the rest of his life, a serious penalty for a man who wants to be an accountant and has taken tests to work for the IRS.

Herring said he believes that using a gun should be "the absolute last resort."

"Using a weapon under circumstances that might even appear to be in the defense of property will result in a felony prosecution," Herring said.

He added: "If people want a prosecutor who is going to apply a different standard in evaluating gun use to repel threats or crime, then they need a different commonwealth's attorney."

Herring argued during the trial that Driver shot Holman out of anger because he had broken into the car of Driver's then-girlfriend, Candice Porter. Luxton said Driver feared for his own life when he confronted Holman, who at some point was wearing what the defense attorney described as an "executioner's mask."

Porter testified that she started screaming and hurried back toward Driver's apartment, telling him that the intruder had told her either that he had a gun or that he was trying to kill her. Driver testified that he left his apartment after hearing her scream.

Driver said that even though he confronted Holman with a gun near Porter's car, the intruder did not run or say anything, but stared at Driver and began moving sideways, "like he's lining up with me." Driver said he opened fire after seeing Holman reach for what Driver thought was a gun and then chased Holman and fired more shots.

Johnson said jurors could understand how Driver would have viewed Holman's behavior as threatening, or, at the least, bizarre enough to be scary. "He did things that would have freaked anyone out," Johnson said.

Jurors believed the shooting did not rise to the level of murder, Johnson said, but they ultimately decided they had to convict him of the lesser charge because Driver had chased the man and fired.

"Mr. Holman was a citizen just like me or you," Johnson said. "He shouldn't have gotten shot that day."

Jurors believed that the incident happened so quickly and that Holman's behavior was so strange that they could see how a young man such as Driver would overreact.

Johnson described both Driver and Holman as "young, juiced and stupid," noting that it was the second time that day that Porter's car had been broken into. Driver also testified that he had several exams set for the next day.

"You talk about plucking your last strings," Johnson said. "He lost rational thought and he began to react."

Luxton said Driver has completed his coursework at Virginia Union University but was suspended after his arrest. University officials now are deciding whether to let him complete his exams and graduate, Luxton said. A university spokeswoman declined to comment, citing student confidentiality.

During deliberations, jurors had an open discussion about race, with white members asking black members to share their insights into what life is like for a young black man, Johnson said. Driver is black, and so was Holman.

In the sentencing deliberations, one black juror told other jurors that many black men believe that gun ownership is a logical response to the violence that often surrounds them, Johnson said.

The same juror shared that one of his relatives was a good young person but made mistakes that landed him in jail, and that he was hardened when he got out. A black social worker on the jury said she believes that many people who are incarcerated do not learn the lessons that many people would hope they would.

"I can say with no hesitation that this was one of the most stand-up groups of people I've been around," Johnson said of the other jurors. "They were thoughtful, they were compassionate, they were concerned about civic order. They were concerned about justice, and they were concerned about law."



and the Original Article....

Car break-in suspect in Church Hill was shot at six times
By Joe Macenka
Published: June 12, 2009
» 11 Comments | Post a Comment
vote
nowBuzz up!

The man charged with killing a car break-in suspect in Church Hill fired two shots, then chased him and fired four more times, according to courtroom testimony in Richmond yesterday.

After hearing the testimony, a Richmond General District Court substitute judge certified to a grand jury charges of second-degree murder and use of a firearm in a felony against Eric G. Driver, 25. Judge Janipher W. Robinson said the grand jury will hear the case July 6.

Driver, of the 500 block of North 22nd Street, is charged with the April 22 shooting death of Jamall Holman, 24, of the 1700 block of Forest Glen Road in Henrico County.

The case has sparked an extensive public debate about how far people should be allowed to go to defend themselves and their property.

At yesterday's hearing, the prosecutor handling the case said it was a clear case of Driver overstepping his legal boundaries.

"Virginia law is clear: You cannot use deadly force to defend property," Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Thomas L. Johnson Jr. said.

Johnson said that after Driver's girlfriend was startled by a masked Holman breaking into her car near North 22nd and East Leigh streets, Driver should have called police instead of confronting Holman.

Instead, Johnson said, Driver not only confronted Holman and shot at him twice, he also chased Holman and fired four more times. Autopsy results indicate Holman was struck three times, Johnson said.

Defense attorney John W. Luxton said Driver merely reacted instinctively after his girlfriend was frightened and thought she was in danger.

Johnson called three witnesses, including a Church Hill resident who was walking his two dogs in a nearby alley that afternoon when he heard two gunshots. Daniel Manza said that when he turned in the direction of the shots, he saw one person chasing someone and then firing four shots from a distance of 5 to 10 feet.

Manza stayed in the alley, called 911 and waited for police.

James Peck, the first Richmond police officer on the scene, said he encountered Driver coming up Leigh Street and pulled over to speak with him.

Peck said Driver told him: "The dude just tried to break into my girlfriend's car, and I've got a gun."

Driver initially made no mention of Holman possibly having a gun, but he later claimed Holman was armed, Peck said.

David E. Burt, the lead investigator in the case, said numerous detectives and officers searched the area several times and called in a gun-sniffing dog, which also made two sweeps of the area the day of the shooting. Two days later, city public-utilities crews drained and checked the storm sewers in the neighborhood.

"No firearm was found at that time, either," Burt testified.

Luxton, who called no witnesses, said Driver felt like he was fighting for his life. Luxton suggested a lesser charge of manslaughter might be more appropriate.

But Johnson said Driver had established the intent needed to prove second-degree murder by chasing Holman after firing two shots and then firing four more times.

"The initial confrontation, that should have been the end of it," Johnson said.

[GS78]

He is lucky he is not doing ten years.

[allingeneral]

Thanks for posting the update to this story, Username. I have merged your new thread with the original thread to help with story continuity.

I believe that this is a case of "Make your first shot count". Had he not chased after the guy and fired at his back, this would have been a very different case. He should certainly count himself lucky to go away with only a felony conviction and no jail time or fines.

[GS78]

I must have missed something, did he shoot the guy for breaking into a girlfriends car? or was it something else?

[allingeneral]

from the OP:

The prosecutors told a jury that Driver, 25, fatally shot Jamall Holman, 24, after he broke into Driver's girlfriend's car in the city's East End last April, opening fire on the unarmed man after he tried to retreat.

It was the second time that day that someone had broken into Driver's girlfriend's 1996 cherry-red Honda Civic near the apartment she shared with Driver.