Judge denies use of eyewitness testimony in Sweeney murder case
As the murder trial is set to begin for the man accused of gunning down four-year-old Rowan Sweeney, a judge has ruled that the testimony of one of the witnesses of the killing will not be heard by the jury.
Yarnell Green was one of the survivors of that night in 2020. Green went on to identify Brandon Crump Jr. as the one who pulled the trigger in a previous court hearing.
Green, who was shot eight times that night, has since been killed in an unrelated shooting, but prosecutors say before his death he testified about Crump's involvement in Sweeney's death in a juvenile court back in 2021.
That testimony came during a hearing for Crump when he was still only facing an aggravated robbery charge. Which is why the defense counsel argued it should not be permitted in his murder trial.
Crump's attorney argued that since the testimony was supposed to be limited only to aggravated robbery, neither Crump nor Green were properly cross examined, making the testimony flawed and incomplete.
Prosecutors argued that fact is not relevant, but say there are other witnesses who have also identified Crump as the shooter.
Two other defendants in the Sweeney case, Andre McCoy and Kimonie Bryant have both taken plea deals, which often come in exchange for cooperation with prosecutors, although it is not clear if that's the case here.