MOULTRIE — The trial began Tuesday for one of two men charged in the death of John Taylor more than two years ago.
Thomas Weeks — Taylor’s brother-in-law and neighbor — was charged with murder on the day of the incident, Feb. 7, 2022.
With the jury selected on Monday, Superior Court Judge James L. Prine called for opening remarks on Tuesday morning and witnesses were questioned until early evening.
Six witnesses from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Colquitt County’s E911 Center and local law enforcement testified, and 168 pieces of evidence were admitted to court, before day one of the trial was placed into recess.
Those whose testimonies were completed included officers involved with the initial crime scene and others who assisted with the investigation afterwards, including the doctor who completed the autopsy and the professional who examined the weapons used.
First on the stand was Dr. Rochelle Simon, who at the time was employed with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation as a medical examiner. Due to her extensive study in the field, and with over 1,900 autopsies performed throughout her career, Simon was able to testify as an expert in the field of the anatomic and clinical forensic classification of human diseases and injuries.
Simon explained to the jury through questions from both the prosecutor and defense attorney how she was able to discern three separate bullet wounds on the victim: one on the chest, one on the head and one on the left arm.
Throughout the autopsy things such as the abrasion of the muscle against the skin and red and black discoloring around the entrance wound gave Simon the expert opinion that the gun was within contact range — against the skin — when the shot to Taylor’s chest was fired. This particular wound also gave the victim internal bleeding, she said.
Discovered during the autopsy were pellet fragments, as well as wadding, floating within the lung cavities. These items were collected for further examination.
GBI’s firearm specialist at the time, Catharine Jordan, was the one who examined those pieces removed from the victim post mortem. She was questioned about them during her time on the stand.
In addition to the fragments, Jordan also had the three weapons recovered at the scene — a .22 semiautomatic rifle, a .38 Ruger special revolver and a .38 Smith and Wesson special revolver. Jordan said she determined the .38 Smith and Wesson had fired the shot that placed the items in the lung cavity.
Being able to see the characteristics in the rifling — grooves and imperfections in the barrel of the gun that transfer to the bullet — through controlled GBI test shots and comparing those to the fragments iallowed Jordan to pinpoint which gun was responsible, she said. When these test shots were fired the rifle required reloading each time due to damage to the weapon.
The other witnesses on Tuesday were people involved on the night of the shooting.
Gwendoline Knighton, who was working at the 911 dispatch center that night, received the initial phone call around 11:30 p.m., and the audio was played for the jury. Gathering all the information she was able to, Knighton was heard discussing the details of the shooting with Timothy Weeks, who had placed the call, and his father, Jeffrey Weeks, could be heard in the background. Jeffery Weeks has also been charged in the case but is being tried separately.
Unwilling to reenter the mobile home and check Taylor’s condition, the duo remained outside in the front yard until deputies arrived.
Dispatched to the scene was Dep. Joshua Fussell with the Norman Park Police Department. Dep. J.C. Mustelier, also with NPPD, responded as well because he was close by.
Mustelier said Taylor was lying crumpled on the floor in the master bedroom in nothing but his boxers. He instantly checked for a pulse and found none.
Backing up out of the room as to not disturb anything, Mustelier took initial crime scene photos from his vantage point in the master bedroom’s doorway to pass to GBI. The photos showed the bed to the left and the victim lying in the front of the dresser directly ahead.
Body cam footage from Fussell from the moment of arrival to when Taylor’s body was found and the house cleared was presented to the jury.
The final witness called was Special Agent Amy Braswell with the GBI, who was the head investigator on this case. Most of Tuesday’s evidence was admitted during her testimony, primarily pictures taken at the crime scene that first night.
Other evidence entered then included the location of the final gun, which was discovered under the bed, and many small black pieces of plastic, which are thought to be a magazine to the rifle.
Braswell described finding several holes in the wall of the mobile home as well as several bloody shoeprints, damage to the front and bedroom doors and a bloody handprint on the victim’s thigh.
The defense attorney and the prosecutor took turns grilling the witnesses on their involvement with the case while those on the jury took all the information.
The trial will continue Wednesday morning.