HUNTINGTON – Cherylethia "Bunny" Holmes testified on her own behalf this afternoon in Cabell Circuit Court. She was the last defense witness in the three days of testimony.
Closing arguments are scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Friday.
Holmes, 26, is charged with accessory to murder in connection with the July, 28, 2004, shooting death of Wendy Morgan, a prostitute and drug addict from Logan, W.Va. A passerby found her body in the 500 block of 5th Street.
Several witnesses have testified that Holmes ordered Morgan’s death. The order followed Morgan stealing drugs and cash from Holmes’ crack house.
But Holmes’ denied all the allegations. She cried many times on the witness stand. She said 11 witnesses lied and told 11 different versions of the story. She said the drugs belonged to her friend, Cedeal “GiGi” Harper. She recalled laughing when she learned of the theft. She said it did not anger her because the drugs did not belong to her.
Holmes also confessed to being a drug dealer, but said she is not a monster. She told the jury about her guilty plea in federal court for violating drug and firearm laws. She is serving eight years and one month in federal prison.
Holmes said she has never ordered harm to anyone.
Earlier today, defense attorney Mark Hobbs called two witnesses – Mark “PeeWee” Matthews and Heather Davis. It took less than an hour for both sides’ attorneys to question both witnesses.
Matthews of Detroit testified that he traveled to Huntington in 2004 to visit Holmes. He returned on a second occasion to purchase a car.
Matthews said never heard Holmes talk about a hit. He also knew nothing about Holmes’ crack cocaine operation or Morgan’s theft. The only thing he knew about the prostitute’s death is an admission from one of the gunman, Rafelle "RoRo" Harris.
Harris testified Wednesday that he killed Wendy Morgan for financial gain on orders to do so from Holmes and her boyfriend.
"I took out the hit on Wendy Morgan," Harris testified Wednesday. "(Holmes) wanted to have Wendy shot."
Matthews testified that Harris never mentioned the alleged hit during their conversation.
On cross examination, Cabell County Prosecutor Chris Chiles recalled meeting with Matthews in 2006 at the Western Regional Jail. Chiles recalled transferring Matthews from a detention center in Detroit to potentially testify against the other gunman, Cedeal “GiGi” Harper.
The April 2006 jury convicted Harper of first-degree murder without Matthews testimony.
“Do you remember telling me that day at the jail sir, that Bunny told Shantee Nevitt that she got ripped off and she was going to call Detroit – call Dawg and his people – to come and take care of (the situation)?” Chiles asked.
“No. I don’t remember,” Matthews replied.
“If you didn’t tell me that, how is it that that is the only way I know (Nevitt’s) name?” Chiles said. “That is exactly what you told me at the Western Regional Jail two years ago, and that ties right in with you coming down here to visit Bunny because you and she were that tight.”
Chiles accused Matthews of being part of Holmes’ drug operation. Matthew denied the accusation, but admitted that he has a prior felony conviction for drug trafficking.
Davis’ stint on the witness stand was her second time testifying in three days. Hobbs called her back to the stand. She testified that Holmes asked about Morgan’s location, but she said Holmes never told her that she wanted Morgan harmed in any way.
But Davis received much of her information from Harper. She told Hobbs and the prosecution that Harper said Morgan was being sought because she had stolen drugs from himself and Holmes.
Under cross examination, Davis said Harper went so far that he gave her his cell phone number to contact him when Morgan was located.. She called Harper in return for drugs. She testified that she did not know her phone call would end with Morgan’s death.
“If one of them would have said, ‘We’re looking for Wendy so we can kill her,’ would you have called them when you found Wendy?” Chiles asked.
“No sir,” Davis replied.
“Would you have wanted to participate in anything like that?” Chiles asked.
“No sir,” she replied.
“So of course it is reasonable that they wouldn’t tell you, ‘We’re looking for her so we can kill her,”” he said.
“Right,” she replied.
“Because who is going to is going to want to help in something like that?” Chiles said.
Earlier today, Hobbs moved to dismiss the accessory to murder charge due to a lack of evidence, but Chief Circuit Judge Alfred Ferguson denied the request.
On Wednesday, Harper said he lied when he testified to a similar story in April 2006, but two of Holmes' former friends agreed with Harris' account.
Holmes has maintained her innocence and pleaded not guilty Monday. She cried several times during Wednesday's proceedings. The man identified in court as her boyfriend, Craig "Dawg" Young, has not been charged in the case.
Harris and Harper both testified at Holmes' trial Wednesday.
Harper still denies involvement in the shooting. He acknowledged testifying in April 2006 about the drug theft and a letter he sent Holmes from the Western Regional Jail. He referred to Holmes as "sis" in the letter.
But Harper said he lied about other things in April 2006. Those lies included a statement about Holmes being mad and blaming him for the theft, along with a statement about Holmes refusing to call off orders to harm Morgan in July 2004.
Cabell County Prosecutor Chris Chiles read each of Harper's prior statements into the record.
"I'd rather go back to jail," Harper said.
Harris testified that Holmes gave him 4.5 ounces of crack in return for causing Morgan's death.
Two of Holmes' friends, Marcus Johnson and John Pinkney, backed up Harris' account.
Johnson said he was romantically involved with Holmes in 2004. He testified Holmes' mentioned her desire to have others take care of Morgan before and after the fatal shooting. He said she referred to Harper and Harris in saying they took care of the situation.
Johnson did not testify at Harper's trial in April 2006. A recent guilty plea in U.S. District Court forced him to share his story.
"Is there any doubt in your mind, what Bunny Holmes told you before and after the murder of Wendy Morgan?" Chiles asked.
"No sir," he replied.
Pinkney described his participation in Holmes' drug operation, or "the family," as he referred to it. He told the jury that Holmes was the leader of the family. He said she became furious when she learned about Morgan stealing drugs and cash from the crack house.
Pinkney said he was initially blamed for the theft, along with Morgan. Another woman angered Holmes by talking too much. He said Holmes was responsible for a $10,000 contract placed on each of their heads.
Pinkney testified the alleged contract scared so many people that it made it difficult for him to find a safe haven inside the city.
"Everywhere I went, people were afraid to let me in the houses they were in," he testified. "I couldn't go any where. I had no safe haven."
Harris told jurors how the shooting transpired. He said Heather Davis pointed out Morgan's location and Dale Ward lured her from a residence near the crime scene. Harris said the strategy involved telling Morgan that he was her date. Harris said Morgan served him by performing a sex act and the shooting followed.
"(Harper) fired it," Harris said in describing the first shot. "Then he froze up, so I snatched the gun and I shot her."
Harris then received a bus ticket from a man named Larry Clark. The bus took him to Detroit, where he met up with Holmes, Young and Harper. The foursome then got into another vehicle and traveled back to Huntington. Holmes' gave Harris his 4.5 ounces of crack on the way back to West Virginia, he said.
They quickly reversed course upon arriving in Huntington because too many police were in the area, Harris said.
Under cross-examination, Hobbs used a chalkboard in referring to Harris as a murderer. He also displayed a picture of Morgan's deceased body. He asked Harris to identify his two gunshots, and asked the convicted gunman, "Are you kind of proud of what you did?"
"No sir," Harris replied.
Hobbs challenged Harris by asking him if someone influenced his testimony. He also questioned Harris about Holmes' orders. He used Harris' testimony to say his client ordered Harris to shoot Morgan - not kill her. Harris responded by saying she wanted Morgan shot and that there was no difference between ordering someone to be shot or killed because guns kill people.
Harris and Pinkney are among several witnesses who described Holmes as the leader of her drug operation in Huntington. Harris said Young was the main boss, followed by Holmes and Harris.
Assistant Prosecutor Ray Nolan used Pinkney's story to corroborate testimony from other witnesses, who talked about an agreement between Holmes and Morgan. Pinkney said Morgan was allowed to bring her Johns to Holmes' crack house. In return, Morgan was responsible for making the Johns comfortable and that included providing drugs for their purchase.
Pinkney said the theft occurred during one of Morgan's meetings.
Also testifying Wednesday was former drug addict Talese Brown, who was the third person targeted by the $10,000 contract, according to Pinkney's testimony. Brown, who made no mention of the contract, said she left Huntington in 2004 for Dallas and returned the same day Morgan died.
Brown recalled seeing Morgan moments before she died. She testified Morgan said she was on the way to a date and was being escorted down 5th Street.
Brown heard gunshots moments later and saw Harper and Harris running from the area. She said one of the two men possessed a firearm.
Hobbs continued attempts to discredit some of the prosecution's witnesses. Many were addicted to drugs at one time in their life or had criminal records. He repeatedly questioned their ability to remember specific events. He also questioned Huntington Police Lt. Rocky Johnson and the medical examiner about the effects of crack cocaine on a person's body and their truthfulness.
Johnson said a drug dealer will at times hold back information, but he or she is honest when they decide to cooperate.
"You take interviews from different people, and then you corroborate that information," he said. "That's what makes them reliable or dependable."
Johnson testified about Harper's letter. He also told jurors about a nearby gasoline station's surveillance camera. He said it recorded Harper and Harris meeting with another woman, Heather Davis. Davis told jurors Tuesday that she pointed the men toward Morgan's location.
Under cross-examination, Johnson said Holmes was not present in the video. He also confirmed the letter did not implicate her in Morgan's death.
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