Testimony continued this morning in the federal trial of a 58-year-old Hixson man accused of robbing thousands of dollars at gunpoint from a bank in January 2014.
U.S. prosecutors say Dearl Dean Lawton walked into the First Volunteer Bank on 5109 Hixson Pike on Jan. 31, 2014, dressed in a dark hoodie, dark clothes, and a dark mask that covered his face.
Inside, prosecutors say, Lawton brandished a long, skinny revolver, held one of the tellers at gunpoint, and robbed the bank of $2,641 in federally insured funds.
Today, U.S. prosecutor Michael Porter continued to call eyewitnesses and forensic specialists who analyzed the gloves, sweatshirt, and hat that investigators recovered from the scene.
Demetri Proffitt, a businessman, said he pulled into the First Volunteer drive through around 5 p.m. that Friday. When his teller continued to act strange and ignore his comments, Proffitt leaned forward and saw a robber holding a teller at gunpoint.
Wanting to help, Proffitt said he drove around the bank and saw the robber walk out the front door.
They locked eyes for 30 seconds before he ducked behind Proffitt's car and walked down a nearby alley. Proffitt never saw his face, but noted the man's medium build and white skin color.
During the cross-examination, prosecutors showed Proffitt video footage of his vehicle as it criss-crossed the bank parking lot in search of the robber.
Proffitt said he drove into the alley and found a man in lighter clothing near the dumpster where investigators later collected several pieces of darker clothing.
Lawton's attorneys, Brian O'Shaughnessy and Mitchell Carter, countered that Proffitt never had visual confirmation of Lawton. They said the video was too grainy to identify anyone and that Proffitt never relocated the same person after losing the robber in the alley.
Throughout the trial, Lawton sat between his attorneys, hands clasped and silent. He faces charges of aggravated bank robbery and carrying a firearm during a violent crime.