An 11-minute Chattanooga police body camera video that shows a witness pinning a 2015 homicide on a 17-year-old can now be used in the man's upcoming trial.
Hamilton County Criminal Court Judge Barry Steelman ruled Thursday the footage could be shown in the prosecution of Cortez Sims, now 19, saying it will illuminate the circumstances surrounding two witness identifications that point to him as the shooter on Jan. 7, 2015.
For the last two days, Steelman has presided over two evidentiary hearings related to the Sims case, which is set for trial April 4. Most of the testimony has concerned how much information potential jurors should hear about Bianca Horton and Marcell Christopher, two witnesses who survived the shooting and initially worked with prosecutors and police officers.
Horton was found dead in the 2100 block of Elder Street in 2016, her body riddled with bullet holes. Police have not made an arrest in her homicide.
The body camera footage specifically captures Christopher, then 18, lying on the floor and nursing a gunshot wound to his torso area, Steelman said. When a responding police officer with the camera probes him for information, Christopher claims Sims shot him.
In addition to the body camera, Steelman said prosecutors can use identifications that Horton and Christopher made at Sims' transfer hearing in March 2015. Sims faces one count of first-degree murder, three counts of attempted first-degree murder, and three counts of employing a firearm during a dangerous felony. He remains in custody at the Hamilton County Jail.
Sebrina Robinson, whose 20-year-old daughter, Talitha Bowman, was killed that night, knew Thursday's ruling was a big win for the prosecution. She walked out of Criminal Court with her arms raised.
"Today was a beautiful day, y'all," she assured friends and family members. "Talitha and Bianca are looking down on us right now with a beautiful smile."
Sims' defense attorneys, Lee Ortwein and Clancy Covert, declined to comment until Feb. 16, when Steelman is scheduled to address a different key motion: a change of venue. Because the case has received so much national publicity, Ortwein argued in court, it will be extraordinarily difficult to find impartial jurors in Hamilton County. On Thursday, Steelman didn't make a ruling on Ortwein's request for a change of venue, but said he would entertain the idea of bringing in a panel of jurors from another county.
The Sims case has a number of moving parts. Prosecutors still intend to introduce evidence that suggests the shooting was gang-related.
But starting Wednesday, prosecutors and defense attorneys sparred over how reliable Horton's identification of Sims was during his transfer hearing. Ortwein suggested that Horton was unduly influenced by on-scene officers who repeated Cortez Sims' name. Then, she picked him out of a six-person photo lineup on Jan. 7, 2015, and picked him out again two months later at his transfer hearing.
Lead prosecutor Lance Pope said the state didn't intend to enter the lineup as evidence because it was hearsay. But he also called Christopher Blackwell, a detective with the Chattanooga Police Department, who said Wednesday that Horton selected Sims without hesitation. And he reminded Steelman that prosecutors played the 11-minute video at the 2015 transfer hearing, attacking Ortwein's argument that Sims' attorney at the time didn't have enough information to probe the identification process.
On Thursday, Steelman said police used the correct procedure during the lineup. And, he said, looking at the video, he could tell Horton was surprised when an officer informed her that Christopher had identified Sims as the shooter.
"With regard to concern about the name being repeated, the court finds from the video that Horton did not hear the name," said Steelman, who watched the video in private Wednesday. "It's reasonable to argue that she could have, but the evidence doesn't suggest it."
Sims' attorneys continued to push back, saying the footage would inflame the jury and cause excessive harm to their client.
"Showing blood-stained walls and showing the body of Bowman on the floor is not necessary," Ortwein said. "Showing the baby is completely unnecessary."
Pope countered that he could think of no piece of evidence that could better show the demeanor of the witnesses and a clear depiction of the scene. Steelman agreed, saying jurors have seen pictures of blood-stained walls before.
There will be issues over Horton's statements once the case goes to trial, Steelman added.
"And for the jury to hear how she said those things - certain, unwavering - is illuminating," he said.
Contact staff writer Zack Peterson at zpeterson@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6347. Follow on Twitter @zackpeterson918.