THE EDITOR'S BOX





Tuesday, December 6, 2011

GTV NEWS: Jury selection begins in 1993 murder

Jury selection begins Monday morning in a murder case that dates back to 1993. 

Robert Gaines is facing murder charges in the death of 8-year-old Lativia Johnson. 

Up until this year, it was considered a cold case. 

Prosecutors say Gaines and another man were looking for a third man who robbed Brown. The owner of a nearby party store allegedly gave them a shotgun and told them where the robber lived. 

Prosecutors argue that Gaines shot Lativia in a home at 1150 Ionia Ave. SW in Grand Rapids instead of the suspected robber on Dec. 16, 1993. 

Gaines' co-defendant, Robert Brown, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in April in exchange for his testimony. He said Gaines pulled the trigger. 

This is what Brown says Gaines told him -- "'I think I killed someone. I shot through a window.' He says, 'I couldn't see anything. There was a flash of light so I shot through the window. I think it was a little kid.'"
Judge James Redford is presiding over the trial.

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