Hearing in Poplar Bluff shooting case cut short

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- A Poplar Bluff man's preliminary hearing surrounding the shooting death of another man was halted in the midst of testimony as he waived his right to have further evidence presented against him.

Accompanied by his attorney, Steve Lynxwiler with the Public Defender's Office, Paris Thomas appeared Thursday afternoon before Associate Circuit Judge John Bloodworth.

The 23-year-old is charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action and unlawful possession of a firearm.

He is accused shooting Marcus D. McFarland on Dec. 11 while the 29-year-old was seated in a car in the 1100 block of Benton Street.

McFarland suffered a single bullet wound to the abdomen. He died at Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center of complications from the gunshot wound after undergoing surgery to repair a severed aorta.

The state's first witness was Kimberly Thompson, who was questioned by officers about the death.

"On the second or third interview do you remember telling them that you had overheard Paris Thomas talking about the death of Mr. McFarland?" asked Butler County Prosecuting Attorney Kevin Barbour.

Thompson answered no.

"Did you tell the officers at that time that Paris had stated, in your presence, that he shot Mr. McFarland?" Barbour asked.

Thompson said no.

Given Thompson's answer, Barbour asked for Thompson to be declared a hostile witness because the evidence he had from the officers, as well as a audio tape of Thompson's statement, indicated "she did, in fact, tell the officers that Paris Thomas told her that he had shot Marcus McFarland."

Lynxwiler objected to Barbour calling a witness for "impeachment purposes alone."

Barbour said his actions were not for impeachment alone. "I'm going to use prior inconsistent testimony as evidence that [Thomas] admitted to the shooting," he said.

After hearing from both attorneys, Bloodworth allowed Barbour to continue.

"When you were being questioned by officers about the death of Marcus McFarland, you stated to them that Paris told you that he had had an argument with Mr. McFarland about a girl?" Barbour asked.

Thompson answered no.

"Did you tell them that he went to 1114 Benton and saw Mr. McFarland sitting in a car?" Barbour asked.

Thompson said that is what she heard happened.

When confronted with what she had earlier told officers, who would be called to testify, and the audio recording of her statement, Thompson testified she didn't say "that he said it. I said that I heard that, so that's why I told them that."

If the officers testify differently and the audio tape shows something else, Thompson said, she "probably did say it. I don't recall saying it, but I probably did say it."

Although she earlier told officers Thomas tried to get McFarland out of his car, Thompson said, she wasn't there, but "that's what I heard."

Thompson said she also "heard" Thomas retrieved a gun and shot McFarland through the window when he wouldn't get out of his car.

"I told [the officers] I heard everything, that I heard that that's what happened," Thompson said. "I never said he said it. Everything I told them, I heard from others. He never told me he did nothing."

Thompson also testified she "heard" where Thomas had thrown the gun.

"I told them where I heard that it was; he never told me hisself what happened," Thompson said.

If Thompson hadn't learned of the gun's location from Thomas, Barbour asked who she had heard it from.

After Lynxwiler's hearsay objection was overruled, Thompson said, she overheard Tiffany Brown talking about it.

In her testimony, Brown confirmed officers interviewed her about statements Thomas allegedly made in her presence about McFarland's death.

"Did you tell those officers, at that time, that Paris had said that he had an argument with Mr. McFarland about a girl?" Barbour asked.

Brown said she didn't remember that, nor did she remember telling officers Thomas had gone to Benton Street, where he saw McFarland in a car.

"Do you remember telling them that Paris had stated, in your presence, that he shot Mr. McFarland though the window?" Barbour asked.

Brown answered negatively. "I never said that Dee Dee [Thomas] did that; I don't know," she said.

"If the officers came in to testify about (her earlier statement), your testimony would be that they would be lying?" Barbour asked.

Brown answered yes.

"You are saying that you never told them that Paris made those statements in your presence," Barbour said.

Brown replied: "No. Paris never told me that."

When asked if she told the officers the possible location of a weapon, Brown replied: "Dee Dee never told me."

Missouri State Highway Patrol Cpl. Jeff Johnson testified he interviewed Brown, with the "biggest portion of the conversation" being audio recorded.

When Barbour asked what Brown had told him, Lynxwiler objected to the information being hearsay.

Barbour disagreed.

"These are prior inconsistent statements of a hostile witness, and it is allowed," he said. "Hearsay is an out-of-court statement by a third party, who is unavailable to testify. She can be brought back into this court and cross examined."

Under the statute, Barbour said, this is how testimony of prior inconsistent statements are presented as evidence.

Lynxwiler disagreed.

"Hearsay is hearsay regardless as to what the prior inconsistent statutes say that you can do," Lynxwiler said. " I think the case law is very clear, but for impeachment purposes, which is exactly why Mr. Barbour has called Cpl. Johnson here today, to impeach a witness. That is unlawful testimony."

After hearing both sides' arguments, Bloodworth said, he was going to "take the testimony."

In Brown's statement, Johnson said, she reported being at Thompson's residence and overhearing a "conversation between Thomas and various people in the household ? ."

Lynxwiler again objected, indicating it was "double hearsay" and had nothing to do with Brown's prior inconsistent statements.

Barbour disagreed. "This goes to the testimony that I just elicited from Ms. Brown about what she heard Paris say in her presence," he said.

Although Brown was in another room when she heard the conversation, Johnson said, she believed it was Thomas speaking.

Brown, Johnson said, also reported overhearing Thomas say he took Thompson's vehicle "to where Marcus McFarland was at because they were having a fight over Amber Gibson. [She] stated Paris went up to the car in which Marcus was sitting in, asked him to get out so they could fight.

"Mr. McFarland locked the door and would not get out. He walked, he meaning Paris Thomas, walked back to his vehicle, got a gun, come back up and was trying to shoot Marcus McFarland in the arm, but didn't."

Johnson said Brown reported Thomas shot McFarland through the window.

When Barbour asked whether Brown reported what had happened to the weapon, Johnson said, she had not. "She said she did not know where the weapon went," he said.

On cross-examination, Lynxwiler asked whether Brown had said Thomas' name directly.

"She called him by a nickname. She called him Dee," said Johnson. "It was clarified later on when I asked her, 'Who are you talking about?' and she did say Paris Thomas then."

Patrol Sgt. Scott Stoelting testified he had interviewed Thompson, who he "made contact" with three times. On the last occasion, he said, the conversation was recorded.

"Did she, during that conversation, mention anything about the defendant, Mr. Thomas, being involved in the murder of Marcus McFarland?" Barbour asked. " Did she say that Paris Thomas said that he shot Marcus McFarland in her presence?"

Stoelting answered yes to both questions.

When Barbour asked Stoelting for the details given by Thompson, further arguments ensued between the attorneys over hearsay.

"Ms. Thompson told me that, while she was at her house, at her kitchen table, that Paris Thomas told her that he had had a confrontation with the victim in this case," Stoelting said.

After objecting again to what Lynxwiler described as double hearsay and being overruled, Lynxwiler put a piece of paper in front of his client and told him to sign it.

Lynxwiler then told Bloodworth they were waiving the preliminary hearing. "We are going to waive any further testimony," he said.

After Bloodworth questioned Thomas about his rights and accepted his waiver, he ordered Thomas to appear at 9 a.m. Feb. 7 for arraignment before Presiding Circuit Judge Michael Pritchett on the charges.