Jury to decide fate of three defendants in Natchez ambush-style double homicide

NATCHEZ Closing arguments are set to begin Saturday at 8 a. m. in trial of three defendants charged with two counts each of first-degree murder in the ambush-style slayings of Brandon Brooks and Taron Woods. Emanuel Hall, Jadarrius McKnight and Jamarron Perkins are on trial for two counts of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths in Sixth District Circuit Court Judge Carmen Drake’s Adams County courtroom. A jury was seated on Wednesday, and testimony began in the trial on Thursday. On Friday, Sixth Circuit District Attorney Tim Cotton and his prosecutors rested their case, as did the defense without calling a single witness. During testimony, prosecutors detailed the day of the murders. Brooks and Woods, both 24 at the time, were sitting outside on the side of Woods home at 44 Myrtle Drive in the Morgantown area of Natchez on Aug. 10, 2023, enjoying casual conversation, video from a security camera at the home shows. Seemingly out of nowhere, three men dressing in black, including hoodies and masks obscuring their faces and wearing dark-colored gloves, stepped from around parked cars in the driveway of the home and opened fire using assault-type rifles. Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Larry Baker, who has the lead on the case, showed the shocking video to jurors and others in the courtroom twice on Friday once during the testimony of Chief Stanley Searcy of the Adams County Sheriff’s Office and again late in the afternoon when Woods’ father, Trevin Woods, testified about the violent deaths of his son and his son’s long-time friend. Choking back tears, Woods described working on a dump truck in front of his home when his grease gun stopped working. He was concentrating on repairing that tool when out of the corner of his eye he spotted a person dressed in black making his way in a stealthy fashion to the side of the house where his son and his friend were sitting. Then, Woods said he heard a barrage of gunfire. “I heard a whole lot of gunfire coming from behind me. I was between the dump truck and the pickup truck and the gunfire was coming from behind me,” Woods said. He testified he did not know exactly the number of shots or rounds that were fired. “It was a long time. It was quite a few rounds,” he said. Woods testified to seeing a older-model black Infiniti speeding away down the street. He quickly went to the side of his house, where Brooks and his son had been sitting and talking. On the video, Woods is shown discovering his bullet-riddled son and his son’s friend. His cries of anguish can be heard on the security video when he realized both are dead. “I just looked for some kind of life, but I didn’t see any. I called 911,” he said. Woods testified neighbors began to come to his home, having heard the gunfire. His wife, who was not home at the time, returned soon after the shooting. “I was trying to stop her from coming around the side of the house, but I couldn’t. She wanted to see for herself,” he said. Earlier in the day, Searcy walked prosecutors through the process he and other ACSO investigators used to collect evidence and develop leads. He said as many as 14 names emerged as persons of interest early in the investigation, but through verifying locations and using information from anonymous tips left on Crime Stoppers as well as information from confidential informants, three names those of the defendants could not be ruled out. In addition, Zackeri Reason, who was 18 at the time, eventually led police to the location of the stolen Infiniti vehicle used in the crime. Reason has been charged as an accessory before the fact in the Brooks and Woods shootings. Reason is also currently serving time with the Mississippi Department of Corrections on two counts of aggravated assault in a Jefferson County case. He was initially also charged with first-degree murder, but accepted a plea deal that dropped that charge. Searcy wrote in his report about Reason’s hours-long interview and discussed on the stand Friday that Reason was not being truthful during his initial interrogation. Searcy said during that interrogation, he took a break after hours of questioning. When Searcy returned, he said Reason changed his story. It was Reason who led them to the black Infiniti vehicle, Searcy said. Reason took the stand at approximately 3: 30 p. m. on Friday. He admitted to lying multiple time to Searcy during the interrogation. Reason said he was trying to tell Searcy anything he could that would let him go home. However, Reason said after the break in his interrogation he told Searcy the truth. Reason said Jadarrius McKnight asked him to help move the Infiniti from Daisy Street to Airport Road. In addition, Reason said before the day of the murders, Emanuel Hall asked him to pick up Hall up in “The Heights.” Reason testified when he picked up Hall, he was carrying a duffle back and two long-guns, which he called assault rifles. Further, Reason said the three defendants had been to his house on the morning of the murders. After leaving, they “drove in the direction of Airport Road.” Reason also testified that Hall and McKnight asked him to set the Infiniti on fire, but he did not do it. Instead, he was able to lead Searcy to the location of vehicle. Investigators discovered the Infiniti had been stolen. Reason said McKnight bought it off of some teenagers who had stolen it. Reason testified that he lied to Searcy because those who talk to police wind up dead. Upon cross examination, defense attorneys worked to impeach Reason’s testimony. They were able to make him admit that he is a frequent liar. Reason admitted he does not always know when he is lying and when he is not. Further, Attorney Zach Jex, who is representing Jamarion Perkins, got Reason to admit he had not seen Perkins involved with the Infiniti, with any guns or other planning of the crime. After Trevin Woods’ testimony, the state rested its case. Defense attorneys rested their cases without presenting any witnesses. They did asked Drake for a directed verdict based on insufficient evidence for a charge of first-degree murder. Drake said the case is a circumstantial one and said evidence does exist for the jury to use to decide the case.
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