The most recent defendant in the murder of Joshua Oshea Smith was the shooter, 21-year-old Darian Bryant of Macon, who received a life sentence plus 15 years last week for the fatal shooting.

Smith, 22, was gunned down in his front yard during a fight that took place Jan. 3, 2007. In addition to Smith and his family, the lives of eight co-defendants, including three juveniles who were charged as adults, have been irrevocably altered due to Bryant’s crime.

The defendant was found guilty of one count of malice murder and two counts of felony murder by a Jones County jury March 28 after deliberating for a brief 50 minutes and disregarding multiple lesser included offenses. The jury was sent out a second time to consider a fourth charge, the unauthorized use of firearm, and was back in 10 minutes with another guilty verdict.

Under Georgia Law, because the crime resulted in one death, the mandatory life sentences from the murder convictions were rolled into one, and the firearm charge added another 15 years.

Presiding Superior Court Judge Hulane George specified in the sentence that the 15 years was to be served as straight time and not probation.

“This is a sad case,” she stated after the jury returned its verdict.

George excused the jury after thanking the members for their service and gave them the option of returning to the courtroom for the sentencing. The mother of the victim, Sharon Smith, and her two surviving sons, John and James, were in the courtroom during the entire trial.

As the jury filed out, the mother gave each of them what appeared to be a look of appreciation, shaking the hands of several of the panel members. More than half of the jurors returned to the courtroom to listen to the verdict.

Prior to the sentencing, George said she found herself angry at the adult charged in the case.

“But you are old enough to make your own decisions,” she said to Bryant. “I don’t think you have the capacity to control the impulse to pick up a gun and shoot.”

At the end of the trial, Sharon Smith said she was glad it was over.

“This has ended my biggest nightmare,” she said.

The jurors who returned to the courtroom talked to the family, and, with tears in their eyes, held the victim’s two-year-old son.

Assistant District Attorney Gregory Bushway said the amount of time the jury was out was no small detail.

“It emphasizes the message they sent today: if you come in Jones County and shoot somebody, expect to be punished. If the defendant had been appropriately punished in Bibb County for the 2005 shooting, Joshua Smith would still be alive and his son Jaja would have grown up to know his father,” he concluded.

Prior offense

The shooting to which the prosecutor referred took place June 30, 2005, at a party in Macon. Bryant pled guilty in August of 2006 to shooting Raphael Williams in both legs after a conversation with the victim’s friends.

Bryant was given a probated sentence for the crime and was charged as a first offender.

Williams testified in the Jones County trial March 27. He identified Bryant as the same man who called himself Jay Black and shot him at the 2005 party. Williams’ story was confirmed by three other men who attended the party and Macon Police Department Detective Charles Whitaker Jr., who investigated the case.

Whitaker said the witnesses picked Bryant from a computer generated photo array and identified him as the shooter. When arrested, the defendant had the name Jay Black tattooed on his forearm.

Trial begins

The murder trial began with open statements by Bushway and defense attorney Sean Dolan March 25.

The prosecutor told the jury that Smith had just finished preparing bottles for his infant son when Bryant arrived in a Ford Explorer with nine others to confront Tommy Cornelius. Smith lived in the home with Cornelius’ twin sister Tammy, Jaja’s mother.

“They didn’t like the way Tommy treated Asialeena, Darian Bryant’s sister,” Bushway said. “When they arrived, a melee ensued. Josh tried to help and Bryant stuck a pistol in his side and shot.”

Defense Attorney Sean Dolan had a brief opening statement. He said Bryant rode with his aunt and several family members to pick up his sister’s clothes from Cornelius’ residence.

Dolan said Bryant did not intend to take his pistol but kept it on his person to keep it secure. He said when Joshua Smith hit Bryant, the gun came out of his pocket, and it accidentally discharged when he picked it up, striking Smith.

State’s case

The first witness for the state was Corp. Travis Douglas of the Jones County Sheriff’s Department. Douglas stopped the Explorer with its 10 passengers minutes after the shooting occurred. The deputy said he was on patrol nearby when he received the call and actually passed the vehicle with the suspects inside on his way to the scene.

After he was given the description of the vehicle, he turned around and caught up with the Explorer on Shurling Drive. Douglas called for backup when he saw the number of people inside the SUV.

Bryant and his co-defendants were all charged with felony murder following Smith’s death Jan. 3, and each co-defendant pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter before the trial began. Devondra Williams was the first to enter his plea June 15, and Navon Johnson pled July 12. Sidney Sapp, Alonzo Sapp, Areon Outlaw, and Naomi Johnson pled guilty July 30, and Asialeena Sapp was the last of those charged, except Bryant, to plea Aug. 2.

Victor Johnson and Crystal Bryant were occupants of the Explorer but were not charged in the case.

A video of the traffic stop of the Explorer by Douglas was shown in the courtroom. The corporal explained that he treated the traffic stop with caution because of the nature of the call. When deputies Louis Pounds and Dan Bloodworth arrived on the scene, the occupants of the Explorer were told to get out of the vehicle and lay on the ground with their hands outstretched.

The suspects were divided among the officer’s patrol cars for transport with Victor Johnson, Devondra Williams, and Alzono Sapp placed in Douglas’ car. The corporal called for assistance from the Gray Police Department to transport the suspects to the Jones County Law Enforcement Center so he could continue to the scene of the crime.

He exited his vehicle while waiting for Gray police officers and left the recorder running. The subsequent conversation between the suspects was also played in court.

Eyewitnesses

Navon Johnson testified that she and her 13-year-old brother were in the Explorer with their mother Naomi Johnson. Navon Johnson was 15 at the time of the shooting, and the Explorer belonged to her mother.

The witness said her family had been talking about going to Jones County to ‘beat up’ Tommy Cornelius for several days. She chronicled the journey on the way to Cornelius’ house, picking up Asialeena Sapp, and making two other stops to pick up a couple of cousins and Bryant.

Johnson talked about her mother, Bryant, and Areon Outlaw shooting the gun while at Bryant’s house and said they had been drinking. She described the fight and said she saw Joshua Smith holding his side and Bryant standing in front of him.

Johnson pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter and received a probated sentence of eight years.

Navon Johnson’s younger brother, Victor, testified that Asialeena told the group that Tommy Cornelius had raped her. He was told to stay in the Explorer when it arrived at Cornelius’ house but got out and saw the fight.

He said he saw Bryant get hit in the face and then shoot Smith in the side.

Bushway had Johnson step out of the witness box describing what had happened. Bryant turned his head and looked in the other direction during the demonstration.

“When everybody got back in the SUV, they were telling Junior (Bryant) he was stupid and asking why he shot that man. Junior told me I’d better not snitch on him,” Johnson said.

He said his mother was driving away from the scene but did not say anything.

“She was just crying,” Johnson added.

Areon Outlaw was shot in the arm with the same bullet that took Smith’s life. He was one of two in the Explorer not related. Outlaw gave the same account of the night preceding the shooting and stated the purpose of the trip was to ‘beat up’ Asialeena’s boyfriend.

He quoted Bryant as saying, “let’s go show him how it feels to be hit by a real man.”

Outlaw said he did not realize he was shot until he got back in the Explorer. He said Bryant told him to say they went to Cornelius’ house to get Asialeena’s clothes.

“I thought the dude with the Afro shot me,” Outlaw said. “I didn’t think Junior (Bryant) would have shot me. He was with us.”

Outlaw entered a guilty plea to voluntary manslaughter and his sentence was 20 years with five to serve in prison.

Devondra Williams was the other unrelated co-defendant. His story did not vary far from the previous testimony. He said he was the one to throw the first punch in the fight and was tussling with Tommy Cornelius when he saw Bryant pull out his gun and shoot Smith.

Williams said he heard Smith ask Bryant why he shot him. Williams pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter and received a sentence of 10 years with a year to serve in the detention center.

Bryant’s siblings

Alonzo Sapp’s version of the events leading to the shooting echoed previous testimony. He said he wanted to fight Tommy Cornelius but was told he was too small, and that was when his best friend Devondra Williams stepped in.

Sapp said he saw the shooting and stood and stared at the victim while the others ran back to the SUV. He said Cornelius was holding Smith in his arms when they were driving away.

“I told Junior (Bryant) to throw the gun out the window,” Sapp said.

He too pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced to 20 years with five years to serve.

Asialeena Sapp, the catalyst for the trip to Jones County and ultimately the shooting, said she did not tell her brothers about her problems with Cornelius. She said she did not get out of the Explorer and thought it was Cornelius that had been shot. Bushway asked Sapp about love letters she sent to Cornelius after her incarceration.

She pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced to 20 years with four to serve.

Sidney Sapp said he knew why the group was going to see Cornelius. He said when confronted, Cornelius said the allegations were not true. Sapp said Devondra Williams hit Cornelius and the fight started. He also said he saw Smith punch Bryant in the face.

“There were two piles of people, and then I heard a gunshot,” Sapp said. He helped Williams break away from Cornelius and the two of them ran back to the SUV.

“I saw Mr. Smith holding his side, saying he was shot, and I remember hearing my older brother saying ‘I shouldn’t of done that,’” Sapp said.

The witness said he was placed in the back seat of a patrol car with Bryant and he wanted to talk.

“I didn’t want to. I was just thinking about what had happened, and I thought I was going to jail forever,” he said.

Sapp pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced to 10 years with 12 months to serve in the detention center.

Naomi Johnson was the owner of the Explorer and the mother of Navon and Victor Johnson. She is also the aunt of Darian Bryant, Asialeena Sapp, Alonzo Sapp, and Sidney Sapp.

Johnson admitted to drinking alcohol and taking prescription medication the night of the shooting. She said she shot the gun with Bryant and knew he had it with him in the SUV on the way to see Cornelius.

Johnson did, however, deny knowing the brothers and cousins were upset with Cornelius. She said she tried to stop the fight, but another witness had her urging it on. She testified that Bryant told her he shot Smith because he had shot Outlaw.

She pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter and received a sentence of 20 years with 10 years to serve.

Ballistic and forensic experts tied Bryant’s gun to the crime and confirmed that the bullet taken from Outlaw’s arm was the same one that caused the fatal injuries to Smith.

The doctor that treated Smith at the Medical Center told the jury the extent of Smith’s injuries and about the surgeries and procedures performed to attempt to save his life.

“When there are two wounds, an entry and exit wound, it is difficult to survive. His abdomen was full of blood and every organ inside his abdomen had some sort of injury,” Dr. John Williams said.

Dr. Douglas Posey Jr. of the forensic crime lab in Decatur performed the autopsy on Smith. He testified the cause of death was the gunshot wound and the manner of death, homicide.

The path of the gun to Bryant was explained by witness Demario Sanders. He sold the gun to Bryant and was charged with felony murder for selling the gun used in the murder to a known felon.

Sanders pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter Aug. 30 and was sentenced to time served and 10 years probation.

Defense case

Bryant testified in his own defense as the final witness in the trial. He denied being at the 2005 party and said he entered the best interest guilty plea because he did not have money for a lawyer and did not feel comfortable going to trial.

The defendant said he bought the gun from Sanders because, after he was accused of the 2005 shooting, he had strange people riding by his house. He said he feared for his safety.

Bryant said he did not know about his sister’s situation with Cornelius, and he felt she did not tell him because he always got in the middle of his mother’s domestic problems.

Bryant denied even talking to Cornelius about his sister the night of the shooting, stating that he and Cornelius already had that conversation. He said he asked for a cigarette and the others started fighting. Bryant said he did not know who hit him and did not know that the gun had fired.

“They were saying I shot him, but I said I didn’t shoot anybody. I’m not sure he was even coming at me, but he was right there in front of me,” Bryant said. He added that he could not be angry at Smith because he did not know him.

Bryant said he does not remember much after being taken into custody.

“I can’t remember who I was in the police car with. I was taken to the Jones County Law Enforcement Center and have been there ever since,” he said.

Closing arguments

During his closing arguments, Dolan pointed out to the jury that many of the witnesses had negotiated pleas. He said it is not unreasonable to believe that his client did not know about his sister’s problems.

Dolan said he did not dispute that Bryant shot Smith, but he asserted that it was not intentional. He also noted that the accounts of the witness had discrepancies.

“He shouldn’t have had a gun, but he was concerned for his safety,” the attorney stated.

Bushway began his closing characterizing Bryant as the grim reaper and his story of the events the night of the shooting as ‘a trip through the looking glass’.

“All these people who love him told you they saw the shooting. They agree that Mr. Bryant pressed the gun against Joshua’s side and shot him,” he said.

The prosecutor took note of Dolan’s comments about the plea negotiations.

“They got a great deal. They are serving prison sentences and a lot of years on probation. I’m sure they are tickled pink,” Bushway said. “We tried to treat these defendants fairly while holding them accountable for their participation. Only one man pulled the trigger and every one of them was made party to his crime.”

He said Naomi Johnson could have stopped the crime and Asialeena was doing her best to stir it up.

“Months after the murder, she’s writing Tommy Cornelius love letters,” he said.