Judge Barry Steelman addresses Cortez Sims and attorney Brandi Spurgin
A teen charge in a College Hill Courts shooting that left one woman dead, a toddler paralyzed, and two others wounded said Monday he wants to fire his attorney and get a jury from outside Hamilton County.
One of the victims, Bianca Horton, had been expected to be a star witness against Cortez Sims, but she was recently gunned down.
Sims, who was 17 at the time of the Jan. 7, 2015, rampage, told Criminal Court Judge Barry Steelman his case has brought national attention.
He said he could not get a fair trial in Hamilton County, saying local jurors would note "all this violence, oh, it's a black man, he is listed as a gang member. And it's going to be over for me."
Judge Steelman said he will try to get a local jury, but would take other steps if that is not possible.
He took under advisement the issue of whether attorney Brandi Spurgin should stay on the case, and he kept the Sept. 27 trial date.
Judge Steelman said it appeared that attorney Spurgin had done everything she could for the defendant. Sims called her "nonchalant" and said prosecutor Lance Pope was "pushing her around." However, Judge Steelman said he did not find that she was nonchalant or being controlled by the district attorney's office.
Sims told the court, "I know that I'm innocent. I know that I am not the person that did this."
At an earlier hearing in Juvenile Court, witnesses identified Sims as the shooter, though no motive was given.
Prosecutor Pope at the time said Sims was apparently going after Marcel "Baby Watts" Christopher, but he said, "Unbelievably he shot first into the bedroom occupied by the woman who let him in the house and the baby." Then he said he turned the gun toward Christopher and his girlfriend, Ms. Horton.
Christopher was shot multiple times, including near the heart, the lungs and the stomach as well as the side. He stood up and lifted his shirt to display his scars to the judge.
Prosecutor Pope said, "The brutality is unbelievable to me. It's horrific."
Judge Rob Philyaw said, "It’s a myth and a fraud that nothing serious or long-lasting can happen to youth who carry guns and shoot. It’s a lie. It’s a myth and fraud that young adults tell juveniles. There are actions and decisions that juveniles can make that have long-lasting, life-changing repercussions."
Ms. Horton said her friend, Talitha Bowman, was in a bedroom with two of her (Ms. Horton's) children, while Ms. Horton was in another bedroom with Christopher. She said she saw Ms. Bowman going downstairs. Ms. Bowman answered a knock at the door and let Sims inside, it was testified. He proceeded up the stairs.
Ms. Horton said she heard Ms. Bowman say, "Baby Watts, somebody wants you."
The witness, who became choked up several times, said she then saw Sims outside the bedroom door where Ms. Bowman and the children were sleeping. She said, "He was holding a gun and shooting into the room."
She said he then moved outside their bedroom and began firing at them. She was grazed, and she said Christopher went to the floor with multiple gunshot wounds.
Ms. Horton said she went to the other bedroom and found her friend lying dead on the floor. She said she checked on her 15-month-old child, Zoey Horton, and saw that her T-shirt was covered with blood. She said, "I raised it up to see where she had been hit."
She said Zoey was left paralyzed by the incident and she had to have therapy in Atlanta and is still seeing multiple doctors.
Ms. Horton said she barely knew Sims, saying she had seen him about a month earlier "in a roomful of people." She said she heard someone call his name on that occasion.
The state called Chattanooga Housing Authority police officer James Avery, who was at the scene just minutes after the shooting.
His dramatic video of the scene was played in the courtroom.
It showed the child being carried out in the arms of an EMS technician.
The video also showed Ms. Horton sitting against a wall in her daughter's bedroom and being summoned by detectives, who were quizzing her about who had done the shooting.
Police were also asking Christopher, as he lay on the floor, who carried out the shooting. A detective said, "We need to know who did it."
Christopher looked up and said, "Cortez Sims."
He was asked, "Why did he do it?"
Christopher answered, "I don't know."
Christopher asked if he was shot in the heart. An officer told him, "You were shot in the side. You are going to be fine."
Prosecutor Pope asked for "an extremely high bond" at the Juvenile Court hearing. He said Sims had been trying to contact the victims to get them not to testify.
Judge Rob Philyaw set the bond at $1 million on the charge of first-degree murder. The bond is $200,000 each on three counts of attempted murder. It is $25,000 for reckless endangerment, $20,000 for possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and $5,000 on a gun charge.