Murder victim Alfred Pitmon
The daughter of a murder victim told a Criminal Court jury on Wednesday that Marvin Menifee was at her father's home on Seventh Avenue along with four other teens wearing ski masks on the night he was murdered.
Menifee, who is now 21, is standing trial in the courtroom of Judge Boyd Patterson for the first-degree murder of 38-year-old Alfred Clarence Pitmon Sr.
The witness, who asked that her name not be made public, said she and a female friend had driven to the home on the night of Oct. 25. 2021, to return the keys to her father's vehicle. She said they were sitting in it using their phones when the friend let out a yell. She said Menifee had suddenly appeared at a window.
The daughter said she had known Menifee since they were kids and said her father had helped raise him. She called him "Little Marvin."
She said Menifee joked around with her and he and the teens then went inside the house and then came back on the porch. She said Menifee had a ski mask also, but had it pulled up while interacting with her.
The witness said the other teens "were acting weird" and trying to shield their faces from her.
She said Menifee often wore colorful outfits, but this time he was in all black, including a black hoodie, black pants and a black fanny pack.
She said she got out of the vehicle and hugged Menifee, saying she had not seen him for a long time. She then went inside. She said Menifee and the group followed her in.
She said she went to her room and then to see her father, who was in his bedroom. She acknowleged that her father was "a small time marijuana dealer" who wore lots of gold, including necklaces, bracelets, watches and rings.
The daughter said she told her father that Menifee was in the front room with others.
She said she called for an Uber to pick her and her friend up since they left the vehicle keys. She said as they left she saw Menifee locking the front door.
The daughter said that concerned her and she texted her father. She said he never answered the text. His body was discovered later that night by his wife after she got off work. He had been shot four times.
She said some of his jewelry was located, but some is missing. Attorney Dan Ripper noted that $267 in cash was found on the victim.
The witness took a long time getting to the witness stand and spoke in a low voice while often taking a long time to answer.
Earlier in the day, Judge Patterson announced that there had been a report of a witness being threatened. He warned that could lead to a charge of coercing a witness.
Video that was apparently taken on a phone inside the courtroom at the trial was reportedly placed on Facebook before being taken down.
Detective Daryl Slaughter said Menifee and the other teens were caught on a Ring doorbell video walking toward the victim's home. He said it was the type of Ring system where movement causes a bright light to come on. The house was three doors away from the Pitmon residence.
He said Menifee gave a statement, but changed his story several times when being confronted with pieces of evidence he had.
An expert from the TBI Lab testified that some bullets found at the scene came from a Hi Point 40 caliber handgun that was found at a residence on the Westside where Menifee was arrested.
A number of shell casings and projectiles were found inside and outside the house, with some spotted during a re-search of the house a month and a half later. Items found then included a bullet in the floor and others in and under the victim's mattress.
Some of the projectiles and shell casings found were from a rifle-type firearm, it was stated.
Dr. James Metcalfe, retired medical examiner who did the autopsy, said the shot that did the most damage had a projectile that carved a wide path while going through the heart.
The victim was also shot twice in the thigh. A fourth shot grazed his upper right arm.
Dr. Metcalfe said all the shots came from the right side in a downward direction.
A female resident of College Hill Courts said she had just walked outside when she bumped into Menifee. She said they had dated briefly at one time, but she had not seen him in a long time. He had a black fanny pack with him as well as a backpack.
She said he had two friends with him.
The witness said she suggested that Menifee go inside with her and "match" - share marijuana blunts. She said one of the friends came in also.
She said their plans were interrupted when a host of police showed up at her front door on Cypress Street.
She said Menifee said he was going to give himself up, but he first took something upstairs. She said the friend also went upstairs.
Police later found fanny packs and back packs stuffed in a closet with one containing a Hi-Point 40 handgun.
Kenneth Z. Moore is also charged with the Pitmon murder. He is due in Judge Patterson's courtroom on March 26.