LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. — The murder trial of three men accused of murdering coach Bradley J. Coleman started Thursday morning in the Hon. Tamela Adkins’ courtroom.
Coleman, 29, was killed in July of 2022 at a Gwinnett County QuikTrip.
Prosecutors argued in opening statements that Josiah Hughley, David Booker and Miles Collins were allegedly members of the Bloods gang and tried to carjack Coleman.
They accused Hughley of firing the gun that killed Coleman, but Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney John Melvin said Collins and Booker are just as guilty.
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“They killed Mr. Coleman individually by shooting the shot and by aiding and abetting the crime,” said Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney John Melvin.
Channel 2 Action News has been covering the death of Coleman, and subsequent arrests and court proceedings, since the coach’s death.
The attorneys also accused Hughley of firing the shot that killed Coleman and accused Booker and Collins of aiding and abetting the crime. Jury selection began Monday.
An attorney for Booker told jurors that prosecutors can’t prove the trio are or were in a gang and cannot prove what role, if any the three men played in the crime.
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In court today, Channel 2′s Courtney Francisco watched as testimony and opening statements were presented to jurors.
So far, the state has called four witnesses: Coleman’s mother, an officer who responded to the crime scene and two witnesses.
Jurors heard from a total of seven witnesses on day one of trial. Coleman’s mother, Venetia Coleman, took the stand first.
She said her son was 29 when he died. He lived in New Orleans and was in Gwinnett County because he was home visiting her and the rest of the family.
“Bradley was so much to so many people,” said the mother. “He was an awesome father, an awesome son. He was an activist, a community leader. He was a coach, a counselor, an entrepreneur. He was an educator, and he educated children that transitioned from the jail system back into society.”
According to prosecutors, Coleman struggled against the three defendants, and Hughley shot him.
“I saw men struggling near a parked car. I saw one of the men pulling another man out of the front seat of the car,” Paige Smith, a witness, told the court. “So, at that point, I made sure I was well-hidden behind my car. That’s when I heard the sound of the gunshot going off.”
She watched the carjacking happen, prosecutors told jurors. Another witness said Coleman was bending down to put air in his tires at the gas station when he was attacked.
“It was apparent to me that something more violent was going to happen. At which point a weapon was pulled out and Mr. Coleman was shot,” Owen Waits said on the stand.
Waits said he took notice when he saw Coleman involved in a struggle with someone outside a car.
While only one man pulled the trigger, prosecutors told the court that Collins and Booker were equally responsible.
“By aiding and abetting the crime when he drove him, and him when he arranged for the car,” John Melvin, Deputy Chief ADA, said Collins and Booker held equal guilt.
Each defendant is represented by a different defense attorney, who each had a chance to speak for opening arguments. The judge allowed each attorney to question witnesses.
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Josiah Hughley’s attorney is Tracey Drake, and attorney Thomas Clegg represents Miles Collins.
“He said ‘I was in fear and it was either him or me,’” Drake said of her client.
Attorneys for Collins and Booker argued that prosecutors can’t prove who did what, if anything, beyond a reasonable doubt.
“Bradley Coleman got shot by someone, and you have to figure out who is the someone that shot,” attorney Lawrence Lewis said, defending Booker.
Jurors also heard from crime scene investigators and detectives. Court resumes Friday morning with the state calling witness No. 8.
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