Curry did not succeed in his effort to get the charges reduced to voluntary manslaughter. Curry was sentenced to 15 years to life for Count 1 plus a mandatory 3-year sentence for a gun specification. There was no sentence for Count 2, which was an allied offense.
The decision came after about two hours of deliberation, closing arguments and a morning session that featured some contentious moments during Curry’s cross-examination.
Despite an objection by the prosecution, Judge Stephen A. Wolaver instructed the jurors in the county’s first murder trial in five years to consider voluntary manslaughter in both counts related to the murder. The jury began deliberations just after 2:30 p.m.
During summation, prosecutor David Hayes told jurors every element to support a guilty verdict on both charges had been presented.
“The only basis for any reasonable dispute with regard to whether or not Mr. Curry acted with purpose is the evidence you heard this morning from Mr. Curry himself,” Hayes said of a version of events that included Curry’s assertion that Moore swung at him when that detail wasn’t in his story to others, later adding. “After listening through two days of testimony, after hearing all the evidence they had, Mr. Curry then decided to tell you a new story…
“What was said this morning is nothing more than an 11th-hour attempt to salvage something, to save himself and to blame Mr. Moore for his own death.”
Earlier Wednesday, Curry told jurors he killed Moore last Christmas, but for very different reasons than those suggested by other witnesses.
Curry testified that Moore swung at him Dec. 25 after what started as a friendly conversation that started with the men saying, “Merry Christmas” to each other turned confrontational after the green Kia Soul parked in the Lexington Park’s parking lot before what was allegedly to be a crack cocaine deal.
Curry testified that Moore threatened Curry, Curry’s then girlfriend Tamesha Rollings and her four children. In a 50-minute direct examination by defense attorney Griff Nowicki, Curry said he knew Moore to be violent and “I was scared for my life.”
On cross-examination by Hunter, Curry said Moore would have known he was armed and that Moore never showed a weapon during the incident. Curry said his beef was with Rollings for giving a statement to police about a different crime and that even though Moore did the same thing, that he “could care less” about Moore and that he had resolved issues with Moore.
Hayes pointed out that Curry told Xenia police Det. Darrin Barlow on April 10 that he intended to “smoke” Moore well before they got to Lexington Park. Defense attorney Griff Nowicki said Curry was trying to implicate others involved and that’s why Curry called the meeting at the Greene County Jail that day.
The burden for proving voluntary manslaughter in the case falls to the defense. “What you have to decide is what was (Curry) thinking at the time?” Nowicki told the jury of seven women and five men about Moore’s alleged threats. “You have to decide if that’s reasonably sufficient to provoke somebody to use deadly force.”
Forensics experts earlier testified that the bullet from the Smith & Wesson .40-caliber handgun was fired from nearly point-blank range and went from the back right to the front left of Moore’s head and struck the Kia Soul. Curry said he didn’t know how far he was from Moore when he fired and denied saying anything to the vehicle’s driver, Acacia Mundy, after he got back in the Kia Soul.
When asked by Hunter where the murder weapon was, Curry responded, “Ask Tamesha” and later said he gave the handgun to Rollings. No gun was recovered in the case.
Curry sometimes asked questions in response to Hunter’s questions. Hunter asked Curry if he made up a story to tell the jury that was different than he told law enforcement officials and others.
Hayes said the ordeal of Dec. 25, 2011 was a play cast in hell: “There are no angels among these people.”
In his closing rebuttal, Hunter said Moore was a “hopeless cocaine addict” but that he was a human being and he deserves justice. Hunter said Moore didn’t know he was coming to an “execution” and that Curry concocted a new story on Wednesday to try to get a lesser conviction.
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