Former University of Alabama basketball player Darius Miles was denied bond Wednesday in the slaying of a young Birmingham mother.
Tuscaloosa County Circuit Judge Daniel Pruet told Miles, who cried following the ruling, that there were a lot of factors in his favor of the bond issue—more than are usually present with capital murder defendants—and said the bond issue will be revisited at a later date.
Defense attorney Mary Turner argued in favor of granting Miles bond with a lengthy PowerPoint presentation, quoting numerous people who described him as family oriented, God fearing, and respectful.
Turner argued that Miles was not the shooter, contended that he was a block away when the gunfire erupted and said he attempted to de-escalate the situation that night and said that the 21-year-old has never before been in trouble.
People are also reading…
“This is a man entitled to a bond,’’ an emotional Turner said. “He would not be the only (suspect) who has ever gotten a bond on this charge.”
Turner said Miles’ parents—his mother a police officer currently on leave to be with her son and his father a U.S. military veteran—have moved to Alabama to be close to their son and would ensure that he followed every rule the judge placed on him if he was granted bond.
Miles’ family and friends gathered to support him, including Alabama players Jahyon Quinerly, who is said to be a close friend of Miles, along with brother, walk-on Jaden Quinerly, and forward Noah Gurley.
Turner’s presentation included comments from Alabama players.
Prosecutor Paula Whitley opposed bond saying Miles had his gun delivered, provided that loaded gun to someone agitated and moved his own girlfriend away before the shots that killed Jamea Harris were fired.
“Jamea was a mother, daughter, girlfriend, a special lady whose future was wiped out. She was a mother of a little boy who probably loves basketball, a young boy whose mother who will never watch him play basketball,” Whitley said.
Prior to Wednesday’s hearing, Harris’ boyfriend, Cedric Johnson, was served a subpoena ordering him to testify at future court appearances.
During Wednesday’s hearing, lawyers discussed a number of pending motions filed by the defense regarding evidence the defense is seeking to obtain in the case.
The judge ordered some documents delivered and others taken under advisement.
“This case is in its infancy,” the judge reminded lawyers.
Miles, a former junior reserve forward for the Crimson Tide, and Michael Davis, 21, are charged with capital murder in the Jan. 15 shooting death of the 23-year-old Harris.
Davis is seeking youthful offender status.
Attorneys for both men have previously claimed their clients could have been in fear that night.
They said they had seen a gun in the victims’ vehicle and noted that when they could have left the area before the shooting, they instead came back, turned off their vehicle lights and stopped.
It is the state’s position that Davis fired the first shots that night.
