Opening arguments were heard in court for the first time at the Horry County courthouse for the murder trial of a man accused of orchestrating the fatal shooting of a 19 year old.
Horry County police found Jamie Johnson, 19, dead inside his vehicle and several people were charged in connection to his murder in 2020.
Tronahz Jahmarius Whittington—who was 17 years old at the time of the murder—appeared at the Horry County municipal court Tuesday morning for the start of his trial. He is facing murder, three charges of attempted murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.
Johnson’s family also appeared in court, along with several Coastal Carolina University students. Lucinda Johnson, the mother, walked into the courtroom tearfully as she took her seat.
‘A spider is just a spider and a fly is just a fly’
Prosecutor Christopher Helms began his argument by introducing the players in the courtroom, including his co-counsel, Johnson’s mother and the defense team. When introducing Whittington, Helms said his street name is “Draco.”
Street names play a role in this case, he said.
“That’s how many people in the culture he’s involved in identify each other.”
He then went on to detail the the events of Sept. 12, when Johnson was found dead. Helms argued that Whittington gathered five friends, instructed them to follow Johnson’s vehicle, cut him off and then shoot at him.
“By virtue of sitting in that chair and picking you as a jury, [Whittington] is saying that I’m lying to you,” Helms said.
Defense attorney Ralph Wilson objected to this statement, causing Judge Steven Deberry to pull the jury out of the room.
Wilson argued that the statements made were personalizing the opening argument — Helms was making it personal between him and the defendant. Judge Deberry sustained the objection.
“Sometimes its enough folks, that a spider is a spider and a fly is a fly,” Helms told the Jury after they came back. Whittington “made his web with what he had available,” he said. The crime was not random, and was planned and organized, Helms argued.
After Johnson was found dead, Helms said that Whittington fled to the Greenville area, where he was arrested by U.S Marshals.
‘A deal with the devil’
Attorney Wilson, representing Whittington, began his opening arguments by telling the jury to be patient, and listen carefully to witness testimony.
“It’s not so much what a witness says, but what he doesn’t say,” he said.
Wilson then said that prosecutors, in an effort to find justice, sometimes make “a deal with the devil.”
Wilson argued that the state made a deal with the person who likely fired the shot that killed Johnson that day. All the state knows is what the witnesses tell them, he argued.
There were multiple people shooting out there that day, Wilson said. Only one bullet was found on Johnson according to evidence, he added.
Wilson urged the jury again to pay attention carefully to witness testimony, and to find out who fired the shot that killed Johnson.
“You will decide what happened on that night,” he said.
The trial against Whittington will continue Wednesday. The cases against the co-defendants also remain active.