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YOUNGSTOWN -- Before Judge Anthony D'Apolito announced Wednesday that he had found Brian Donlow Jr. guilty of aggravated murder, attempted aggravated murder and felonious assault in the killing of Christopher Jackson Jr. and wounding of Carlos Davis, he summarized the evidence he heard.
D'Apolito focused on evidence showing three different calibers of weapon fired bullets into Jackson's body and that a key found in the car where Jackson, 21, and Davis, 24, were shot opened the door at a house in Youngstown associated with Donlow and co-defendant Stephon Hopkins.
He also mentioned Facebook Messenger messages Youngstown Police Detective Michael Lambert obtained were written by Jackson and testimony from Lambert indicating that Davis had identified Donlow, 26, as one of the three men who entered the back seat of the car just before gunfire came from the back seat and into Jackson and Davis.
D'Apolito mentioned that no DNA evidence linked Donlow to the killing and that Davis did not pick Donlow out of a photo lineup that police showed him. He said he "relied" on Lambert's testimony, "and the court is well aware that one person's testimony, if believed, is sufficient to prove any element of an offense or any fact."
Nowhere did the judge mention that Donlow was serving as his own lawyer or that Donlow was on trial for a second time in 13 months, having been sentenced to 21 years to life last April in Mahoning County for another 2018 Youngstown murder.
But Lambert did mention that fact while being cross-examined by Donlow as the last witness of the two-day trial earlier Wednesday.
Donlow seemed to be gaining steam as he questioned Lambert about a remark Lambert made to Davis. It was after Davis had looked at a lineup of photos, including one of Donlow, and did not pick out any of them as having been in the car that night.
Lambert agreed that he had pointed to Donlow's photo and said Donlow was "the reason I showed you the lineup." Donlow continued to ask Lambert questions suggesting that Lambert's remark could have influenced Davis to later identify Donlow as having been in the car.
Lambert said he made that remark because he suspected Donlow was involved in the murder because of the earlier Youngstown murder for which Donlow and Hopkins, 25, were convicted of murder.
Donlow asked why Lambert why he would still consider Donlow a suspect after Davis did not pick out his photo from a lineup.
"You killed somebody else with this man," Lambert said, referring to Donlow's murder conviction with Hopkins.
But Donlow objected because at the time of the linup, Donlow and Hopkins had not yet been convicted.
"So it was just your opinion I killed someone else," Donlow said.
"No, your face was on that video," Lambert said of surveillance video from an apartment complex that showed some aspects of the other murder.
"That's your opinion at the time," Donlow countered.
"It's not an opinion. We have a video of what you did," Lambert said. "You were a known associate of (Hopkins), and you are known for killing people with him," Lambert said.
"It was your opinion that I was known for killing people?"
"No, that guy was really dead and you killed him," Lambert said.
When Donlow asked the question again, Lambert said, "There was a video of you firing a gun and killing."
D'Apolito presided over Donlow's first trial also. Donlow asked to have this case tried directly to the judge without a jury. D'Apolito will sentence Donlow in the new case at 9:30 a.m. May 11.
Before Lambert testified, D'Apolito had to determine that it would be appropriate for him to testify to what Davis told him because that sort of testimony is typically barred as being "hearsay."
The judge found it was allowable because Davis had come to court on Tuesday and invoked his Fifth Amendment right to refuse to answer questions on the grounds that it could incriminate him. The judge found Davis in contempt of court and sentenced him to 30 days in jail.
Assistant Prosecutor Mike Yacavone argued that the reason Davis would not testify was that Davis felt threatened by Donlow or his associates. One possible reason, Yacovone said, is that the state prison system inadvertently placed Hopkins and Davis in the same prison at one point until the prosecutor's office pointed out the issue and it was corrected.
In allowing Lambert to testify to what Davis told him, the judge said he found that Davis "was afraid."