Staff photo / Ed Runyan Mahoning County Assistant Prosecutor John Juhasz on Wednesday uses a satellite image of Martha’s Boulevard Tavern containing notations of where bullet shell casings and other evidence were found in the April 15, 2023, shooting death of Amya Monserrat, 15, outside the tavern. Danyo Sellers, 19, is on trial for murder in the case.

YOUNGSTOWN — Prosecutors rested their case after lead detective Michael Cox completed his testimony Wednesday afternoon in the murder trial of Danyo Sellers, 19, in the April 15, 2023, shooting death of Amiya Monserrat, 15, outside Martha’s Boulevard Tavern on Southern Boulevard.

The defense can present witnesses today and afterward there will be closing arguments, followed by jury deliberations.

Cox testified that he was able to interview Sellers April 21, 2023, at the Youngstown Police Department. Sellers’ aunt attended the interview, Cox said. Sellers was 16 at the time.

When Cox asked Sellers about his involvement in the shooting, Sellers initially said “he was not in the car,” but he later said he “was in the car, that the driver picked him up, but the driver dropped him off at another location just before the shooting,” Cox testified.

The next version Sellers gave was “He said he was in the car when the shooting happened.” He said he was in the front passenger seat. He told Cox that in the back seat was “Ant,” and later identified the other person in the back by a nickname. He never mentioned a female being in the car, Cox said. Sellers told Cox he did not have a gun and that he “did not shoot.” Sellers told Cox he dropped down in the car when the shooting started.

Sellers told Cox he knew Saun Peterson, Sellers’ co-defendant, and said Peterson was driving the car used in the shooting.

Cox testified that gunshot residue was found on the front passenger door area and in the area of the rear driver’s side door of the car, a Mercedes-Benz. Cox said he later learned the name of the male Sellers identified by a nickname and spoke with him. The male denied being in the car, Cox said.

When Cox asked Sellers who in the car was shooting, Sellers first said it was one of the men in the back seat, then said it was both of them. Cox’s interview with Sellers was audio and video recorded, and Assistant Mahoning County Prosecutor John Juhasz played a portion of it.

In a 4-minute portion that was played for the jury, Cox was heard telling Sellers that Cox had obtained video that showed the Mercedes-Benz driving around the tavern multiple times. Cox also described specific movements of the Mercedes-Benz near the tavern and asked why someone in the Mercedes-Benz fired at the time that they did.

Then Cox told Sellers: “Here’s what I see. I see gunfire from both sides at the exact same time.” Cox was referring to there being others in the parking lot of the tavern and gunfire coming from the parking lot as well as from the car.

Cox’s testimony earlier Wednesday included video from a school next door to the tavern and video from St. Dominic’s Church just down the street. Cox said the videos suggested that about eight shots were fired from the Mercedes-Benz. He said the videos suggested that someone in the crowd fired about a half second before the first gunshot from the Mercedes-Benz.

Juhasz asked Cox to explain things Sellers said in the Sellers interview. One was why he thought people in the parking lot were shooting.

“Probably because of how many times we rode by,” Cox said Sellers said.

During the playing of surveillance video from St. Dominic’s Church, Cox described a “flash” that came from the parking lot, then a flash coming from the Mercedes-Benz about a half second later. Cox said the “flash” from the car appeared to be on the upper part of the passenger side of the car.

A brother and sister testified by deposition Tuesday that they saw Sellers coming back into the car through the window after the gunshots were fired. Both said they did not see Sellers with a gun. The two testified that they were in the back seat of the Mercedes-Benz when the shooting happened.

CROSS-EXAMINATION

Defense attorney Nick Cerni cross-examined Cox, raising the issue of a male that was detained at the scene by a Youngstown officer the night of the shooting. Cox said he “was not able to talk to him about his involvement in this issue.” Cox added, “We attempted to talk to him.” Cox said he did not “because I wasn’t able to.”

Cox said the male’s name came up in connection to the shooting, so Cox “spoke to a variety of people. And based off the information I received, it (the case) stands the way it is.”

Numerous objections to the questioning were raised by the prosecution during the questioning.

Cerni noted that there were shell casings found in the tavern parking lot and asked Cox, “Did you ever get a suspect that you pursued regarding the shell casings in the parking lot.”

Cox said, “We only had one name,” which was the male Cerni asked about earlier, Cox said.

Cerni asked if the bullet shell casings were sent to the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation to be “compared to each other.” Cox said they were. When Cerni asked if Cox knew whether the shell casings all came from the same gun, Cox said he did not.

Cerni also asked if Cox knew who the male was that Sellers said was in the back of the Mercedes-Benz that Sellers identified by a nickname. Cox said yes and gave the male’s full name. Cox agreed that the first time Cox met the male, the male gave Cox a fake name.

Cerni asked Cox if he asked the male where he was at the time of the shooting. “It was in my head as the investigation continued to be cognizant of it,” Cox responded. “But I can’t say that I directly did things to prove or disprove him.” Later Cox said he checked into a phone number for the male.

Cerni asked whether Cox obtained any evidence that contradicted the story the male gave as to who he was with at the time of the killing. Cox said he did not.

Cerni asked if the male is the nephew of a Mahoning County sheriff’s deputy, and Cox agreed that he is and that his uncle was the person who brought the male to the Youngstown Police Department to be interviewed by Cox.

Juhasz asked Cox whether the deputy tried to interfere with Cox’s investigation.

“Absolutely not,” Cox said. “In fact, he sought him out and got him to come down.”

AUTOPSY

Also testifying Wednesday was Dr. Elizabeth Mooney, a forensic pathologist and deputy medical examiner for the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office. She testified Tuesday that the bullet that killed Amya passed through the girl’s body after entering her back and exited her left armpit.

The bullet damaged the aorta, which is the “largest vessel of your body. It’s coming off of the heart and gives blood supply to essentially all of your organs in the rest of your body,” she said. It passed through that and passed through the airway for the left lung and through the left lung.

She said the “massive bleeding” resulting from the aorta being damaged would cause all blood pressure to cease. Mooney said Amya would have lost consciousness “very quickly.” Mooney said the injuries would have killed Amya “within seconds to minutes.” Amya had some minor other injuries, such as a scrape on her nose and bruising, but Mooney did not know what caused those.

Mooney determined that Amya’s death was from a gunshot wound to the back. And Mooney agreed with Mahoning County Coroner David Kennedy’s ruling that Amya’s death was a homicide, Mooney said.

The lack of gunpowder stippling indicates that the bullet that hit the girl was not fired from a close distance. It had to have been fired from at least three feet unless there was an “intermediate target,” such as clothing or another object that comes between the bullet and the person, Mooney said.