A jury trial continued Wednesday for Chase Simmons, the person charged with the 2019 murder of Amarius Winstead and Jasper Brown III as well as assault for the non-fatal shooting of Tyler Glover. Day three included testimony from multiple people who claimed they directly heard Simmons say he shot Brown — though the witnesses had slightly different accounts of what they heard — as well as some data regarding Simmons’ cell phone.
A recap of day three can be found below. Click here for the day two recap. Click here for the day one recap. The trial will resume Thursday.
Quick facts of the case
A party took place at 8221 Crisp Road starting the evening of May 31, 2019. A shooting took place around 12:30 a.m. on June 1. Simmons, 17 at the time, was arrested on June 6, and he was charged with the murder of 16-year-old Winstead and 19-year-old Brown. Simmons was also charged with second-degree assault because Glover, 19 at the time, was also shot one time but recovered from his injuries.
Daviess County Commonwealth’s Attorney Bruce Kuegel is prosecuting the case along with Assistant Commonwealth Attorney Kristin Whitney. Simmons is represented by Patrick Flaherty and Bryce Caldwell. The case is being heard in the courtroom of Daviess Circuit Judge Jay Wethington.
Testimony from DCSO Sgt. Lee Blanton/more evidence admitted
Several more items were submitted to evidence during testimony from Blanton, who also took the stand Tuesday.
Blanton said a total of $1,000 in cash was collected from Brown’s body after he arrived at the hospital. He said that included two $100 bills, 37 $20 bills, four $10 bills, three $5 bills, and five $1 bills. That cash was returned to one of Brown’s family members, but Blanton was not sure which one.
According to a case report detailing the various pieces of evidence collected, the defense team had Blanton read details that showed small plastic baggies with marijuana and other items were collected, and that Brown was the owner of the items. Blanton said the marijuana was never weighed.
Flaherty pressed Blanton on the fact that multiple baggies of marijuana and such a large amount of cash were found together, asking if a detective would deduce whether that may be a sign of trafficking. Blanton said they would, though to this point there has been no testimony that detectives are leading a trafficking investigation.
Blanton also acknowledged extra officers were called to assist with the scene at the emergency room, saying “there was a commotion.” He didn’t recall the specifics, but said the scene was “chaotic” with so many people coming in.
Blanton then read a portion of a narrative he entered into the computer-aided dispatch system early on June 1, 2019. In that narrative, he noted that the family of victims were arriving at the emergency room, and “there were numerous problems occurring and family was making threats to staff and demanding to know information or see their loved ones.”
According to the narrative, once more units arrived to help control the crowd, Blanton returned to the emergency room. He said he stood for security while the Winstead family viewed their loved one. He said he then stood in the halls while the Brown family, “who were extremely upset and had been uncooperative prior,” viewed their deceased loved one.
Blanton’s report further read that during the “extensive time” the Brown family was inside the room, they were allowed to touch the subject as cleared by the coroner on scene, but that during that time someone had removed earrings, a hairnet, and bracelet from the deceased victim. Blanton wrote that a detective documented the missing items, but that they were not of evidence value.
Flaherty asked if it would be fair to say the evidence, which included the victims’ bodies and what they had on, was contaminated that night due to the family being allowed to touch them. Blanton said yes. However, Blanton noted that the items in evidence — including the cash and marijuana — had already been removed by hospital staff prior to the families being allowed in.
During his testimony, Blanton noted that a black and gray backpack was found in a residence on Wembley Way (the home where Simmons was eventually found and arrested). A cell phone, a fanny pack, roughly $2,000 in cash, a plastic zipper bag, and suspected marijuana, among other items, were located in the backpack. While those items were able to be discussed, at that time the backpack and cell phone were denied from being admitted into evidence pending further foundation (though they were admitted later in the day).
Testimony from Savannah Helm
Helm is now 20 years old. She said at the time of the party, she had known Simmons for a few weeks, and that they had become friends and were “working on a relationship.”
Helm said she received an invite to the party from Simmons, whose number was saved in her phone. Helm said she didn’t know if she was going to go at first, but got three friends — Trinity Davis, Tayonese Hagan, and Deverionna Adams — together and decided to attend.
Helm said the location of the party was sent via text by Simmons. According to Helm, Simmons called to say he was heading to the party and that he knew Brown was at the party. She said she didn’t think Simmons mentioned Winstead’s name. Helm knew both Brown and Winstead.
She said Simmons did not make any threats toward Brown during that time. However, she said Simmons had previously told her there was an altercation between him and Brown and that they didn’t like each other.
“I just wasn’t fully aware of the extent Chase would have taken it to,” Helm said.
Helm said Simmons had previously made comments about harming Brown, saying Simmons “would always talk about catching [Brown] lacking.”
Helm said they were almost to the party when she got a FaceTime call from Simmons.
“The first words that came out of his mouth was ‘I killed Rex,’’” said Helm, who also later said that Simmons directly told her that he “walked up on Rex and shot him.” (Note: Rex has already been established during the trial as Brown’s nickname, and most witnesses have referred to him as Rex.)
Helm said her phone was secured on the dash because she was looking at the map when Simmons’ FaceTime came in. She said it looked like Simmons was in the back seat of a car, wearing a black zip up jacket with a hood and a white beater. She said everyone in the car heard the call because the audio was connected via Bluetooth to her car’s speakers.
Helm claimed she didn’t recall Simmons saying anything else, and that she didn’t talk to him any more that night. Helm said she hung up the phone, and asked Davidson to call Oceaniana Myers, who she identified as Brown’s girlfriend. She said at the time, she didn’t know anyone else had been injured.
She also said she did not see a gun during the FaceTime, but had seen Simmons with multiple guns multiple times — “at least” two handguns and one bigger gun.
Helm said she got a few text messages from Simmons in the following days, with one telling her to “keep his effing name out of my effing mouth.” (Note: She self-censored the curse words when testifying.)
She said she took that as a threat, because Simmons had still not been arrested. Helm said that made her feel a “little scared” and “on edge.” She said she did not remember her response.
When detectives first interviewed Helm shortly after the incident, she said she didn’t know anything. She said she didn’t say anything at the time because she was scared.
However, detectives came back a few days later, at which point “I told them that I wanted to come forward and tell the truth and tell them what I knew.” She said she voluntarily gave them a statement, along with voluntarily submitting her phone and her car for evidence — both of which were returned to her a few days later.
Caldwell asked if Helm remembered telling Simmons via text that she would change her story to detectives if he didn’t leave her alone; she said didn’t remember.
However, Caldwell presented a copy of the message she sent in response to Simmons saying to not mention his name. She read, “Don’t tell me what to do. I can go back to the Sheriff’s Department and change my statement. Now stay the eff out of my life. You’ve already caused a huge mess.”
Caldwell said to Helm that it was “obvious you had no problem and no fear responding to Mr. Simmons or threatening him, correct?” But Helm said she “definitely was in fear of what could happen to me.”
Noting that she changed her story once, Caldwell asked if Helm was testifying in order to aid the prosecution, but she said that was incorrect and that she was there to tell the truth.
Testimony from Trinity Davidson
Davidson was called to the stand but was excused by Wethington without giving a statement. Whitney’s only question was whether Davidson had heard any sworn testimony, and her answer was no. Attorneys from each side had a brief discussion with Wethington, and Davidson was excused with no reason announced. (Note: Wethington has ordered that no witness is allowed in the courtroom prior to giving their own testimony.)
Testimony from Tayonese Hagan
Hagan said she was with Deverionna Adams and Davidson when they heard about the party and decided to go. She said Helm was going to drive them all out there, and that Simmons sent the location to them.
Hagan’s recount of what Simmons said during the phone call was a bit jumbled. She first said she didn’t really know Simmons, so she didn’t know “if he actually did it,” but that she could hear him because the audio was coming through the car speakers.
After being pressed on what specifically Simmons said, Hagan testified that it sounded like Simmons said he “gutted” Brown. She then said Simmons said “he walked up” to Brown and “gutted” him. Hagan said Simmons was talking fast so she didn’t think he actually said “gutted,” but she claimed she definitely heard Brown’s name. Hagan said Simmons didn’t say anything about Winstead.
Because of the way Hagan recounted what she heard, during cross examination Caldwell asked if she had a problem remembering or if she had a problem understanding him at the time. She said it was the latter, because “it sounded like he was messed up or something” and she didn’t know him well enough to know if he was being serious. She then said it was a long time ago so it was hard to remember.
Caldwell asked if she could be 100% sure what Simmons said, but all Hagan could say was that she knew Simmons said he did “something” to Brown.
Hagan also indicated there may have been three total phone calls between Simmons and Helm, and that for a portion of at least one call it was possible only Helm could hear Simmons. Hagan said at one point she heard Simmons talking about what he was going to do with the gun.
Testimony from Deverionna Adams
Adams said she was at her house with Hagan and Davidson before they decided to ride with Helm to the party.
Adams said she did not know Simmons and had never heard his name, but that she saw his name pop up when Helm received a call while they were on the way to Whitesville.
“Chase called Savannah and told her that he shot Rex seven to eight times,” Adams said.
Adams said she specifically heard the name “Rex,” a person she knew of but did not know personally. She said she didn’t recall anything else being said.
The girls then turned around and went back to her house, according to Adams. She said she talked to detectives 1-2 days later.
In cross examination, Flaherty asked Adams if, because she did not know Simmons, it was possible that someone else was on the phone even though his name popped up. She said it was.
Adams also said she only remembered a phone call but did not remember a FaceTime.
Flaherty then addressed Adams’ claim of hearing that seven to eight shots were fired. He noted that no one else has testified to hearing that statement — which he said was “kind of a specific detail to not remember” — and she said it was surprising that no one else had testified to hearing that statement.
Flaherty asked if the four girls in the car have talked about the incident in the last three years, and she said yes. He asked Adams if they had “prepared stories” and she said no, so Flaherty asked what they talked about.
Adams repeatedly said simply they talked about “what we heard,” but upon Flaherty pressing on where the information came from she said social media.
Testimony from Christopher Scott
Scott said he was friends with Simmons at the time of the incident, and that in 2019 they smoked weed together three to four times per week.
Scott said in the early hours of June 6, 2019, he received a Snapchat from Simmons saying that he was stranded on the side of the road and needed a ride. Scott said he picked Simmons up from “some trailer park in the country.”
Scott said he’d heard rumors that Simmons was the shooter, so he asked Simmons he did it.
Scott said Simmons’ response was that “he made it past the first 48,” but he didn’t press on what that meant. They then returned to Scott’s residence at the time, a home on Wembley Way. He said they then smoked before Scott went to sleep.
Scott said Simmons had a bag, weed, and money at the time. He said the bag was “like a string backpack” — also describing it later as “like a little sack” and maybe red and black — and that the money was loose in the bag.
Kuegel showed photos of the fanny pack and backpack found at Scott’s house. Scott said neither one belonged to him. He said he “guessed” the backpack belonged to Simmons, adding that Simmons had “a lot of bags all the time.” He also said the phone found in the backpack was not his, and didn’t know whose it was.
When Scott was on the way to work the next day, he was pulled over by law enforcement. He said he was asked if Simmons was in the car, to which he said Simmons was at the house.
While Scott said he didn’t remember giving a statement to the Sheriff’s Office around the time of the incident saying that he’d seen guns at Simmons’ house before, Kuegel showed the statement to Scott, who verified it was his.
The lone questions from Caldwell were if Simmons ever told Scott that he shot anyone or said anything about being at the party, to which Scott said no.
Testimony about DNA
Forensic Specialist for KSP Central Forensic Lab Laura Rauschmayer said her office started the examination and analysis of five items from the scene against blood and DNA samples from Winstead, Brown and Simmons.
Rauschmayer testified that with the partial DNA profile that was on the pistol grip was “a mixture of at least three individuals.”
“No meaningful comparisons can be made to this mixture due to the possibility of undetected genetic information,” Rauschmayer said.
Testimony about data retrieval and phone services
Christopher Ritchell, Custodian of Records at AT&T, testified about call records the company had on file following the shooting on June 1, 2019. Ritchell said that each phone has a built-in International Mobile Equipment Identifier (IMEI), which is a 15-digit number that is only attached to that specific phone, along with the SIM card that allows the subscriber to connect to the carrier. Both allowed them to pinpoint the phone to Simmons, according to Ritchell.
Ritchell said that AT&T is able to determine the location of a phone through two different methods. The first is based on the cell site.
A cell site has three sectors around the pole, each roughly 120 degrees. If someone is within the boundaries of the sector, they will connect to the strongest sector to receive a cell signal, Ritchell said. A phone can not connect to a sector if it is not within the boundaries. Ritchell said they can then determine a general direction and an estimated distance the phone is from the site.
The second way Ritchell said a location can be found is by collecting NELOS data that AT&T conducts. This system creates a circular range in which the phone would be located.
The defense team noted that the NELOS, which is provided by AT&T, has a disclaimer for investigative purposes.
“The results provided are AT&T’s best estimate of the location of the target phone. Please exercise caution in using these records for investigative purposes, as location data is sourced from various databases, which may cause location results to be less than an exact,” Ritchell read from the disclaimer.
He also noted that there can be many different factors — such as terrain, leaves in trees, and more — that “can diminish the signal.” Ritchell said that after AT&T obtained the data, they turned the information over to the FBI to investigate further.
FBI Field Supervisor Kevin Horan testified regarding the call logs from midnight to roughly 1 a.m. on June 1, 2019.
Using the information Ritchell and AT&T provided, Horan was able to determine a rough location of Simmons’ phone during the early hours of June 1, 2019. Some of the maps pinpointed him in the direction of the scene, while one uninterrupted phone call placed him heading into city limits from the eastern part of the county, according to Horan.
They also were able to utilize call detail records, which record all activity on a phone during a period of time — such as voice activity, data session activity, and interactions with the network.
Horan said that he investigated two target numbers: one ending in 9196 — which was utilized by Simmons on June 1, 2019 — and another ending in 2052 — which was utilized by Anthony Pierce.
These phones were found to be together at several points during the night. (Note: Pierce testified Tuesday saying he was with Simmons during much of the time surrounding the shooting.)
Key phone calls, according to Horan, include an incoming call from Helm at 12:13 a.m. to Simmons which went to voicemail, and an outgoing call to Andrew Simmons at 12:31 a.m.
To further investigate the phone for anything that could be used as evidence, Daviess County Sheriff’s Office had to send it to the Secret Service to unlock and retrieve data.
Aaron Gabhert, who was with the DCSO at the time of the case, said it was an iPhone 7 Plus — which matched the IMEI number as the phone Simmons possessed. Gabhert said he was used primarily as a source to unlock the phone before passing it on to Cheryl Purdy, who would extract information from the device.
Purdy was a Digital Forensic Examiner for DCSO who primarily handled the extraction of information. On the iPhone 7 Plus, Purdy said she found an Apple ID attached to an iCloud address containing Simmons’ name, along with a phone number that matched Simmons’ the night of the scene.
She said downloaded and extracted information from several phones that “proved to be irrelevant to this case” as determined by the investigating officer.
In the extraction, Purdy said she downloaded and provided text messages, iMessages, pictures, videos, web history, call logs, and more.
A second phone was taken as well, however, only a partial extraction occurred because the system they used wasn’t able to complete it, Purdy said. They were able to find two Apple IDs that contained Simmons’ name.
Once she was finished with the extraction, Purdy said, she handed the information over to Detective Jerry Spurrier who also went through the entire report from the phones. Purdy noted that oftentimes the report can be “excess” and said at least two of the reports they conducted were deemed such.
“When that report is created, everything that was acquired from that device is included in the report,” Purdy said.
The defense team then stated that they did not receive the reports to which Purdy was alluding.
We’ll continue to provide updates as the trial continues.
