SACRAMENTO, Calif. — All three murder suspects in the downtown Sacramento gang shootout appeared in court on Tuesday, gathering for what will be the defendants’ last hearing until early September.
Sacramento prosecutors charged Mtula Payton, 28, and brothers Smiley Martin, 27, and Dandrae Martin, 26, in May with three counts of murder for the deaths of three women killed in crossfire during the April 3 shooting.
During Tuesday’s hearing, defense attorneys were granted additional time to receive and review the mountain of digital evidence related to the shooting, including thousands of hours of video that attorneys have yet to receive. The defendants will not appear in court again until Sept. 6.
Michael Wise, who is representing Payton, said in a news conference after the hearing that the process of reviewing video and audio evidence would likely take “several thousands of hours” of investigative work.
“This is a very complex case in terms of what happened,” Linda Parisi, the Martins’ attorney said. “It’s going to be a significant amount of investigative work to figure out how it got started, who got it started, who was acting in self defense and who was acting in defense of others.”
Parisi said that the September deadline would likely still not create enough time for the defense to complete their investigation.
The downtown shootout between rival gang factions included the firing of at least 114 rounds which killed six people and injured 12. Of the six victims, prosecutors say, three were innocent bystanders: Yamile Martinez, 21; Johntaya Alexander, 21; and Melinda Davis, 57. According to prosecutors, no charges have been filed in the deaths of the three men who were also killed because prosecutors say they were involved in the gunfight.
Tuesday’s hearing marks the first time that the three suspects appeared in court together, and the second court appearance this month for Payton, who spent nearly two months on the run before his arrest in Las Vegas.
Wise, who said that he believes Payton may have a “pretty good” self-defense case based on a first review of evidence, maintains that he fled from authorities out of fear rather than guilt.
“This is a very large case, obviously, given the magnitude of attention the case has received,” Wise said. “The fact that he’s apparently connected, even if it’s determined later on to be a justified self-defense case is still overwhelming and intimidating.”
Both Payton and the Martin brothers could face a death penalty prosecution by Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert’s office if they are found guilty of special circumstances connected to the slayings.
All three defendants remain in Sacramento County Main Jail without bail.
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