Suspect claims shooting death was accident

A Pine Bluff man charged with manslaughter in the shooting death of a teenager in Townsend Park last year told police the shooting was an accident.

The trial began Thursday in a Jefferson County Circuit Court for Kenneth Ray Burton III, 19, charged with manslaughter in the death of Kadedra Washington, 16. She was shot April 19, 2011, and died early April 20 at Jefferson Regional Medical Center.

If convicted, Burton could be sentenced to between three and 10 years in prison, and or fined. Burton has pleaded innocent. Kadedra Washington was a student at Pine Bluff High School.

In an interview with Detective Patrick Saffold, Burton said he was sitting in a car when Kadedra Washington’s sister, Ta’Kera Washington touched a gun he had in his lap. He said he took the gun, held it outside the window and the gun when off with a bullet hitting Kadedra Washington in the abdomen. Kadedra Washington was said to have been outside the car on the passenger side dancing when she was shot.

“It was an accident, I wasn’t even looking her way,” Burton said during the interview which was played during the first day of his trial. He also told Saffold he had his hand on the trigger and his hand bounced off the window seal which caused the gun to go off.

Before being questioned, Burton led Saffold and Detective Lt. Rowland Dorman to the 800 block of University Drive where they recovered a Rossi .38-caliber revolver that Burton said he had thrown out the window of Ta’Kera Washington’s car while they were trying to take Kadedra Washington to the hospital. He also claimed that Ta’Kera Washington told him to throw the gun out.

Testifying earlier in the day, Officer Marquis Blake, said he stopped a blue Ford Mustang driven by Ta’Kera Washington on University Drive in front of the E-Z Mart after seeing the car driving at a high rate of speed on University Drive.

“The driver, a young lady, was emotional and said her sister had been shot,” Blake said. “The man (later identified as Burton) brought her (Kadedra Washington) to me.”

Blake said Ta’Kera Washington was too emotional to talk to him about what happened but Burton claimed at that time he didn’t see where the shot came from.

Detective Sgt. David DeFoor testified that he went to the trauma room at Jefferson Regional Medical Center where he was able to talk to Kadedra Washington for a few minutes.

“It was extremely hectic,” DeFoor said. “There were 20 or 30 people working on her and I leaned over and put the side of my head right near her.”

DeFoor said Kadedra Washington said “he shot me but it was an accident.”

“I asked her if she was sure it was an accident and she said ‘he is my sister’s friend and they were playing with the gun and it went off,’” DeFoor said.

Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Stephen Ericson said Kadedra Washington died as a result of a gunshot wound to the abdomen that damaged the stomach, the edge of the liver, and the pancreas.

“There was major tissue damage that caused a lot of bleeding,” Ericson said.

He also said the medical examiner’s office had ruled the manner of death as “homicide,” defining homicide as “a death at the hands of another,” but went on to explain that he couldn’t determine if the death was inadvertently or purposefully caused.”

Regarding the gun, Rebecca Mullin, a firearms and toolmarks examiner for the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory, said she examined the .38-caliber handgun twice, and confirmed that a bullet recovered from Kadedra Washington’s body came from the gun that Burton led police to.

She also said the gun had both single and double action capability, meaning that it could be fired with the hammer cocked (single action) or by simply pulling the trigger (double action).

“In order for the gun to fire either single or double action, the trigger must be pulled,” Mullin said. “It will not fire if you drop it on the ground or hit it against something.”

In order for the jury to convict Burton of manslaughter, Deputy Prosecutors Bryan Achorn and Jill Reed must prove that Burton (recklessly caused the death) of Kadedra Washington. He is also charged with carrying a weapon, and carrying a loaded weapon in a publicly owned building or facility, both misdemeanors.

“It was a tragic accident,” Defense Attorney Sandra Trotter Phillips said during her opening statement. “He was not reckless.”

In his statement to police, Burton said “I never meant to do that to her or anybody. She was like a little sister to me.”

Testimony will continue today at 9 a.m. in the Fifth Division of Circuit Court with Judge Jodi Raines Dennis presiding. The trial is expected to wrap up Friday afternoon.