greeny
11-12-2006, 12:19 AM
By Matt Pordum - Court TV
MT. CLEMENS, Mich. — A 23-year-old who says he was pretending to be a gangster from "The Sopranos" when he accidentally shot and killed his friend is now facing a real-life murder trial — and the possibility of spending the rest of his life in prison.
Opening statements are expected Tuesday in the trial of Noah Kuerbitz, who is charged with first-degree murder for killing Joseph Jimenez, 23, on April 16.
Prosecutor Steve Kaplan claims Kuerbitz, then 22, and two other friends began drinking alcohol at noon on Easter Sunday, while waiting for the airing of a new episode of HBO's mafia-themed hit show "The Sopranos."
Kaplan contends that at about 7:15 p.m., a sober Jimenez arrived, and an hour later he and the other two men went to buy more alcohol. Kuerbitz stayed behind, loaded a Lorcin .380-caliber semi-automatic handgun and hid behind a closet door, according to police.
When the three men returned, Kuerbitz jumped out and fatally shot Jimenez in the back of the head from about 5 feet away, according to the prosecutor.
Although defense attorney Azhar Sheikh agrees with Kaplan's timeline of events, he says there is no evidence to support a murder charge against his client.
Sheikh said Kuerbitz didn't know the gun was loaded and the shooting was an accident that resulted from his imitating the actions of "Sopranos" characters.
Kuerbitz and Jimenez had been friends for 12 years, and there was no conflict between them that would support the theory that the shooting was anything but a tragic accident, according to the defense attorney.
Sheikh said the gun was loaded and unloaded by all four men that night, and they also "pointed it at each other all night."
He said the gunplay was like a game of "Russian roulette" that ultimately led "to Jimenez being in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"This was a very foolish mistake," Sheikh said. "If the charge was stupidity, he would plead guilty in a minute. But the prosecution has taken a split-second of stupidity and elevated [it] into something nefarious."
He said the accidental nature of the shooting is demonstrated by the fact that Kuerbitz rushed over to Jimenez to give aid immediately after he realized he shot him, and that he was later angry over how long it took an ambulance to arrive at the scene.
Since the shooting, Kuerbitz has been "tormented beyond belief" and even required anti-anxiety medication for depression he was suffering in the weeks and months after the shooting, according to Sheikh.
The defense attorney said that at most, Kuerbitz should be charged with manslaughter.
Kaplan, however, said the evidence tells a different story.
"This case involves an unjustified, unprovoked shooting by an extremely angry and intoxicated man," Kaplan said.
Kaplan successfully argued during pre-trial motions that the state should be able to seek a first-degree murder conviction against Kuerbitz based on three pieces of evidence.
The prosecutor claims the fact that Kuerbitz loaded the semi-automatic handgun while Jimenez and his other two friends were gone, hid behind a closet door, waited for them to return and then shot Jimenez in the back of the head prove the shooting was premeditated.
The state is expected to call to the stand Eric Larson, who witnessed the shooting, the responding police officer, the medical examiner, a ballistics expert and the detective who took Kuerbitz's voluntary statement.
Kaplan said the videotaped statement first shows Kuerbitz "denying he's the shooter and saying 'I didn't do it. I was in the room, but someone else pulled the trigger.'"
He said Kuerbitz only admitted to pulling the trigger after police told him that Larson and fellow eyewitness Michael Yaek already had identified Kuerbitz as the gunman.
The prosecutor said Kuerbitz then confessed, saying he "didn't know the gun was loaded" and "I didn't mean to fire the gun."
The prosecutor said the ballistics expert from the state's crime lab will testify that although most semi-automatic handguns require six pounds of pressure on the trigger to fire, the one Kuerbitz used required nine pounds of pressure.
"This shows clearly this was not an accident," Kaplan said. "It shows he meant to fire a loaded weapon."
Kaplan said that while he doesn't need to prove Kuerbitz had a motive to kill Jimenez to garner a first-degree murder conviction, he believes the testimony from three prison inmates who were incarcerated with Kuerbitz will show he had one.
The prosecutor said two of the inmates, who were awaiting arraignment with Kuerbitz the day after the shooting, will testify that Kuerbitz "bragged" about killing Jimenez because he "was angry Jimenez owed him $38."
Kaplan said a third inmate will testify that Kuerbitz told him about the shooting, but never said it was an accident or that he didn't know the gun was loaded.
Sheikh questioned the reliability of testimony from jailhouse informants, because "snitches by their very nature are always looking to manipulate the system when they can."
He said one witness was allowed to plead guilty to a lesser charge in exchange for his testimony against Kuerbitz and that the other two will "offer inconsistent stories that will make it clear to the jury that my client never said anything of the sort."
The jury will have the option of finding Kuerbitz not guilty, or guilty of first-degree murder, second-degree murder or manslaughter.
Under Michigan law, a conviction of first-degree murder results in an automatic sentence of live in prison without the possibility of parole.
The trial is being streamed live on Court TV Extra.
MT. CLEMENS, Mich. — A 23-year-old who says he was pretending to be a gangster from "The Sopranos" when he accidentally shot and killed his friend is now facing a real-life murder trial — and the possibility of spending the rest of his life in prison.
Opening statements are expected Tuesday in the trial of Noah Kuerbitz, who is charged with first-degree murder for killing Joseph Jimenez, 23, on April 16.
Prosecutor Steve Kaplan claims Kuerbitz, then 22, and two other friends began drinking alcohol at noon on Easter Sunday, while waiting for the airing of a new episode of HBO's mafia-themed hit show "The Sopranos."
Kaplan contends that at about 7:15 p.m., a sober Jimenez arrived, and an hour later he and the other two men went to buy more alcohol. Kuerbitz stayed behind, loaded a Lorcin .380-caliber semi-automatic handgun and hid behind a closet door, according to police.
When the three men returned, Kuerbitz jumped out and fatally shot Jimenez in the back of the head from about 5 feet away, according to the prosecutor.
Although defense attorney Azhar Sheikh agrees with Kaplan's timeline of events, he says there is no evidence to support a murder charge against his client.
Sheikh said Kuerbitz didn't know the gun was loaded and the shooting was an accident that resulted from his imitating the actions of "Sopranos" characters.
Kuerbitz and Jimenez had been friends for 12 years, and there was no conflict between them that would support the theory that the shooting was anything but a tragic accident, according to the defense attorney.
Sheikh said the gun was loaded and unloaded by all four men that night, and they also "pointed it at each other all night."
He said the gunplay was like a game of "Russian roulette" that ultimately led "to Jimenez being in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"This was a very foolish mistake," Sheikh said. "If the charge was stupidity, he would plead guilty in a minute. But the prosecution has taken a split-second of stupidity and elevated [it] into something nefarious."
He said the accidental nature of the shooting is demonstrated by the fact that Kuerbitz rushed over to Jimenez to give aid immediately after he realized he shot him, and that he was later angry over how long it took an ambulance to arrive at the scene.
Since the shooting, Kuerbitz has been "tormented beyond belief" and even required anti-anxiety medication for depression he was suffering in the weeks and months after the shooting, according to Sheikh.
The defense attorney said that at most, Kuerbitz should be charged with manslaughter.
Kaplan, however, said the evidence tells a different story.
"This case involves an unjustified, unprovoked shooting by an extremely angry and intoxicated man," Kaplan said.
Kaplan successfully argued during pre-trial motions that the state should be able to seek a first-degree murder conviction against Kuerbitz based on three pieces of evidence.
The prosecutor claims the fact that Kuerbitz loaded the semi-automatic handgun while Jimenez and his other two friends were gone, hid behind a closet door, waited for them to return and then shot Jimenez in the back of the head prove the shooting was premeditated.
The state is expected to call to the stand Eric Larson, who witnessed the shooting, the responding police officer, the medical examiner, a ballistics expert and the detective who took Kuerbitz's voluntary statement.
Kaplan said the videotaped statement first shows Kuerbitz "denying he's the shooter and saying 'I didn't do it. I was in the room, but someone else pulled the trigger.'"
He said Kuerbitz only admitted to pulling the trigger after police told him that Larson and fellow eyewitness Michael Yaek already had identified Kuerbitz as the gunman.
The prosecutor said Kuerbitz then confessed, saying he "didn't know the gun was loaded" and "I didn't mean to fire the gun."
The prosecutor said the ballistics expert from the state's crime lab will testify that although most semi-automatic handguns require six pounds of pressure on the trigger to fire, the one Kuerbitz used required nine pounds of pressure.
"This shows clearly this was not an accident," Kaplan said. "It shows he meant to fire a loaded weapon."
Kaplan said that while he doesn't need to prove Kuerbitz had a motive to kill Jimenez to garner a first-degree murder conviction, he believes the testimony from three prison inmates who were incarcerated with Kuerbitz will show he had one.
The prosecutor said two of the inmates, who were awaiting arraignment with Kuerbitz the day after the shooting, will testify that Kuerbitz "bragged" about killing Jimenez because he "was angry Jimenez owed him $38."
Kaplan said a third inmate will testify that Kuerbitz told him about the shooting, but never said it was an accident or that he didn't know the gun was loaded.
Sheikh questioned the reliability of testimony from jailhouse informants, because "snitches by their very nature are always looking to manipulate the system when they can."
He said one witness was allowed to plead guilty to a lesser charge in exchange for his testimony against Kuerbitz and that the other two will "offer inconsistent stories that will make it clear to the jury that my client never said anything of the sort."
The jury will have the option of finding Kuerbitz not guilty, or guilty of first-degree murder, second-degree murder or manslaughter.
Under Michigan law, a conviction of first-degree murder results in an automatic sentence of live in prison without the possibility of parole.
The trial is being streamed live on Court TV Extra.