Opinion ID: 2720490
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Bryant’s Evidence

Text: Bryant testified. While admitting his involvement in the drug business, he denied or attempted to refute evidence connecting him to the murders. He claimed he worked for his brother until Jeff went to prison. Bryant then turned the drug business over to William Settle, who was running things when the murders occurred. William Settle was the brother of codefendant Jon Settle. Bryant was never in charge. William Settle paid Bryant for the use of his pool hall in connection with the drug business. Bryant also worked at Wheeler Avenue counting money. He ―probably‖ had been there every day in 1988. However, he was not there the day of the murders and never subsequently 10 returned. He had never been there with Williams. Bryant‘s activities were all done at someone else‘s direction. Bryant did not arrange a meeting with Armstrong at Wheeler Avenue. He spent most of the day of the murders at home. He denied that he drove a car like the one seen leaving the house. He never spoke with Ladell Player about what had happened at the house. He visited Jeff in prison the day after the murders to get advice about how to end his association with William Settle. Bryant was uninvolved with the attacks on Kenneth Gentry, Reynard Goldman, and Keith Curry. He did not know Gentry, and did not hire Armstrong to kill him. After they were arrested for the Gentry murder, Armstrong told Bryant he shot Gentry because they had both been dating the same woman. Armstrong had decided to preemptively kill Gentry before Gentry acted against him. Bryant had not threatened Reynard Goldman about any drug debt. He denied knowing anything about the attempts to bribe witnesses in the Gentry and Goldman shootings. He had nothing to do with the car bombing of Keith Curry, and never told Tannis that he wanted to kill him. Through the testimony of investigating officers, Bryant presented various inconsistencies between James Williams‘s statements to the police and his testimony at trial.