CENTENNIAL — A jury on Wednesday began deliberating the fate of Parish Carter, the third and final man to be tried in the killing of a witness and his fiancee five years ago.
The two other men have been convicted and sentenced to death for the murders of Javad Marshall-Fields and his fiancee, Vivian Wolfe.
Prosecutors are seeking life without parole for Carter, 28, who is alleged to have driven the car used in the shooting deaths in June 2005.
Robert Ray, the mastermind behind the killings, and Sir Mario Owens, the triggerman, are appealing their death sentences.
At issue during the 2 1/2-week trial in Arapahoe County District Court is Carter’s mental capacity. Both sides acknowledged that Carter is “mildly mentally retarded.” However, they differ in what that means in this case.
“The defendant’s retardation does not make him do it,” prosecutor Ann Tomsic said during closing arguments Wednesday. “It perhaps made him a little easier to catch.”
Defense attorney Randy Canney said Ray would have used someone smarter than Carter.
“Robert Ray wouldn’t let Parish Carter drive his car to the store to get a pack of cigarettes or a soda pop,” Canney said. “Robert Ray would never have Parish Carter do anything for him.”
Tomsic said Ray, Carter and Owens staked out Marshall-Fields’ apartment a few days before the murders. The night before the murders, Carter is seen on videotape at an Aurora nightclub trying to bribe Marshall-Fields to not testify, and then threatening him if he did, Tomsic said.
On June 20, 2005, Carter and Owens waited on an Aurora street until they saw the engaged couple leave for the evening.
As Marshall-Fields’ car passed, Tomsic said, Carter pulled alongside it, then Owens hung out the window and fired several shots from a .45-caliber gun into the car.
As the car was stopping, she said, Owens got out and fired several more shots with a 9mm handgun “to make sure he killed two people.”
Canney noted that the prosecution’s three main witnesses were two convicts looking to cut deals and a man who was a lifelong friend of Ray’s.
Canney questioned the motives of two inmates who shared a cell with Carter at the Arapahoe County Jail.
The two inmates said Carter told them about the shootings, but Canney said both men know the suspects and their families and could have gotten information in other ways.
“They lied to the authorities to benefit themselves,” Canney said.
The third man, Canney said, was a good friend of Ray’s and was with him in the days leading up to and after the murders — suggesting that man may have been involved. He was initially a suspect in the case, Canney noted.
“He’s a big part of this,” Canney said.
Carlos Illescas: 303-954-1175 or cillescas@denverpost.com
