Dexter Lewis’ was on display again in court Tuesday as the man convicted of killing five seeks mercy from a Denver jury.
The trial of Lewis, who was , is now in the second stage of the penalty phase in which mitigating factors are presented. Jurors must decide whether Lewis will be sentenced to death or life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Latarsha Bufford, Lewis’ aunt, took the stand Tuesday morning and recounted the abuse a young Lewis took from his mother, Tammesa Jones.
Bufford remembered Jones “punching him like he was a grown man,” she said of when Lewis was a toddler. “He would be bleeding. It would be, like, closed fist to the face. … Something a kid his age shouldn’t have experienced.”
Jones herself was beaten by Lewis’ father, Dexter Lewis Sr.
“He was abusive to her,” said Lewis Sr.’s sister, Rosalyn Lewis, through tears. “He would put his hands on her, and I didn’t understand why.”
He did “unspeakable things” to her, Rosalyn Lewis said. Once, he knocked her unconscious when she was eight months pregnant with their son.
Lewis Sr., a well-known member of the Crips, was shot and killed in a gang-related attack in early 1994.
In painting a harrowing picture of defense attorneys hope that jurors will find that the mitigating factors in his life outweigh his crimes.
Four witnesses were also called to offer a much different perspective about Lewis’ upbringing, showcasing the young man’s leadership qualities and mentioning his unusual talents for art and music. Two church leaders recalled Lewis’ exceptional faith in God, one of them calling him a “prayer warrior.”
Willene Collins, minister of music at Miracle Mountain Church, recalled Lewis’ election by other teens as youth counsel president, which entitled him to attend a conference with teens from across the country in Washington D.C.
“You need someone who really loves the Lord and expresses that to others,” said Collins, describing what it took to achieve such an honor.
Lewis played roles in various Christmas and Easter plays in roles as Jesus, a wise man and the man who carried the cross for Jesus, she said.
“The children loved Dexter and he loved the children,” she said. “He had a beautiful personality.”
Two adult counselors at the Gold Crown Foundation, a Lakewood after-school program, described Lewis as a talented musician, composer and artist.
If no jurors are swayed in the mitigation phase, the trial will move to a third and final phase in which victims’ families will testify about how the deaths of their loved ones impacted them.
