SAN ANTONIO – After rejecting a plea deal earlier this month, a teen accused of shooting and killing a man and injuring four others at a 2022 Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration is expected to take the stand in his own defense during his trial.
During opening statements Monday, prosecutors told jurors that OL Wallace, 19, was the first one to fire in what they described as a deadly shootout in the parking lot of Santa’s Place on the East Side on Jan. 17, 2022.
Wallace is charged with one count of murder and four counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
The prosecutors said they believe Wallace intended to shoot a man, but instead shot five other people. Among the victims was Johnnie Mobley Jr., 61, who died from his injuries.
“Everyone shot in this case was an innocent bystander,” said Bexar County Assistant District Attorney Raul Jordan.
The defense told jurors that Wallace was exercising self-defense, adding that he is not responsible for killing Mobley.
“We believe that the many different ways [the state is]saying he would be responsible for the murder of Mr. Mobley, for the injuries to these other four people, are purely imaginary,” said John Young, Wallace’s attorney.
The prosecution and the defense said the evidence shows there were at least three to four shooters involved and about 40 casings were recovered at the scene.
Robbie Hamilton, one of the four people who survived the shooting, took the witness stand Monday.
Prosecutors showed jurors pictures of Hamilton’s wound on her left thigh that were taken at the hospital and at the crime scene.
According to her testimony, Hamilton pushed her husband and friend down when she heard the shots.
Hamilton originally did not want to go to Santa’s Place on the day of the shooting because she “didn’t want to get caught in the crossfire,” referring to several shootings on the East Side at the time.
Hamilton’s husband, Milton, described the moments after his wife was shot.
“I just held her hand until we could actually get up,” he said. “’Cause if we would have raised up, both of us would have gotten killed.” He and their friend were not injured.
Milton Hamilton testified that Wallace was the one who fired the shots.
“He was running, just shooting,” he said, describing Wallace’s actions. “Holding it sideways, just running and shooting.”
Another witness, Patrick Minor, also identified Wallace as the shooter.
After hearing the shots, Minor said he hid under a truck with Wallace standing about 10 feet away from him.
“I thought he’s gonna shoot me,” Minor testified. “But he didn’t. He just kept on shooting that direction.”
Minor was not hurt in the shooting, but said his friend who was DJing the MLK event was.
Testimony is expected to continue Tuesday morning.
If found guilty, Wallace is facing up to life in prison.