IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIRST mDICIAL DISTRICT

OF HINDS COUNTY, MISSISSIPPI

STATE OF MISSISSIPPI PLAINTIFF

VS. NO. 08-31

SHARROD MOORE RIC DEFENDANT

.c.

STATE'S RESPONSE TO DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO COMPEL

The State promptly provided discovery upon the Defendant's request. The

Defendant made a further request for additional discovery in the form of a letter itemizing

31 pieces of evidence. The State promptly provided the itemized request to the Cold Case

Unit of the Jackson Police Department. The Cold Case unit is currently searching for

these items per the Defendant's request. Further, the State has newly discovered evidence

that has led to a subsequent investigation. Attached is a transcript of the newly discovered

evidence, an eyewitness to the crime. The defense will be furnished newly discovered

evidence as it is received from the various agencies involved in this investigation.

While the Defendant is constantly requesting discovery from the State, the

Defendant should be reminded that it has an obligation to provide reciprocal discovery

pursuant to U.C.C.C. rule 9.04 of the Mississippi Rules of Discovery. The Defendant has

yet to furnish any discovery whatsoever to the State at this time.

The Court does not need to enter an order compelling the State to provide

evidence until the Defendant provides its reciprocal discovery, and until the Jackson

Police Department and other agencies complete its investigation on the newly discovered

evidence.
••

1st
Respectfully submitted, this the ~ lay. of April, 2008.
7ZLe" t-J)_.
ROBERT SHULER SMITH
121
~f _. _

HINDS COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE

P.O. BOX 22747
HINDS COUNTY COURTHOUSE
JACKSON, MS 39225-2747
TEL. (601) 968-6568
FAX. (601) 968-6655

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I, Robert Shuler Smith, hereby certify that I have delivered via hand delivery, a

true and correct copy of the foregoing Motion to Compel to:

Charles R. Mullins (MSB# 9821)

Coxwell & Associates, PLLC
500 North State Street
Post Office Box 1337
Jackson, MS 39215-1337
Tel. (601) 948-1600
Fax. (601) 948-7097

This the Z 1# day of April, 2008. !I

W~+JM--
ROBERT SHULER SMITH
 1

5 STATEMENT OF STEPHAN HICKMAN

HINDS COUNTY COURTHOUSE
6 MARCH 27, 2008

9
APPEARANCES:
10
HONORABLE ROBERT SMITH
11 HONORABLE WINSTON THOMPSON
Office of the District Attorney
12
DETECTIVE FELIX HODGE
13 DETECTIVE KENNETH WEST
Jackson Police Department
14

15

16

17

18 Reported by: Connie Chastainr RMRr CSR

Official Court Reporter
19 Post Office Box 327
Jacksonr Mississippi 39205
20 CSR NO. 1025

21

22

23

24
~~< .•

25
 2

1 STEPHAN HICKMAN,

2 having first been duly sworn, was examined and testified

3 as follows, to-wit:

4 EXAMINATION BY MR. SMITH:

5 Q. Please state your name for the record.

6 A. My name is Stephan Hickman.

7 Q. And where are you housed right now?

8 A. In Hinds County Detention Center.

9 Q. Okay. And what are you charged with?

10 A. Right now murder.

11 Q. Murder?

12 A. Yes, sir.

13 Q. Okay. And who represents you on that case?

14 A. Allison Kelly.

15 Q. Okay. And how long have you been in the

16 Raymond Detention Center?

17 A. Seven and a half months right now.

18 Q. Okay. Now, we spoke to you earlier this

19 morning. Is that correct?

20 A. Yes, sir.

21 Q. Okay. Robert Smith, Hinds County District

22 Attorney?

23 A. Yes, sir.

24 Assistant District Attorney Winston Thompson?

25 Yes, sir.
 3

1 Q. And Detectives West and Hodge from the

....••
2 Jackson Police Department; correct?

3 A. Yesr sir.

4 Q. Okay. We had received information that you

5 wanted to give us some information --

6 A. Yesr sir.

7 Q. -- on the R. J. Washington case?

8 A. Yes, sir.

9 Q. Is that correct?

10 A. Yes, sir.

11 Q. Okay. Are you giving these statements on

12 your own free will?

13 A. Yes, sir.

14 Q. Has anyone forced you to give these

15 statements?

16 A.

17 Q. Has anyone threatened you to give any

18 statements?

19 A. NOr sir.

20 Q. And so you're doing this on your own free

21 will?

22 A. Yes, sir.

23 Q. Okay. Now, we didn't talk to you at all

24 about your pending charge on murder, or capital murder;

25 correct?
 4

1 A. No, sir.

2 Q. Okay. We advised you that you have a right

3 to your attorney to be present on those charges;

4 correct?

5 A. Yes, sir.

6 Q. Okay. Now, start where you can tell us about

7 the facts and circumstances surrounding the R. J.

8 Washington case.

9 A. Well, in the same fact --

10 Q. You're going to have to speak up.

11 A. In the fact with the R. J. Washington case,

...../
.•.•.

12 it was I, myself, Stephan Hickman, and Shawn Burton,

13 Larry, I can't recall his last name right now.

14 Q. Is it Larry Nelson?

15 A. Yes, sir.

16 Q. A/k/a Chicago?

Yes, sir. And it was Sherrod Moore. All of

17 A.

time younger, about 15 or 16. And on

18 us were at the

of the YMCA on the corner of

19 this day we were in front

and Farish, but on the other end of Farish.

20 Monument

We walked up on Rashad Moore talking to Frank

21

he needed some money, and but Frank

22 Melton about that

23 Melton wouldn't give him any. So at that point in time

24 the conversation went on to say that Sherrod asked him

25 for some money and he said that well, he ain't got no

 5

1 money.

2 Q. Who is he?

3 A. Frank Melton said he doesn't have any money.

4 Go on and ask Mr. Washington, Robert Washington, which

5 was a police officer at the time. Then Rashad told him

6 he didn't have anything to do with him anymore. So at

7 the time Frank Melton told him well, show me you don't

8 have anything to do with him anymore.

9
So Frank Melton jumped in -- got us out of

10 his vehicle, at the time he had a Mercedes Benz, and

11 left. So a few hours later after we were still there,

12 Robert Washington pulled up on the scene and called

13 Sherrod's name and asked him, said, what's up. So he

14 was like well, I need some money.

So for a second he stood there. Then Larry

15
16 Nelson jumped on the back seat, so he jumped back inside

17 the police cruiser.

18 Q. He who?

19 A. Robert Washington.

20 Q. Okay.

21 A. He pulled around the corner a few blocks and

22 just went a few blocks and came back with Larry Nelson

23 on the back seat. So when he came back Sherrod jumped

ln the front seat. He was on the passenger's side of

24

25 the cruiser with Robert Washington.

 6

1 BY THE REPORTER: I'm sorry. Say that

2 again.

3 A. He jumped inside the cruiser, police cruiser,

4 with Robert Washington, on the passenger's side of the

5 police cruiser.

6 So they was leaving. Me and Shawn Burton,

7 myself, Stephan Hickman, were sitting on the outside

8 just on the curve for a second when they pulled off,

9 when me and Shawn was like, well, we are going to follow

10 behind them to see where they're going because they had

11 just left us there.

So we had a hot car. The car was stolen. We

12

13 jumped inside of the car and we pursued them as far as

14 going down South Drive. We didn't go all the way to

15 South Drive but we knew they went to the baseball field

16 that was there, right there in front of the army --

17 where the army base or whatever.

18 But we turned off from Lindsey and pulled

19 into like into the alley on Vandergriff and Lindsey, and

20 we got out and got inside the pathway going toward the

21 baseball field. At the time we really just couldn't

22 hear the full conversation of what was going on, but

23 whatever was going on, they had told Larry Nelson to

24 leave. So --

25 BY MR. SMITH: (Continuing)

 7

1 Q. Who is they?

A. Robert Washington and Sherrod Moore had

2

3 told I guess had told him to leave or something.

4 Q. Did you see this or hear this?

A. No. We you know, you could tell the

5

6 action because he got out the back seat after the door

7 was open by Robert Washington and just started walking

8 off.

9 Q. Okay.

10 A. So you know, it looked like that was his cue

11 to just leave. So at the time Larry Nelson was walking

12 off, Robert Washington had Sherrod Moore on the front of

13 the police cruiser with his pants down, and was

14 pulling and Robert Washington was pulling his pants

15 down.

16 So while his pants was down, Sherrod reached

for his service gun. And, you know, we saw the first
17

It was just like a flash. And then we seen him

18 round.

19 pulling for his pants to get up. And then, you know, he

20 was kind of trying to leave, trying to run away, but

21 then

22 Q. Who?

23 A. Robert Washington was trying to -- we didn't

24 know if he was shot or what. But we heard the shot rang

25 out after we seen him grab the gun. Me and Shawn

 8

1 Burton.
So at that time he shot two more times. Now,
2
3 we didn't stay to see if he was hit or where he fell,

4 but while we were leaving, you know, Larry Nelson never

5 did make it up the street.

So we jumped inside the car, and we wasn't

6

7 going to follow behind them because, you know, he

8 immediately called us and told us, you know, to follow

9 behind him to see which way he was gOlng or whatever.

10 But we never did until someone else, our home boy,

11 Anthony James from out there in the addition told us

12 that they were in the addition, which was Washington

13 Addition, you know, Valley Street and Barrett, in that

14 area, said that they was over there in a police cruiser.

Now, in the same incident we was wondering

15
Now, we didn't know
16 what happened to Robert Washington.

17 exactly what happened then, but we found out later on

18 that Larry had helped Sherrod pull him and put him in

19 the trunk, and then, you know, they fled the scene of

20 the crime after they got to the addition.

So Renee, Tracy Bingham's sister, Renee

21
22 Bingham, picked Sherrod up on Dalton Street after all

23 this incident happened. This is basically what happened

24 to him.

Okay. Now, did you either know or have

25 Q.
 9

1 information that Sherrod Moore -~ well, let me ask you.

2 Who was driving the police car?

Washington was driving the police car

3 A. Robert

it to the field. Now, after they left

4 once they made

5 the field Sherrod was driving.

Okay. And how do you know that?

6 Q.

Because when he made it to the -- when we

7 A.

the scene he was just getting out.

8 made it to

9 Q. What scene?

A. Made it back to the addition he was just

10
11 getting out going up the street, because we stayed a

We stayed right there. It used to be like a

12 distance.

13 food restaurant like on the corner of Lincoln and Hill

14 Street where I used to cook food and stuff right there.

15 Well, we parked the car right there and we were walking.

Now, Larry got out on the corner of Topp

16

17 Street and Lincoln. But now, Sherrod drove the car as

18 close to Dalton as possible in some kind of way. You

19 know, I guess they had already called for somebody to

20 come pick him up.

21 But we came to find out that Renee came and

22 picked him up on Dalton because she immediately called

He's
23 everybody else like, you know, I just got Sherrod.

in some trouble. And they alerted to us, tell us where

24

25 he was. And you know, we all met back up where we

 10

1 always meet up at, right there off Bailey.

2 Q. Bailey Avenue?

3 A. Yes, sir.

Okay. Have you received or do you have

4 Q.
5 information of any threats against you by either Sherrod

6 Moore or Paul Moore?

7 A. Yes, sir.

Q. Okay. Can you tell us about that?

8
See, the threat was that if I said anything
9 A.
at the time Howard
10 about Paul Moore, Sherrod, Shawn

11 was involved in it, because, you know, not too far back

12 he was on a case to where our home boy, Sweet Pea, which

13 came up dead, you know, inside the apartment complex off

14 Valley Street. They had shot it up.

Now, that was after the fact. But he was

15
You know, if you say
16 like don't nobody say anything.

17 anything you already know what your consequences 8re

18 because inside our unit people was more of the fact of

You know, you came here this way;

19 blood in, blood out.

20 you're going to leave here this way.

And how did you specifically receive
21 Q. Okay.

22 threats regarding the Sherrod Moore case or regarding

23 Paul Moore and his activities in any case?

A. He made it known, you know.

24

25 Q. He who?
 11

1 A. Sherrod made it known that, you know, if

2 he told first of all, he told Shawn, he said if

3 anybody says anything about the charge, you know what

4 I'm saying, about any of the charges because see, at

5 this time we were locked up.

6 And I was in 5539 In A-I, and Paul Moore was

So you know, Paul would you know

7 In 5538 in A-I.

8 what I'm saying, me being next-door because Joe Bennett,

9 he was in the city. He left. And he was like man, they

10 put you right next-door to me and you're the person I

11 need to talk to.

So Paul was like man, you know Sherrod is

12

locked up right now. He said, you know, all you got to

13
14 do is keep your mouth closed, you know. We'll give you

15 $150,000, you know, just to keep your mouth closed, and

16 everything will be all right.

But now, it started getting hectic because he

17
18 was getting in over his head, and he thought he was just

19 going to get some major time. So what he did was, you

When I got out -- I got out on

20 know, he sent a carrier.
I got out of jail. And when
21 the 5th of July of 2005.

22 I __ immediately when I got out of jail it was kept

23 hidden, you know, Sherrod's looking for you, he want to

But he was already locked up. So the only

24 talk to you.

25 person that was really giving word was Howard that was
 12

lout there. He was like man, Sherrod said don't say

2 anything. You know, he's got you some money once he

3 touch down, and just be quiet.

4 But now, since I've been locked up now it's

5 like my wife, she done had to move because it was so

6 many different threats talking about what they was going

7 to do to me about Sherrod, about Paul, and about the

8 case that I'm currently on, that she had to move.

9 And then I go to Parchman as soon as I get

10 violated because they violated me on probation. We had

11 cell phones in Parchman, so we could really communicate

12 to each other. I could call Paul, Paul could call

13 Shawn, because everybody had a cell phone with inside

14 the prison system.

15 So I didn't find out what happened until I

16 called Paul's fiance, or girlfriend, whichever the sort,

17 because Paul used to calIon Shawn on the three-way

18 phone and be like, what's going on, what's going on with

19 the case. And you know, they would give him an update

20 on what the District Attorney got, what evidence they

21 got, who's talking and who's not talking.

22 Now, at this point Shawn, he was scared for

23 his life. Now, he told us on the telephone Shawn

24 told Paul on the phone, said look, they got me in a bind

25 right now. He said we need -- you know what I'm saying,

 13

1 I need you. He said, I know your brother needs you.

2 You don't need to let the witness make it. Who the

But Paul was out in the free

3 witness was, I don't know.

4 world.
So after a while I contacted Paul. Paul
5
6 couldn't be found so I was talking to his girlfriend,

She was like he done did something but I don't

7 Jackie.
So when I finally did talk to him
8 know what it is.

9 Shawn tells me on the phone, said man, you know what

10 this stupid M-F do. He said, man, he done went to these

11 folks' house and he threatened this lady through the

12 door and didn't kill her. And I was like what you mean.
Now they're looking
13 He said he didn't kill the witness.

The lady, they done moved, and now they're

14 for Paul.

15 looking for Paul now because he's the one that

And all he had to do was kill

16 threatened a witness.
she wouldn't have said
17 her. She wouldn't have to say

18 anything.
So behind that Paul gets caught, gets locked
19
Shawn comes down to downtown to see about his
20 up.

Now, while he was with me he told me, he

21 charge again.
22 said man, I'm not going to make it in the penitentiary.

23 He said I already know they're going to take me out,

24 which I already knew this because before I left I get

25 the text message on my track phone, Shawn -- he was like

 14

He's
1 Shawn needs to leave, you know what I'm saying.

2 next, because without him they ain't got no case.

3 And then he said I know you ain't going to

4 say nothing, he said, because, you know -- everybody

5 knew what was going on, you know, if I said anything or

But in this case Shawn was the

6 Shawn said anything.

7 only person that was talking because he was just

He wasn't just talking
8 outrightly talking to everybody.

9 on his behalf to people that were going to help him; he

10 was telling everybody what was going on. Trying to

11 clear his name through different police, telling people

And he thought
12 in the free world what was going on.

13 they were going to help him, but all the people were

14 going back and tell Sherrod because he basically -- he's

15 a gangster. And everybody that got anything to do with

16 B D Gangster, 7-4 or whatever, they abide by his word.

17 whatever he say, it go. They're not going to overlook

18 that. They're going to take it and run with it. If he

19 say well, go to the house, sit down, wait for my call,

20 that's what they're going to do.

Have you received any phone calls or
21 Q. Okay.

22 any information while being housed in downtown Jackson,

23 Raymond Detention Center?

24 A. Yeah, I have.

Okay. Can you tell us about that.

25 Q.
 15

A. Well, since I've been down here, Shawn was

1
And Shawn, when he first -- immediately
2 housed with me.

3 when he got here he had told me about what was going on

4 with Paul and Sherrod. He said Sherrod had been locked

They just brought up a new case. He said

5 back up.
He said that
6 Frank Melton is supposed to be in on it.

7 right now, he said, I really don't know what's going to

8 happen.
Now, as far as did someone verbally threaten
9
10 me, no, they wouldn't do it because I got too many

11 people that, you know, that sympathize in the situation

12 that I am. And then they'll go and tell somebody of a

13 higher authority that's inside the jail that they know

14 they wouldn't let anything happen to me.

All right. You were -- on the fact

15 Q. Okay.
did you, or did you receive a phone call or
16 that you

17 information to pass on to someone else?

A. Pertaining to as far as --
18
Well, as relates to Burton, or did you
19 Q.

20 receive any information to pass on to Burton?

You know, it was told to me to tell

21 A. Yeah.

22 Shawn, you know, if he said anything, you know what I'm

You know, if
23 saying, he knew what he was going to get.

Sherrod told Paul, paul told Sherrod to tell

24 he told
to tell Shawn that if anything -- if anything
25 me that
 16

he'll never see the courtroom. That were

1 happen to him

on the cell phone. He said if anything

2 his words

- - he said if anything happen to me you will

3 happen

see tell him he will never see the courtroom.

4 never

That was the plan. That was it.

5 And that was just it.

Q. Did Burton receive instructions to call a

6

7 particular person?

A. Talking about as far as his girl about the

8

9 Camcorder?

Q. Well, you can tell us about that too.

10

A. Shawn wanted to know where his Camcorder was.

11
He called her on the phone
12 She said she had found it.
And she said well, I got it in my hand right
13 down here.
He asked her specifically, he said, you know where
14 now.
15 I put the battery case -- you know, on the back of a

16 Camcorder you put the battery on the back of it. But

He said do you have

17 see behind is like a little slot.

She said yeah. Said well,

18 that Camcorder with you.

19 it's supposed to be a piece of paper in between the

20 slide. He said can you pull it out.

She did everything he told her, and she said

21
She read it off over the
22 can you read it off to me.
And then asked her could she replay it back
23 telephone.
She said she was looking
24 and see what it was.

25 reading the paper and looking at the Camcorder at the

 17

She said it's still the same way you left it. It
1 time.

2 got Sherrod on there saying something. She said I don't

3 have the audio on so I can't hear it. So he was like

4 well, just put it back up.

5 And he said that's going to be my ace in the

6 hole. And he told me if anything happen to him, he said

7 you'll know where it's at. But before he could tell me

8 exactly where the Camcorder was or who the female he was

9 talking to, he was transported to MDOC.

10 Q. Did you receive any other calls as relates to

11 Burton?

A. Yeah. Well, if you're talking about me being

12
13 locked up, you know, Shawn called me all -- used to call

14 me all the time, you know, from back before -- used to

15 just tell me everything about what was going on. But

16 now, with Shawn, Shawn say he ain't do nothing, you

17 know.

Q. Okay. All right. Now, have any promises

18

19 been made by our office to you on anything?

20 A. No, sir.

Q. Okay. We haven't made any promises to you on

21

22 your case that's pending?

23 A. No, sir.

24 Q. Okay. Or any other promises?

25 A. No, sir.
 18

1 Q. All right. What did you say about Frank's

2 involvement with Sherrod Moore?

3 A. It was more on the part of positioning in

4 Jackson, Mississippi. You know, he wanted -- all the

5 heads that were in Jackson, Mississippi, some people

6 were getting in his way.

7 Now, from the door was Aaron Crockett,

8 Wallace--

9 BY THE REPORTER: I'm sorry. A. O.

10 Crockett?

11 A. Aaron. It was Aaron Crockett, Wallace,

12 Maurice Spotae, Cheeseburger. You know, these just some

13 people, you know, just around the hood. But now, in the

14 same matter, all this was pertaining to dope, drugs.

15 Everybody knew what position you had to play on the

16 street.

17 The drugs were flew in off Hawkins Field.

18 And I'm not talking about like a pound or two. Probably

19 a hundred pounds here, a hundred kilos here. Everybody

20 would be behind the gym right there inside a van, a

21 couple of vans. When it dropped all we had to do is go

22 through the pathway, jump through you know what I'm

23 saying, before they put the fence up there it just used

24 to be the ditch and a whole bunch of trees. All you had

25 to do was hike up to the other side, get the dope and

 19

1 bring it back to the van and it was distributed equally

2 between Batman, Wallace and everybody else who sold a

3 different type of drug.

4 On this side they might have sold weed. On

5 this side they might have sold crack. Some people might

6 have even sold powder if that's what it was, T's and

7 Blues or however.

8 But now, after so much, you know, it was like

9 Sherrod came -- it was like, you know, Sherrod was

10 like it was like Sherrod was like, you know I got

11 this side and you got this side. At this point in time

12 he was talking to Batman, Donnell Thompson. He was like

13 y'all supposed to have my back and we're supposed to

14 have y'all back. If anything happen to me, you know,

15 it's on y'all. And if anything happen to you, it's on

16 us.

17 So they kind of tried to start an alliance

18 but it was a conflict because Rashad was getting more

19 pull from the street. That's where Robert Washington

20 came in. If any -- if you was in our way, we'd tell

21 Robert. Robert would be like well, you know, we're

22 going to bust these guys over here.

23 But now, he'd probably bust them and they

24 might have a lot of dope. All of them wouldn't be

25 turned in. He will come back to the block and say here,
 20

1 thank you for the information, with some of the money

2 that was from the scene or whatever. Won't nobody miss

3 it because these are police officers.

4 Now, it started getting so big to the point

5 to where now Batman got his own little click of soldiers

6 off Wood Street. The S-1 boys, then they had the nine

7 o'clock posse, you know what I'm saying, from the north

8 end. Then boys were downtown trying to start their own

9 alliance.

10 But now, Frank Melton had his hand -- got his

11 hand ln everything. Now, everybody that didn't result

12 to Frank's rules was getting pushed out the picture.

13 Not just, you know, well, you need to go sit down. They

14 were getting killed. From Maurice Spotae, Cheeseburger,

15 Aaron Crockett, Wallace to Larry Nelson.

16 Larry Nelson, the only reason he got killed

17 was the simple fact he was -- they felt like he was

18 going to be the one that was going to tell on Sherrod

19 about these other matters. Because not just one or two,

20 you know, but several, you know what I'm saying, even

21 not just his involvement but, you know, but just his

22 role playing in this involvement.

23 So now Frank Melton was like well, you're out

24 here. Now you've got this side. sold up, you know what

25 I'm saying. Now we've got to get Aaron out the way and.
 21

1 we've got to get Wallace out the way.

2 Now, Frank Melton made a turn then. He went

3 and told Donnell, said well, look, I know you want to be

4 over here out here in Georgetown and sell all the dope,

5 and you can handle that. But said, but you've got to

6 get this boy Aaron Crockett out of the way.

7 But all the time this is a cross-up because

8 Aaron Crockett is really Frank Melton's right-hand man.

9 If Aaron get out the way they knew that Sherrod and them

10 was going to retaliate on Donnell Thomas because this is

11 really Sherrod Moore. And Frank wanted him out the way

12 so he could have Sherrod all to himself.

13 Now, Sherrod can run every gangster from

14 Bailey and every hood from Bailey, Shady Oaks on back.

15 You know, he can run that. So, they get Aaron out the

16 way, but they get Donnell to do it, you know what I'm

17 saying.

18 Donnell Thomas sends -- what's his name?

19 Last name Sullivan. Get him to knock off Aaron and

20 Wallace.

21 BY THE REPORTER: Aaron and who?

22 A. Aaron Crockett and Wallace. He gets him to

23 knock them off. So now Donnell hands really don't get

24 dirty because he done sent two other guys to do it, you

25 know what I'm saying. So now it ain't number two heads.

 22

1 It's Donnell and then Sherrod. But somebody's got to go

2 down first just for somebody else to rise to take the

3 spot.

4 But now, don't nobody want to step in because

5 they know the game now with Frank Melton playing. Frank

6 really playing all for nothing, all for none. Because

7 if he get everybody out the way he got him a clear path

8 where he can say, you know, drug enforcement officer.

9 He know where all the drugs coming from, because now

10 everybody's really starting to see that he's using

11 everybody against everybody and knock everybody else out

12 the picture, because now he's got his foot in a major

13 ln a major position where he can get higher than what he

14 was from the street, and put himself ln the position

15 where he can appoint now who he want, you know what I'm

16 saying.

17 You could be selling dope on this side for

18 the next 10 years and won't nobody mess with you

19 because, okay, he's governor now, you know what I'm

20 saying, or he's mayor now. Won't nobody come mess with

21 you. He appoint his right-hand man to a position to

22 where, okay, if you're selling dope, he ain't got to be

23 touched because he can tell the police officer, well, he

24 all right, I know who he is. Don't go over there

25 messing with him or whatever. All they got to do is pay

 23

1 his sum of money every -- you know what I'm saying,

2 every so often and won't nobody mess with him.

3 BY MR. SMITH: (Continuing)

4 Q. All right. Was there any information passed

5 by you to Shawn Burton in the jail?

6 A. Yeah. He drew a map.

7 Q. Okay. We know about that. Just a second.

8 (PAUSE IN PROCEEDINGS)

9 BY MR. SMITH: (Continuing)

10 Q. Do you know a Too Sweet?

11 A. Yes, sir, I do.

12 Q. Okay. His name is also Robert Henderson?

13 A. Yes, sir.

14 Q. Okay. Did you ever talk to Robert Henderson

15 since you've been locked up?

16 A. With him, I talked probably about a good five

17 minutes to him. He had a few questions to ask me as far

18 as who was telling -- who was how much evidence they

19 have on me and my case, what did Shawn tell me, where is

20 Shawn being housed at, has he moved to Parchman yet, is

21 he still down there with you. He had questions like

22 that at first.

23 Then he came on also to say like well, you

24 know, they was like well, you know, Too Sweet was going

25 to be the one that was going to end up getting close

 24

1 enough to Shawn to knock him off, you know, to kill him,

2 because he got access to come inside the jail. And then

3 even if he don't do it himself -- see, Too Sweet, he got

4 this forte, you know what I'm saying, this persona like,

5 you know, he's this godly person. You know, he stand

6 beside, you know, the street and, you know, vote for

7 such and such and such. And, you know, it's like he

8 done turned his life over.

9 But at the same time, this is right now,

10 Frank Melton, this is his, you know, his push-along guy.

11 If he needs somebody to be pushed, he's going to push

12 the buttons hard enough to where to get it done. But

13 he's just going to do it legally instead of illegally.

14 But he's going to do it illegally to make it look legal,

15 you know.

16 Q. Okay. And so when did you talk to Henderson?

17 A. I talked to him -- well, I talked to him once

18 while I was in Parchman, then I talked to him once while

19 I was here.

20 Q. Here as in downtown Jackson?

21 A. While I was downtown.

22 Q. Okay. And what did he want?

23 A. When he talked -- when I talked to him down

24 here he just asked me was Shawn still around me and, you

25 know, what was he talking about, what did he say. But

 25

1 now, he also said that, you know, Shawn was the next

2 person to get killed. You know, he was like they had

3 already -- they done already made -- that he talking.

4 Even though we already knew on TV that they weren't

5 going to really just do anything to Sherrod, even after

6 the statement that he said, you know, on the news that,

7 you know, ask Frank Melton about what's going on. You

8 know, after that we knew he wasn't -- they just wasn't

9 going do nothing to him.

10 But now, ln this case he was like he's the

11 next person to get killed. He's the only person that

12 can link the murder to Robert Washington to him. And he

13 already know Paul's not going to say anything. But now,

14 he was like I know you're not going to say anything.

15 You know, if you do say anything you know what's going

16 to happen.

17 Q. All right. Tell us why did Sherrod kill

18 R. J? I mean, how did that start?

19 A. Over money. They want -- you know, he

20 wanted -- Robert Washington wanted Sherrod to quit

21 messing with Frank Melton; Frank Melton wanted Sherrod

22 to quit messing with Robert Washington. So it was kind

23 of like a push and a tug. But now, Frank Melton is the

24 one having the most money, and Robert Washington only

25 having the street -- you know what I'm saying, the

 26

1 street money that he can offer. So I guess he took the

2 better took the better offer.

3 Q. Meaning what?

4 A. That he'd rather have the money and the power

5 that Frank Melton can give him instead of what Robert

6 Washington can give him. See, Robert Washington was

7 gay. Don't nobody, you know what I'm saying, want to

8 accept it but he was. Frank Melton is the same way. A

9 lot of people know it but they don't want to acknowledge

10 to it, but they both were. And that was the only tie

11 that they had with Sherrod, you know what I'm saying.

12 They could offer him all these nice things, new Rolexes,

13 new herringbone, and you know, buy him new clothes and

14 stuff like that. But when it all boiled down to it,

15 that's really all Robert Washington could give to him.

16 He couldn't really put his hands on no major drugs to

17 put him in a power spot, you know, to where he could run

18 a whole neighborhood. Frank Melton can do that. He can

19 put you in a spot to where you can run a whole

20 neighborhood and never be touched until he want you to

21 be touched or you get outside his law.

22 Q. Okay. Now, what contact -- what contact did

23 Sherrod have with Frank Melton at the time of this -- or

24 before the killing?

25 A. His contact was more on the conversation of

 27

1 wanting to have some money, because at the time

2 everybody was broke. Didn't nobody have no money. And

3 when Frank came down, he came to The Y, and we was

4 outside, he said look, I got to talk to you for a

5 minute. So it really wasn't our business to get in

6 between it, but you know, he was talking so loud

7 because, you know, Frank made him mad. Like I'm not

8 giving you nothing.

9 Q. Giving who? Giving who?

10 A. Frank. Frank Melton got so -- got loud with

11 Sherrod. They got loud. Frank's saying I'm not giving

12 you any thing, you know what I'm saying. If you want

13 something go and get it from Robert, you know what I'm

14 saying. Go and get it from Robert Washington. Tha t '.s

15 your best friend now. You know, go on and get it from

16 him.

17 Then Sherrod was like well, I don't even mess

18 with him like that. He said well, show me. Frank

19 Melton was like, well, show me you don't mess with him

20 no more. More like forcing him, you know, pushing him

21 out there to say well, if you're going to show me, show

22 me that you ain't got nothing to do with him. I don't

23 know if that's what pushed him to do what he did, to

24 show Frank, or what Frank said to him before being

25 pushed into it. But now, to me, that's just my opinion.

 28

1 Q. Do you know Harold Hackett?

2 A. Harold Hackett. The name sounds familiar.

3 Q. Okay.

4 A. Sometimes you have people -- sometimes you

5 have people dead to the right, and you just let them go

6 for all the wrong reasons.

7 Q. Okay. As I instructed you earlier, that your

8 attorney will be contacted regarding this case.

9 A. Yes, sir.

10 Q. But in the event that we need your testimony,

11 you did say you would testify?

12 A. Yes, sir.

13 Q. Truthfully?

14 A. Yes, sir.

15 Q. And if you have any other questions regarding

16 this matter, we will promptly -- you notify us and we'll

17 notify you.

18 A. Yes, sir.

19 Q. And I will also notify your attorney

20 regarding this case as well, your case as it relates to

21 this case that it is totally separate.

22 A. Yes, sir.

23 BY MR. SMITH: Okay. Thank you.

24 (STATEMENT ENDED)

25
 29

1 COURT REPORTER'S CERTIFICATE

2 STATE OF MISSISSIPPI

3 COUNTY OF HINDS

5 I, Connie Chastain, RMR, CSR, Official Court

6 Reporter for Hinds County Circuit Court, do hereby

7 certify that the foregoing 28 pages, and including this

8 page, constitute a true and correct transcript of the

9 proceedings had upon the statement of Stephan Hickman on

10 the 27th day of March, 2008.

11 I do further certify that my certificate

12 annexed hereto applies only to the original and

13 certified transcript. The undersigned assumes no

14 responsibility for the accuracy of any reproduced copies

15 not made under my control or direction.

16 Witness my signature, this the 28th day of

17 March, 2008.

19

20 CONNIE CHASTAIN, RMR, CSR

Official Court Reporter
21 CSR NO. 1025

22

23

24

25