Jury split in Jones County murder trial held here

A Neshoba County jury reached a verdict on Friday in a capital murder trial from Jones County.

Defendant Brooke Taylor Stringer was found not guilty on all charges while the jury could not reach a verdict on defendant Brandon Lee Gardner in the 2021 death of a child, according to WDAM television.

Gardner and Stringer originally were charged with one count each of capital murder in the death of 6-month-old Roselee Stringer.

Charges originally were brought against the defendants in December 2021 by the Jones County Sheriff’s Department.

The trial was moved to Neshoba County after defense attorneys asked for a change of venue.

Forensic pediatrician Dr. Scott Benton of the University of Mississippi Medical Center determined that the baby died of abusive head trauma, possibly from an “acceleration/deceleration injury” — commonly called “shaken-baby syndrome,” the Laure Leader-Call reported.

He and Dr. Danielle Blakeney of South Central Regional Medical Center testified that Rosalee’s injuries were too severe to have been caused by bumping her head on a nightstand from floor level, as Gardner said happened while Stringer was in the shower. 

Two expert witnesses testified on behalf of the defendants to present alternate theories or possible causes, but prosecutors and defense attorneys deemed each of the opposing experts’ opinions as speculative.

Shortly after going to the jury room, jurors sent a question to Judge Dal Williamson asking for a “broader definition of manslaughter,” but he referred them to the definition that was included in the jury instructions, Mark Thornton of the Leader-Call reported.

Jurors heard three hours of closing arguments from attorneys on Friday to wrap up eight days of evidence and testimony, then retired to the jury room just before 2 p.m., according to the Leader-Call. The jury returned their verdict shortly after 6:15.

“You heard from him seven times” in recorded interviews and body-cam statements, Gardner’s attorney, Chris Collins, said in closing. Collins is a Neshoba County attorney and former judge who joined attorney Marcus Evans of Waynesboro after the defendants were granted a change of venue because of pretrial publicity in Jones County.