DAYTON — The murder trial for a man police say fired the shots that killed a 12-year-old girl is wrapping up.
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As reported on News Center 7 at 6:00, it’s now up to jurors to decide if Antawan Benson is guilty.
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12-year-old Isabella Carlos was shot and killed while sleeping in her bed in August 2024.
Police arrested two brothers about two weeks after the shooting, Javen Connor and Benson.
Investigators said their gunfire missed the intended target.
The trial for Benson took five full days, spread out over parts of two weeks.
Now the jury will review more than 200 exhibits and what more than a dozen witnesses said.
The defense called one witness to the stand on Monday, a woman who said she was dating Benson last summer.
Chanelle Pettigrew claimed Benson couldn’t have been shooting at homes on West Fairview that day becuase he was on a video call with her from 11:45 p.m. to 1 a.m.
“When you’re talking, do you see his face? He sees your face?” the prosecution asked the witness.
“He sees my face, I see his face,” Pettigrew said.
The prosecution claimed that it was impossible, as they introduced cell phone data showing Benson’s phone never moved during that time.
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“How many times since Antawan got arrested did you call the police to say, ‘Hey, you got my dude locked up, I was on Facetime with him the whole time?’” The prosecution asked.
“None,” Pettigrew replied.
Then it was time for each set of lawyers to try to convince the jury that their version of what happened was the truth.
The defense asked the jury not to count on the testimony of Malia Bailey.
She was the woman who told jurors that she drove Benson and his brother to the scene, watched them walk away, heard gunfire, then spotted them running back to her car with guns in hand.
“False witness identifications, someone taking the stand and lying, leads to false convictions,” the defense said during closing arguments.
“You are the judge of what happened on 33 Fairview. You decide if you believe her, if it lines up with all the evidence collected during the investigation,” Montgomery County assistant prosecuting attorney Kelly Madzey said during the closing arguments.
The jury is now deliberating and will continue until at least 8 p.m. on Monday.
If they don’t reach a verdict, it’s expected they’ll be sent home and begin work again on Tuesday.
News Center 7 will continue to follow this story.
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