Prosecutors used the first day of testimony in the murder trial of a former Marine to begin to piece together how a Rice University basketball player was fatally stabbed outside a Northgate bar in April 2007.
Ronald Andrew Johnson Jr., 26, could face up to 99 years in prison if he is found guilty of murder in the death. No one is disputing that he wielded the knife that caused Jonathan Bailey to hemorrhage blood on a street behind the V-Bar in College Station in April 2007, but lawyers on each side of the case differ on Johnson's motives and whether he is to blame.
In their opening statements, prosecutors and defense attorneys agreed that the death came as the result of three separate fights between Johnson's fellow Marine, Michael Fuller, and Jonathan Bailey's twin brother, Janson.
The Bailey twins were celebrating their 22nd birthdays with a group of friends, and the two Marines were reuniting for the first time in about a year. They crossed paths while waiting for drinks at the V-Bar, where Janson Bailey had previously worked.
Daniel Rodriguez took the stand to say he was horsing around with Janson Bailey at the bar when Janson Bailey bumped into Fuller. According to police records, Fuller later told people that Janson Bailey was "humping on his leg."
Fuller turned to Janson Bailey, pushed him with both hands and said, "Dude, get the hell off me," Rodriguez testified.
Janson Bailey pushed back, Fuller threw a punch that missed and then Bailey connected with a punch to Fuller's face, Rodriguez said. After a few more punches, Fuller turned back to face the bar and Bailey continued to hit him in the back of the head, Rodriguez said.
Fuller was then forced out of the bar, and Bailey followed him out, where they had another fight in the street, Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez said that he then met Jonathan Bailey and a few other friends outside the bar. He said he then heard someone yell that Janson Bailey was in another fight, and the group ran to the street behind the bar to find him on the ground being punched by Fuller and Johnson.
The group of friends pulled Fuller and Johnson off Janson Bailey, Rodriguez said. A scuffle ensued until someone yelled out that Jonathan Bailey had been shot, Rodriguez said. Fuller and Johnson ran off.
It turned out Jonathan Bailey had been stabbed four times in the chest. Janson Bailey also had a knife wound to the chest.
Sean Beatty, who was a patrol officer for the College Station Police Department at the time and was the first to respond to the scene, testified that he arrived to find Jonathan Bailey pale, bleeding heavily and with his eyes beginning to roll back into his head. His breathing stopped by the time an ambulance arrived and he was declared dead at the hospital soon after.
"I basically watched him take his last breath," Beatty said.
Defense attorney Dan Cogdell cast skepticism on Rodriguez's testimony, noting that Rodriguez initially told police that he didn't know who threw the first punch in the fight. Cogdell also noted that Rodriguez has been sued for his involvement in the fight, hinting that he may feel inclined to assign more blame to Fuller and Johnson than they deserve.
Cogdell said in his opening statement that Johnson was trying to protect his friend when he stabbed the Bailey twins. Fuller was outnumbered and smaller than Janson Bailey and was severely beaten in the fights -- suffering a concussion, two broken ribs and internal bleeding.
"It's not a fight; it's a savage attack," Cogdell said.
Johnson was simply doing what he had to do and was reacting in the way he was trained as a Marine, Cogdell said.
"He has the right to use deadly force to protect his Marine brother," he said.
The blame, Cogdell said, rested on Janson Bailey.
"Jonathan Bailey died because of a chain of events that his brother set in motion," Cogdell said. "We would not be here today but for the actions of Jonathan Bailey's brother, Janson."
Prosecutors described the fights between Janson Bailey and Michael Fuller as typical barroom brawls that were escalated by Johnson using a knife. Fights are common on Northgate, but a death hasn't resulted from one in recent memory, they repeatedly noted.
Jonathan Bailey wasn't even involved in the fight, but was trying to protect his brother using "non-deadly force" while Fuller and Johnson punched him.
"Jonathan Bailey died for nothing," said Assistant District Attorney Brian Baker. "He did nothing else other than what the law would allow him, which is to stop two men from attacking his brother."
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