LOCKPORT – Niagara County Judge Matthew J. Murphy III Tuesday rejected a defense motion to dismiss the charges against a man accused of shooting a 2-year-old girl in the face last year while he was allegedly trying to shoot someone else.
Willie R. Scott Jr., 32, of LaSalle Avenue, Niagara Falls, is due for trial Sept. 23 in connection with the Nov. 27 shooting outside the Hometown Market on Pierce Avenue in Niagara Falls.
The girl survived and the man who was sitting in a car with her, Scott’s alleged target, was unhurt. The shots were allegedly fired from another vehicle.
Defense attorney E. Earl Key claimed in his motion that the prosecutor erred in not telling the grand jury about a statement by witness Timothy Ellison, who reportedly told police at first that he didn’t know who was in the second car and wasn’t sure if the shots came from there. He later testified before the grand jury that he saw Scott pointing and shooting a gun from that vehicle.
Murphy said the prosecution did not have to reveal the first statement, which the judge noted that Ellison never signed. He said none of this harms Scott’s right to a fair trial.
Willie R. Scott Jr., 32, of LaSalle Avenue, Niagara Falls, is due for trial Sept. 23 in connection with the Nov. 27 shooting outside the Hometown Market on Pierce Avenue in Niagara Falls.
The girl survived and the man who was sitting in a car with her, Scott’s alleged target, was unhurt. The shots were allegedly fired from another vehicle.
Defense attorney E. Earl Key claimed in his motion that the prosecutor erred in not telling the grand jury about a statement by witness Timothy Ellison, who reportedly told police at first that he didn’t know who was in the second car and wasn’t sure if the shots came from there. He later testified before the grand jury that he saw Scott pointing and shooting a gun from that vehicle.
Murphy said the prosecution did not have to reveal the first statement, which the judge noted that Ellison never signed. He said none of this harms Scott’s right to a fair trial.