Realtor’s widower put on defense list
Testimony ahead after jurors seated
The widower of real estate agent Beverly Carter will be required to testify on behalf of the man accused of killing her, defense attorney Bill James announced Tuesday on the opening day of Arron Lewis’ trial on charges of capital murder and kidnapping.
Carl Carter was among 10 witnesses James said he would call. James did not say what questions he would ask Carter after prosecutors conclude their case.
James, who is being assisted by Lee Short, also didn’t reveal whether Lewis will testify.
Carter’s inclusion as a defense witness should not be interpreted to mean that the 52- year- old Scott man is cooperating with Lewis’ defense. It’s not unusual for the defense to subpoena pro- prosecution witnesses to testify on behalf of the defendant.
James also said he will call some of the Pulaski County sheriff ’ s deputies who investigated Beverly Carter’s slaying.
Prosecutors John Johnson and Barbara Mariani are
seeking a life sentence for Lewis.
The defendant, who turns 35 today, has admitted to kidnapping Beverly Carter to hold her for a $ 100,000 ransom, although he later said that he was tortured into making the admission.
He has pleaded innocent to the charges, stating in a notice to the court that someone else is responsible for her death.
The sides announced their witnesses during Tuesday’s five- hour jury selection process.
Prosecutors said they could call as many as 22 witnesses, among them the Carters’ oldest son, Carl Carter Jr., 35, and Adam Nash, the 33- year- old Cammack Village man who helped police apprehend Lewis a day after the defendant was named as a suspect in Beverly Carter’s abduction.
Carter, a mother of three married for 35 years, disappeared in September 2014 after texting her husband that she was going to show an unnamed client a house — less than 5 miles from their home.
Carl Carter Sr. reported her missing after finding her brand- new Cadillac, with purse inside, outside the house.
Beverly Carter’s body, bound in duct tape, was discovered four days later during the investigation into Lewis and his wife, who was arrested a month after Lewis.
Lewis became a suspect after deputies traced a phone call to Carter’s phone on the day she disappeared to a phone held by Lewis that was registered to his wife.
Opening statements are to begin at 10 a. m. today.
Nine women and three men, with two alternates, were chosen Tuesday from a field of 49 potential jurors. Pulaski County Circuit Judge
Herb Wright, who had summoned about 100 prospective jurors, told the sides the selection process went faster than he expected.
The first 90 minutes of the selection process, known as voir dire, were spent questioning the prospective jurors about what they had heard about the case beforehand, whether through the news media, gossiping with friends or personal connections to the defendant, the victim or law enforcement officials.
One juror candidate said his cousin’s grandmother’s property was searched during the hunt for Carter.
Out of the pool, 33 prospects said they’d heard about the case, but only nine said they’d drawn some sort of conclusion about the accusations against Lewis.
Those nine, after private questioning at the judge’s bench by the lawyers, said they could set aside whatever opinion they had developed in favor of reaching a verdict strictly on the evidence presented in court. About 50 other prospective jurors were released without any questioning after the 12- member jury was chosen.
Among the juror candidates questioned was North Little Rock police detective Gary Jones, who was dismissed after he said he knew the prosecutors, the defense attorneys and the investigators.
Wright said he hoped prosecutors could get through six to eight of their witnesses today.
The judge told jurors the trial is scheduled through Friday but that he is willing to hold court Saturday, if necessary.
Neither side gave away much information about trial strategy although prosecutors indicated they believe that Lewis did not set out to kill Carter but that he intended her abduction to either terrorize her or hold her for ransom.
How she died has not been revealed, and prosecutors have not accused Lewis of using a gun during the crime.
Prosecutors did question jurors about their feelings about accomplices who co- operate with authorities in a plea bargain.
Lewis’ wife, Crystal Hope Lowery, 42, will testify against Lewis as part of an agreement with prosecutors to secure herself a 30- year prison sentence.
Lowery, who had been married to Lewis about five months when Carter disappeared, has pleaded guilty to first- degree murder, reduced from capital murder, and kidnapping for her role, which prosecutors say involves planning the abduction and hiding Carter’s body.
The victim’s remains were found buried at the Cabot concrete plant where Lewis worked.
Tuesday’s proceedings were the first time that Lewis has been able to wear street clothes in court in the nearly 14 months since he was formally charged in circuit court.
He has a light beard and wore a black untucked polo shirt, bluejeans and white sneakers. He also will be wearing his prison thermal underwear under his clothes, a request that had to be approved by the judge.
Lewis, whose head was shaved when he was arrested four days after Carter disappeared, has returned to that hairstyle. In his final pretrial court appearance last week, Lewis’ hair had grown out bushy, and he had shaved his temples.
As a precaution against courtroom outbursts, Lewis also is wearing an electric stun belt on his waist under his clothes out of the sight of jurors. The device can deliver a debilitating electric shock like a Taser if it is triggered by a remote control held by the bailiffs.
Offered a choice of restraints by the judge, Lewis went with the belt rather than a leg chain that would shackle him to the courtroom floor.