Jury convicts first brother of murder
Dope deal disagreement at core of dispute, his two brothers testify
NEW BOSTON, Texas — A Bowie County jury returned guilty verdicts on charges of murder and aggravated assault for the first of three brothers accused in a case that centered on a dispute over a $25 dollar marijuana deal.
The jury is expected to return to court Friday morning to hear testimony regarding the punishment Dequlain Sims, 25, should receive. He faces five to 99 years or life in prison for fatally shooting 21-yearold Tracy Fielding in the early hours of July 7, 2018, and two to 20 years for non-fatal gunshot wounds suffered by Fielding’s grandmother, Vickie Simpson.
Two of Dequlain Sims’ brothers, Jacarie Sims, 26, and Jacoby Johnson, 21, are scheduled for trials later this year. Witnesses testified that Jacarie Sims arranged to buy 2.5 grams of marijuana for $25 from Fielding in the early hours of July 7, 2018.
Feeling he’d been shorted on the purchase, Jacarie Sims and Johnson returned to Fielding’s home in the 300 block of Brookwood Drive to confront him. When Fielding denied shorting the purchase, the two brothers left and returned to their home around the corner in the 300 block of Belt Road.
Dequlain Sims, armed with a
pistol, joined his two brothers and the three of them traveled back to Fielding’s home.
“All they had to do was stay home,” Assistant District Attorney Katie Carter argued in closing remarks.
Witnesses testified that Fielding tried to wake a friend who lived across the street before taking a seat on his SUV with a pistol grip shotgun for protection. Fielding’s grandmother walked outside shortly before the brothers arrived and was standing near the SUV when they pulled up.
All three brothers testified Thursday. While their testimonies differed and conflicted somewhat, all said Jacarie Sims handed the disputed bag of marijuana to Fielding before Fielding told them he wasn’t giving them marijuana or money before cocking the shotgun.
Dequlain Sims testified that he “backed up and just started firing” after Johnson handed him the pistol he’d placed in the console of their mother’s Hummer. Carter confronted Dequlain Sims with a statement he gave to police the day of the shooting.
“Before he could even turn and shoot, I shot him,” Dequlain Sims said in a videotaped statement played Thursday for the jury.
Texarkana, Texas, Police investigators used an IHOP receipt found on the ground to connect the brothers to the shooting. Later in the day on July 7, 2018, Jacarie Sims took detectives to the gun which he had buried on property behind his mother’s home.
As a final rebuttal witness, Carter recalled Crime Scene Analyst Marc Sillivan to the stand. Sillivan testified that the bag of marijuana found on the ground after the shooting weighed 2.5 grams.
Assistant District Attorney Katie Carter argued that the facts support a murder conviction while Dallas defense lawyer Craig Watkins described the case as self-defense.
Carter argued that the brothers felt they hadn’t gotten a good deal and brought a gun to settle a dispute in violation of Texas law.
“When you go to someone’s house and you have a disagreement and you keep going back you’re provoking that difficulty. You don’t have to have premeditation and planning. Intent can be formed in an instant,” Carter said.
Watkins argued that the brothers were in fear of their lives and that the jury shouldn’t be confused by “all these legal theories.”
Dequlain Sims was taken into custody Thursday evening. Fifth District Judge Bill Miller instructed the jury to return to court Friday morning for the sentencing phase of Dequlain Sims’ trial.