PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Day two of a trial involving a Portsmouth police officer started with a heated exchange between prosecutors and the defendant's attorneys. Both accused each other of leading a smear campaign against their prospective sides to the jurors.
Portsmouth police officer Jeremy Durocher is accused of a gun charge and malicious wounding after he allegedly shot 18-year-old Deontrace Ward three times during a burglary.
Durocher's original charge was aggravated malicious wounding, but prosecutors and the judge agreed to lessen the charge to malicious wounding.
On Tuesday, prosecutors called their last expert witness to the stand: a special agent with Virginia State Police who examined police body camera video.
On the stand, the agent said Durocher did not verbally identify the gun on Ward's body before he fired the first shot. He then shouted, "He has a gun!" He fired three more times.
Ward suffered three gunshot wounds to his arm, shoulder and back. He survived his injuries and was later sentenced to six years in prison for the burglary.
The defense also called their first witness: former Police Chief Tonya Chapman, who was the chief during the time of the shooting.
Chapman told jurors it is within the police department's policy to allow officers to use deadly force if they believe their lives or others could be in danger.
Prosecutors countered with Ward's testimony, saying that he never reached for his gun or stepped toward any officers.
The defense brought in two eyewitnesses to the stand. One testified she saw Ward carry a gun in his hand, the other said he never saw a gun.
Officers eventually recovered a loaded gun in Ward's pants after they took him into custody.
The jury is expected to go to the scene of the shooting on Wednesday morning. Attorneys said it is possible there could be a verdict by Wednesday.