Casey Secor

Trial 12019 Murder TrialApr 29, 2019 – Jun 13, 2019

Casey Secor served as defense trial counsel, conducting voir dire and witness examinations, challenging limits on social-history testimony, and urging life without parole in the penalty-phase closing.

Jury Selection Day 1

Apr 29, 2019

ProceduralResumed Voir Dire and Trial-Procedure Motions23lines spoken

Summary

The court set voir dire and alternate-juror procedures, reaffirmed death-qualification rulings, and considered disputes over NGRI instructions and late discovery.

Jury Selection Day 4

May 2, 2019

jury selectionJury selection47lines spoken

Summary

Voir dire examined insanity, death-penalty views, and juror impartiality; the court excused several jurors, qualified others, and set limits on deliberation-related questioning.

Jury Selection Day 5

May 3, 2019

jury selectionJury selection122lines spoken

Summary

The court qualified and excused prospective jurors after extensive capital-case questioning on impartiality, mitigation, and life-or-death sentencing.

Jury Selection Day 6

May 6, 2019

Voir DireIndividual Juror Voir Dire157lines spoken

Summary

Individual voir dire addressed publicity, capital-sentencing views, and juror qualifications; the court also limited questioning about non-unanimous sentencing outcomes.

Jury Selection Day 7

May 7, 2019

jury selectionJury selection78lines spoken

Summary

The court qualified and excused prospective jurors while setting limits on repeated capital-voir-dire questions.

Jury Selection Day 10

May 13, 2019

ProceduralJuror Qualification Challenges and Reconsideration10lines spoken

Summary

The court considered challenges to three prospective jurors and proposed brief additional voir dire after marking related articles as Court's Exhibit 76.

ProceduralRecorded-Statement Redaction Rulings17lines spoken

Summary

The court largely denied requested interrogation redactions but restricted the State from using one "murder" exchange as statutory-definition proof.

ProceduralSearch-Warrant Challenges and Evidence StipulationsMentioned

Summary

The court clarified the scope of preserved search-warrant challenges, confirmed an agreement on house-search evidence, and marked the parties' motions as Court's Exhibit 75.

Mentioned in this proceeding.

Day 11

May 14, 2019

ProceduralArgument on 2018 Phone Search26lines spoken

Summary

The court denied the phone-search challenge, found Mr. Jones competent to proceed, and denied a mistrial request after opening statements.

Day 12

May 15, 2019

DirectJames McConnell — DirectJames McConnellRick Hubbard5lines spoken

Summary

Jones's Intel supervisor described his work record, changes observed in summer 2014, unanswered messages after his absence, and no observed workplace concerns about his mental status.

CrossJames McConnell — CrossJames McConnellCasey Secor64lines spoken

Summary

McConnell limited his workplace observations of Tim's changes to summer 2014 and confirmed he never suspected drug use.

DirectMarty Patterson — DirectMarty PattersonRick Hubbard3lines spoken

Summary

Marty Patterson described the checkpoint stop, his observations of the Escalade and missing-children inquiry, and the later trip in which Timothy, Jr. led officers to the children.

CrossMarty Patterson — CrossMarty PattersonCasey Secor162lines spoken

Summary

Patterson discussed jail records, his observations of Timothy Jones, Jr.'s September 7 interview, and the limited role he played in the receipt-and-map investigation.

RecrossMarty Patterson — RecrossMarty PattersonCasey Secor9lines spoken

Summary

Patterson limited his knowledge of the route and receipt information; the court excused the jury for the day.

Day 14

May 17, 2019

CrossCharlie Crumpton — CrossCharlie CrumptonCasey Secor3lines spoken

Summary

Cross-examination opened with Crumpton's first contact with Tim, Jr. on September 7.

ProceduralHearing on Voluntariness Questioning25lines spoken

Summary

The court rejected the defense claim that the State opened the door to excluded interview material and allowed a proffer to preserve the issue.

CrossCharlie Crumpton — Cross (Proffer Testimony)Charlie CrumptonCasey Secor74lines spoken

Summary

The court addressed a contested voluntariness issue, then Crumpton described Jones's behavior, spice concerns, and the family's assistance during the investigation.

Day 18

May 23, 2019

DirectBhushan Agharkar — DirectBhushan AgharkarCasey Secor123lines spoken

Summary

Dr. Agharkar testified that his assessment found schizophrenia and brain injury, rejected substance-induced psychosis, and had two defense materials marked as court exhibits.

CrossBhushan Agharkar — CrossBhushan AgharkarSuzanne Mayes7lines spoken

Summary

The State tested Dr. Agharkar's diagnosis, sources, and medication analysis; the court limited Chantix questioning after a defense objection.

sidebarChantix Impeachment and Wording ObjectionsDuring Bhushan Agharkar — Cross5lines spoken

Summary

At a bench conference, counsel objected to the use of the word “murder” and to impeachment concerning the witness’s general Chantix prescribing experience.

DirectMicah Sutton — DirectMicah SuttonCasey Secor32lines spoken

Summary

Pastor Micah Sutton described Tim's intense religious practice, conflicts at church, and difficulty accepting contrary views.

Day 19

May 24, 2019

DirectRoberta Thornsberry — Direct ProfferRoberta ThornsberryCasey Secor88lines spoken

Summary

Roberta Thornsberry described family trauma, Little Tim's early home environment, and her observations of his childhood behavior.

ProceduralRuling on Social-History Proffer38lines spoken

Summary

The court limited social-history testimony, preserved the defense objection, and admitted Defendant's Exhibits 165 through 211 by agreement.

DirectRoberta Thornsberry — DirectRoberta ThornsberryCasey Secor169lines spoken

Summary

Roberta Thornsberry described the defendant's childhood, family history, and later religious focus, then identified family photographs and an Atlanta video admitted for the jury.

RedirectRoberta Thornsberry — RedirectRoberta ThornsberryCasey Secor14lines spoken

Summary

Thornsberry described a troubled 2012 visit and later phone contact with Timmy.

Day 20

May 28, 2019

DirectBrantley Brokaw — DirectBrantley BrokawCasey Secor79lines spoken

Summary

Brokaw described his college, work, and personal observations of Tim, including religious discussions, marital separation, and behavior while staying with him.

DirectBrice Mankowski — DirectBrice MankowskiCasey Secor24lines spoken

Summary

Former coworker Brice Mankowski described Tim's workplace demeanor, a 2014 agitated encounter, and increasingly erratic attendance at Intel.

DirectTodd Schelling — DirectTodd SchellingCasey Secor51lines spoken

Summary

Former Intel team lead Todd Schelling described Tim's work performance, personal stress, limited observable behavioral changes, and his own grief after Tim's arrest.

RedirectTodd Schelling — RedirectTodd SchellingCasey Secor3lines spoken

Summary

Schelling recalled agitation and sweating, but not several other listed symptoms, in summer 2014.

DirectJaimeet Aneja — DirectJaimeet AnejaCasey Secor33lines spoken

Summary

A former coworker described Tim's divorce-related distress, unusual behavior while living with him, and regular trips to see his children.

CrossJaimeet Aneja — CrossJaimeet AnejaRick Hubbard3lines spoken

Summary

Aneja described Jones as a non-disruptive but antisocial roommate, said he appeared to visit his children on weekends, and maintained that Facebook concerns sounded odd.

Day 21

May 29, 2019

DirectCarolyn Williford — DirectCarolyn WillifordCasey Secor146lines spoken

Summary

Carolyn Williford described Tim, Jr.'s childhood family environment, later behavioral changes, and continuing relationships with his brothers; the court admitted one accident-related family photograph.

RedirectCarolyn Williford — RedirectCarolyn WillifordCasey Secor6lines spoken

Summary

Carolyn Williford acknowledged family violence and substance abuse during brief redirect examination.

DirectTimothy Jones, Sr. — DirectTimothy Jones, Sr.Casey Secor327lines spoken

Summary

Timothy Jones, Sr. described family history, efforts to locate the children, and post-arrest interactions with Timmy; the court limited a custody-related line of questioning and admitted family photographs.

ProceduralPost-Testimony Evidentiary Proffers and Rulings9lines spoken

DirectTimothy Jones, Sr. — Proffer ExaminationTimothy Jones, Sr.Casey Secor62lines spoken

Summary

Timothy Jones, Sr. described family history in a defense proffer, but the court kept its earlier limit on pre-Tim, Jr. social-history evidence.

Day 22

May 30, 2019

ProceduralVideo Evidence Ruling and Witness Scheduling4lines spoken

RedirectRichard Frierson — RedirectRichard FriersonBoyd Young11lines spoken

Summary

Frierson addressed reported symptoms on redirect; the court reaffirmed exclusion of Bethany Yeiser's testimony and received proposed social-history material for identification.

Day 24

Jun 3, 2019

ProceduralPsychological Testing Admissibility Ruling12lines spoken

Summary

The court declined to revisit its ruling allowing psychological testing while limiting use of specific test answers for impeachment.

DirectKimberly Kruse — DirectKimberly KruseRick Hubbard5lines spoken

Summary

Dr. Kimberly Kruse testified that her testing found no neurocognitive disorder or psychosis and, in her opinion, showed unreliable symptom reporting.

CrossKimberly Kruse — CrossKimberly KruseCasey Secor126lines spoken

Summary

Defense counsel challenged Dr. Kruse's interpretation of psychological testing, while she maintained that the defendant overreported psychotic symptoms but gave full effort on cognitive tests.

RecrossKimberly Kruse — RecrossKimberly KruseCasey Secor7lines spoken

Summary

Dr. Kruse agreed the SIMS total score was below its stated malingering cutoff and said Tim was cooperative and showed no psychotic symptoms during testing.

ProceduralCocaine-Testimony Objection and Curative-Instruction Ruling3lines spoken

Summary

The court ordered jurors to disregard testimony characterizing Mr. Jones as a heavy crack cocaine user while preserving the defense objection.

Charge ConferenceCharge Requests and Objections5lines spoken

Summary

The defense preserved objections to the omission of requested involuntary-intoxication and verdict-consequences instructions.

ProceduralPost-Charge Objections and Defendant Allocution3lines spoken

Summary

The court preserved defense charge objections and recorded Jones's voluntary waiver of a personal closing statement to the jury.

Day 25

Jun 4, 2019

ProceduralJuror inquiry into Blu-Ray evidence7lines spoken

Summary

The court investigated whether jurors accessed unintroduced material on a Blu-Ray disk during deliberations.

ProceduralMistrial motion over jury access to Blu-Ray evidence3lines spoken

Summary

The court denied a mistrial motion over jurors' access to a Blu-Ray evidence disk and required any further review to occur in the courtroom.

Day 27

Jun 6, 2019

ProceduralPenalty-Phase Evidence Rulings8lines spoken

Summary

The court admitted disputed Alabama recovery photographs subject to objection and incorporated first-phase evidence into the penalty phase, deferring a limiting-instruction decision.

Day 29

Jun 10, 2019

ProceduralKyzer Affidavit and Family Mercy Testimony Rulings25lines spoken

Summary

The court excluded Amber Kyzer's affidavit in favor of live testimony and limited the wording of proposed family mercy questions.

DirectRoberta Thornsberry — DirectRoberta ThornsberryCasey Secor34lines spoken

Summary

Roberta Thornsberry described childhood abandonment, sexual abuse, family violence, interrupted schooling, and repeated moves as family-history evidence in mitigation.

ProceduralFamily-History Mitigation Evidence Ruling15lines spoken

Summary

The court allowed testimony about Thornsberry's role in raising Tim, Jr. but excluded details of her childhood trauma from mitigation evidence.

DirectRoberta Thornsberry — Direct (Resumed)Roberta ThornsberryCasey Secor57lines spoken

Summary

Roberta Thornsberry described family memories and losses, identified defense exhibits, and asked that Tim, Jr. not be put to death.

RedirectRoberta Thornsberry — RedirectRoberta ThornsberryCasey Secor23lines spoken

Summary

Thornsberry described the family's effort to locate the children and confirmed Tim, Jr.'s early exposure to family substance-use problems.

ProceduralSocial-History Evidence and Flores Testimony Hearing7lines spoken

Summary

The court excluded late-disclosed expert Dr. Flores from testifying but allowed a proffer, then addressed the planned social-history proffer.

DirectTimothy Jones, Sr. — Proffer DirectTimothy Jones, Sr.Casey Secor88lines spoken

Summary

Timothy Jones, Sr. gave a proffer about childhood violence and family history; the court kept the testimony from the jury and noted the defense objection.

DirectTimothy Jones, Sr. — DirectTimothy Jones, Sr.Casey Secor140lines spoken

Summary

Timothy Jones, Sr. used family photos and a pool video to describe family memories, then opposed a death sentence for his son.

RedirectTimothy Jones, Sr. — RedirectTimothy Jones, Sr.Casey Secor7lines spoken

Summary

Timothy Jones, Sr. described cooperating with the Solicitor's Office and said he loved Tim “More than anything.”

ProceduralPlanned Mitigation Proffers5lines spoken

Summary

The court declined to play Bethany Yeiser's prior proffer for the jury, preserved the defense objection, and excused the jury for planned mitigation proffers.

DirectDeborah Grey — Direct (Proffer Outside Jury)Deborah GreyCasey Secor162lines spoken

Summary

Grey's outside-the-jury proffer described her social-history methodology and proposed family-history mitigation evidence; the court directed counsel to streamline the details for the jury.

Day 30

Jun 11, 2019

ProceduralMotion for New Trial Based on After-Discovered Evidence26lines spoken

Summary

The court denied a new-trial motion, kept Dr. Flores' testimony from the jury, and set limits on social-history mitigation evidence.

DirectDeborah Grey — DirectDeborah GreyCasey Secor122lines spoken

Summary

Expert social worker Deborah Grey described her social-history method and reported family and early-life history; the court admitted one genogram but excluded the family-record notebooks.

ProceduralHearing on Scope of Deborah Grey’s Testimony1highlight19lines spoken

Summary

The court limited graphic detail in Deborah Grey's social-history testimony while allowing general questions about trauma's effect on child development.

Highlights (1)

Quote“I feel like the presentation of social history on behalf of Tim is being guided by Solicitor Hubbard's objections”— Casey SecorDefense counsel stated his concern that the limits on the mitigation presentation were interfering with advocacy.Open in transcript →

DirectDeborah Grey — Direct (Continued)Deborah GreyCasey Secor30lines spoken

Summary

Grey continued her social-history account of Tim, Jr.'s reported childhood adversity and adolescent experiences; the court allowed some expert testimony but limited reference to another expert.

DirectDeborah Grey — Direct (Continued)Deborah GreyCasey Secor129lines spoken

Summary

Grey continued her social-history account of Tim's family, substance use, and later child-welfare concerns; the court admitted a completed genogram and limited repetitive testimony.

Day 31

Jun 12, 2019

CrossDeborah Grey — CrossDeborah GreyRick Hubbard8lines spoken

Summary

Grey acknowledged limits in corroborating some self-reported history and described the scope of her work as the prosecutor used her answers to emphasize Tim Jones, Jr.'s choices.

sidebarCross-Examination on Unreviewed DocumentsDuring Deborah Grey — Cross4lines spoken

Summary

Counsel disputed cross-examining a witness about documents she had not reviewed and whether the questioning was proper impeachment.

RedirectDeborah Grey — RedirectDeborah GreyCasey Secor22lines spoken

Summary

Grey linked reported family abuse patterns to an intergenerational history; the court later excluded a proposed video of Cynthia Turner offered as mitigation evidence.

DirectJulie Jones — DirectJulie JonesCasey Secor52lines spoken

Summary

Julie Jones described family relationships, grief after the children were reported missing, and her request that Tim receive mercy rather than death.

DirectTravis Jones — DirectTravis JonesCasey Secor31lines spoken

Summary

Travis Jones described Tim's support in his life, identified admitted family photographs, and emotionally asked that Tim not lose his life.

DirectJackie Rangel — DirectJackie RangelCasey Secor31lines spoken

Summary

Jackie Rangel described her relationship with the children, the memorial service, forgiving her brother, and opposing a death sentence.

Day 32

Jun 13, 2019

ProceduralClosing-Argument Objection and In-Chambers Motion6lines spoken

Summary

The court preserved a defense objection to the State's closing and set a procedure for objections during the defense closing argument.

ClosingDefense Closing ArgumentCasey Secor2highlights6lines spoken

Summary

Defense counsel urged life without parole, emphasizing mitigation, mercy, and family members' requests not to impose another loss.

Highlights (2)

Quote“the death penalty is never required in any case.”— Casey SecorSecor presented the defense's central sentencing argument that death was not mandatory even if aggravating circumstances were established.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶

Quote“There do not have to be any more deaths. There do not have to be any more funerals.”— Casey SecorSecor closed by asking jurors to treat a life sentence as mercy for the extended family.Open in transcript →Watch this moment ▶

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Trial Record (72)

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