Three Augusta men are on trial this week for the 2020 slaying of Donnell Graham, 27, as he left a fast-food job on Wrightsboro Road.
Two of the suspects, Kendrick Green and Tor’jae Tanksley, were 15 and 16 at the time of the March 10, 2020 crime. A third person, Kenneth Green Jr., was 29 and would be captured by U.S. Marshals in New York.
Assistant District Attorney William Hammond said in opening statements Tuesday that Graham was killed because he’d had a baby with the wrong woman.
As a result, the older Green – who is unrelated to the younger one – aided by the two younger men and a fourth suspect, Ashley Jones, staked out the Daniel Village Popeye’s restaurant where Graham worked, Hammond said.
As he was leaving in his car, the suspects shot Graham in the back four times, he said. He was found behind an adjacent Pizza Hut.
News reports at the time gave little explanation for the killing. Jones, who had faced murder charges, is expected to testify this week about the premeditated plan to kill Graham, he said.
The younger Green’s defense said his client had been a “kid” who “got caught up in some very adult nonsense” with the older Green and Jones, but that no one can put a gun in his hand.
Attorney for Tanksley, Tianna Bias, said in opening statements it was the older Green “who had the beef” with Graham, as well as the “plan” for him.
The younger Tanksley thought they might fight Graham, but didn’t know Green would bring a gun, she said.
Attorney for Kenneth Green, Daniel K. Franck, said Jones’ story had changed a few times as she “leveraged the truth” to get out of jail. The younger defendants “have free will” and Green is not responsible for their actions, Franck said.
The defendants face sentences of life without parole for murder. They’ve been in the packed Webster Detention Center for three-and-a-half years, during which the two younger defendants have racked up assault, battery and other charges.
