{Charleston, West Virginia}...The state rested its case Friday in the murder trial of Garland Murray, a Charleston man facing charges of first-degree murder in the April 2010 shooting death of Gregory Poole. Police say Poole, who was found dead in the front yard of a home on Second Avenue in Charleston, died of a gunshot wound to the back of the head. Prosecutors contend Murray and his brother kidnapped Poole in an attempt to steal drugs or money. Detectives with the Charleston Police Department took the stand Friday morning. Detective Jeremy Tate testified that he met Poole’s wife, Ebony, at the police station the morning Poole’s body was found. She was there filling out a missing person’s report for him. Another detective testified that he found blood in the area of Poole’s body, but it turned out it was Poole's. Murray’s attorneys called for charges against their client to be dropped, saying the state had not provided any evidence that Murray had anything to do with the crime, except for Ebony Poole’s testimony, and her testimony is unreliable because she was involved in dealing drugs to Murray and his brother, Deshawn Taylor. Kanawha County Circuit Judge Charles King acquitted Murray on a charge of breaking without entering. The jury will begin deliberations Monday morning.
