Juvenile court jury hears testimony in Lima shooting death
Nov. 3—LIMA — A rare jury trial in Allen County Juvenile Court entered its second day Tuesday as witnesses took the stand to recount details surrounding the January 2020 murder of Danielle Jackson behind Pappy's Lounge in Lima.
Jordan Daniel, 17, is one of two young Lima men charged in connection with Jackson's death. The other, Ja'naz Smith, is being tried as an adult in Allen County Common Pleas Court.
Smith was 15 years old when police say he shot and killed Jackson during a robbery attempt outside Pappy's Lounge, 1000 W. North St., on Jan. 20, 2020.
Allen County Juvenile Court Judge Todd Kohlrieser is presiding over Daniel's trial. Kohlrieser said the teenager is being tried as a juvenile but is being afforded all the constitutional rights enjoyed by adult defendants.
Jackson's body was found in the early-morning hours in the rear parking lot of the West North Street bar. He was suffering from gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead after being transported to Mercy Health-St. Rita's Medical Center, just a block away.
Testimony on Tuesday came from the first people to observe Jackson lying on the ground outside the bar at approximately 2:30 a.m. Bradley Clum said he arrived at Pappy's around that time to pick up a friend who was inside the bar. While pulling into the parking lot, Clum testified, an individual wearing a black hoodie and black pants ran past his vehicle.
Clum said upon pulling into a parking space, he observed a man standing outside the bar smoking a cigarette. The man then fell to the ground, he said.
"I yelled at the guy to see if he needed help. He was non-responsive," Clum testified. "He was just kind of moaning. Something didn't seem right, so I stayed in my car."
Patrolman Sam Crish of the Lima Police Department was the first law enforcement officer on scene. Footage from his body camera was played for jurors, and Jackson appeared to describe his attackers as "two black men, one shorter than the other." Crish said another person at the scene said they had seen someone running north on Charles Street and turning east in an alley toward Maple Lane.
Crish said a K-9 officer attempted to track the scent and footprints, which ended in the 900 block of West Wayne Street. Crish said it was his belief the suspects were picked up by a vehicle at that location.
Jurors also viewed surveillance video from a nearby residence that showed two individuals walking toward the bar at approximately 2:30 a.m.
Afternoon testimony focused on physical evidence collected from the scene. Lt. Josh Howbert of the Allen County Sheriff's Office said he responded to the call and found Jackson on the ground outside the bar.
"I noticed he had a circular wound consistent with a bullet hole," Howbert said.
Upon closer examination, Howbert said he observed three such wounds: one in the chest, one in the abdomen and another in Jackson's armpit area.
Lima Police Department Identification Officer Mike Carman showed jurors clothing worn by Jackson at the time of the shooting. Five layers of shirts and coats all featured holes that the officer said were consistent with gunshot wounds.
Carman, who also testified that three spent shell casings and one spent bullet were recovered from the scene, will return to the witness stand Wednesday morning for cross-examination by defense attorney Jeremy Dodgion.
