Not Guilty in Fairfield Shooting

On January 30, 2008 Marvin Clark was acquitted of the September 8, 2006 shooting of Richard Phipps that left Phipps paralyzed at the waste. In a case tried by Horace Hunter of the law firm of Hunter & Lipton LLP in the City of Richmond Circuit Court, a jury took only an hour to acquit Clark of the shooting.

The case involved what appeared to be the robbery of a drug dealer in the Fairfield area of the City of Richmond. The victim, a known drug dealer, was found shot and bleeding from a single gun shot wound to the back in the early morning hours of September 8, 2006. The investigation quickly turned to Marvin Clark as the perpetrator because a witness appeared to have identified him as the shooter.

The problem with the prosecutions case was that their primary witness, Denise White, appeared to be fabricating much of her testimony. White, an admitted cocaine addict, testified that Clark shot Phipps in during an apparent robbery. The problem with her testimony was that it contracted the testimony of the victim and appeared totally incredible.

Further, two witnesses for the defense testified that they were also present at the time of the shooting and that Marvin Clark did not commit the crime. Another major problem for the prosecution was that there was a conflict within the Richmond Police Department as to whether Clark was involved at all and whether another individual committed the crime. There were credible reports from reliable informants that indicated that another individual had committed the crime. The primary reason the prosecution went forward against Clark was that the victim insisted that he was present at that the time and the informant were reluctant to testify in court. However, at the end of the day justice was served in that Marvin Clark was acquitted.

This case is yet another example of how innocent people are often accused of committing some of the most serious crimes. That is why it is important not to judge the guilt of an individual until all the evidence has been presented both for and against him.

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