DOVER — The girlfriend of a Dover man shot to death at their apartment in 2017 testified to hearing five or six rounds of gunfire just after he answered the door as the murder trial of …
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DOVER — The girlfriend of a Dover man shot to death at their apartment in 2017 testified to hearing five or six rounds of gunfire just after he answered the door as the murder trial of two Maryland men began Tuesday morning.
The woman, who had a child with the late Javan Cale, 32, during a nine-year relationship, said she heard an unidentified voice say “Noooo,” after the shots, but did not know or see defendants Guy E. Jones, 28, and DePaul Wilson, 37.
Both are Worton residents who pleaded not guilty to charges including two counts each of first-degree murder.
In an opening statement, Deputy Attorney General Stephen R. Welch Jr. said upcoming evidence would link the defendants to the shooting at a third floor residence at Clearfield Apartments at 120 Haman Drive in west Dover on the night of Jan. 10, 2017.
Defense attorneys Patrick J. Collins and Suzanne MacPherson-Johnson urged the five-man, 11-woman jury (including alternates) to carefully consider physical evidence and witness testimony before rendering a verdict, and noted that all trials begin with a presumption of innocence and a standard of beyond a reasonable doubt for guilt.
The prosecution described the scene as a residence where Mr. Cale allegedly dealt drugs from and said evidence would indicate that the defendants came there to rob him of marijuana, cash and other valuables. There was no sign of forced entry, Mr. Welch said.
Mr. Cale was transported to Bayhealth-Kent General Hospital in Dover, where he was pronounced dead approximately an hour after a 911 call was placed to Dover Police at 7:47 p.m.
Arriving police and a paramedic said the man appeared to be barely clinging to life when they arrived and began treatment while securing the scene. A paramedic said Mr. Cale was not breathing and his heart wasn’t pumping blood when he came to the scene.
Two children were in their rooms at the time of the gunfire and not injured, according to the DAG.
According to the DAG, the alleged assailants were wounded in an exchange of gunfire with Mr. Cale. A wounded Mr. Wilson and two others were dropped off at an Emergency Room in Middletown later that night, the prosecutor said, and Dover Police later connected it to their investigation.
While Mr. Wilson claimed he was wounded in the Middletown area, Mr. Welch said town police found no evidence of that.
A silver Dodge Journey vehicle that prosecutors said was owned by Mr. Jones wife was located, along with a receipt for medical supplies. The prosecution believes Mr. Jones attempted to treat himself after being shot once in the shoulder and twice in the thighs.
The DAG said evidence indicated that seven aluminum shell casings at the apartment were consistent with a silver handgun Mr. Cale possessed during the gunfire exchange. Five brass shell casings allegedly fired from the assailants were present as well, though the DAG said no weapon was been located.
A 911 call made by the girlfriend was played for the jury, and the woman pleaded “Please come quick” at least twice while speaking with an operator. The information was also relayed to Kent County paramedics because it involved a medical emergency.
Mr. Cale stood by a television looking “kind of dazed” before collapsing in front of the apartment’s front door, the woman said.
An arriving Dover Police patrolman testified to seeing Mr. Cale on the floor, with a gun next to his left leg, with blood on him and on the floor.
An initial check of his neck and wrist indicated no pulse and the injured man was non-responsive, police said.
Witnesses told police the apartment had a lot of foot traffic in and out, mostly by males.
Both defendants were arrested on Feb. 14, 2017 and indicted on June 5, 2017 after extradition from Maryland. Mr. Welch indicated they lived on adjacent properties in Maryland.
Other charges include first-degree attempted robbery, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, possession of firearm or ammunition by person prohibited and second-degree conspiracy.
Court records indicated Mr. Jones is being held at Howard R. Young Correctional Center in Wilmington, and Mr. Jones is in custody at James T. Vaughn Correctional Center near Smyrna.
Resident Judge William L. Witham Jr. is overseeing the trial.