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Co-defendant to take lie detector test
By Joe Gorman
YOUNGSTOWN
There will be a slight delay in the trial of a South Side man accused of two murders after the co-defendant in one of those cases agreed Monday to take a lie-detector test.
Lamar Reese, 21, of North Worthington Avenue, will take the test administered by the state Bureau of Criminal Investigation today, and if the results back up his claim that he was not present when Josh Davis, 17, of Willis Avenue, was shot and killed during a marijuana deal Sept. 16, 2011, then the charges against him may be dropped, assistant Prosecutor Martin Desmond said in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court on Monday.
Reese is charged with aggravated murder and aggravated robbery in the death of Davis, as is 21-year-old Frankie Hudson of Falls Avenue.
Hudson also faces charges of aggravated murder in the Dec. 14, 2010, killing of 44-year-old Christopher Weston at an Overland Avenue store where Weston was filling in for the owner.
Reese does not face any charges in Weston’s death.
Jury selection was to begin for both defendants Monday before Judge Maureen Sweeney, but the trial will be delayed at least until the results of the lie-detector test are known. Desmond said the results should be available by Thursday.
Desmond said the questions will be simple because Reese is maintaining he was not present when Davis was killed and he knows nothing about his murder. Desmond said the test should answer whether he was present.
“It’s a pretty straightforward polygraph exam,” Desmond said. “If he was not there, he was not there.”
If the test shows Reese is lying about his involvement in Davis’ murder, then that can be used against him at trial, Desmond said.
Hudson’s lawyer, David Betras, said he was prepared to start trial Monday and was surprised at the development because he was not told until about 10 minutes before court started. He said he had not had a chance to ask Hudson if he wanted to do the same thing as Reese but he added that he thinks lie-detector tests are unreliable.
He said he needs a trial postponement because Reese’s agreement to take the test changes his trial tactics.
Judge Sweeney said she will have a conference call with the lawyers Thursday before she decides how long or if the trial will be postponed.