The Roanoke Times reports a jury acquitted Isimemen Etute on a second-degree murder charge for the death of 40-year-old Jerry Paul Smith.The jury reportedly deliberated for about three hours following the trial that lasted . Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Prosecutor Jason Morgan, in arguing against Etute's release on bond, testified that the defendant had met Smith for oral sex April 10, after the two had connected on Tinder. This is about preventing murder and assault," Roem added. Roem, the first openly transgender person elected to the Virginia General Assembly, reacted on Twitter on Wednesday in a discussion of the prospect that the issue of deception might rise as a defense in Etutes case. Jerry was a restaurant manager and CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. (WDBJ) - The trial of former Virginia Tech football player Isimemen Etute began in court Wednesday. He excluded a jury instruction on the gay panic defense that was the subject of a law passed by the General Assembly last year. I felt violated, Etute said, of discovering Smiths identity. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigations most recent hate crime statistics, from 2019, 16.7% of hate crime victims were targeted because of their sexual orientation and 2.7% because of their gender identity. Facebook gives people the. Nobody deserves to die, but I dont mind saying, dont pretend you are something that you are not, Turk later told reporters. For example, Congress expanded the definition of hate crimes in 2009, adding protections against crimes based on gender identity or sexual orientation and allowing a federal prosecution when it is in the public interest. Duncan then said that he saw no evidence that Etute posed a danger to the community and allowed him to leave jail until his trial, after posting a $75,000 bond. Jurors were told Etute killed Jerry Paul Smith in self-defense . At a bond hearing on Wednesday, attorneys for the state revealed that Etute allegedly told police he punched and stomped Smith . A freshman Virginia Tech linebacker charged with murder told police he fatally beat a man breaking every bone in his face for catfishing him on Tinder, prosecutors said. A suspended Virginia Tech football player accused of killing a gay man . Etute lifted his defense attorney Jimmy Turk off the ground in a bear hug with both of them crying. Isimemen David Etute at the end of his trial in Montgomery County Circuit Court in Christiansburg on Friday. Former Virginia Tech football player Isimemen Etute and his family have issued a statement to The Roanoke Times, Etute wasacquitted on second. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Thanks for contacting us. If it was a man, I was just going to run out, Etute testified. ROANOKE REGIONAL RESTAURANT GROUP LLC is a Virginia Domestic Limited-Liability Company filed on May 5, 2021. Blacksburg police, according to the statement, responded to a welfare check at 119 N. Main Street in Blacksburg on the night of Tuesday June 1, and found Smith deceased. Discovering that Angie was a man provoked Etute to start punching, then stomping Smith, Assistant Commonwealths Attorney Jason Morgan said. In his opening statements on Wednesday, Defense attorney Jimmy Turk said his client beat Smith because it was the only thing reasonably could do to ensure he got out of Jerry Smiths apartment alive.. Etutes attorneys argued the beating was self-defense in a confrontation between the two in which the mans true identity was revealed. Fleenor also allowed the defenses proposed instructions on self-defense. Turk told the jury that the defense was unaware police detectives didnt disclose finding a knife until June 17. Ultimately, authorities will have to decide whether a case is more suitable for federal or state prosecution although cases can be brought in both court systems without violating a defendants protection against double jeopardy, Levin said. I cant imagine being him, Turk said. I hope this terrible incident will make more real the jeopardy and the work we still have to do to prevent the kind of knee-jerk, irrational behavior that weve grown up with as males in our society.. 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Etute reportedly told police Smith did not assault him and that he heard bubbling and gurgling as he left Smiths home but didn't call the police. Isimemen David Etute and defense attorney Jimmy Turk hug at the conclusion of the trial in Montgomery County Circuit Court in Christiansburg earlier this year. The suspended Hokie football player is accused of killing Jerry Paul Smith. Etute then claimed he got up, stood next to the bed and asked Smith "Why didnt you tell me?" Oma valikuid saate igal ajal muuta privaatsusseadete kaudu. Smith performed oral sex on Etute on April 10, and Etute returned to the apartment with two of his former teammates in May seeking to determine if Smith was a man or woman. There just needs to be a scintilla, and there may be all there is in this case, its not that much, Fleenor said, in siding with the defense. A suspended Virginia Tech football player admitted to police that he beat Blacksburg resident Jerry Paul Smith to death after discovering that Smith, whom the defendant met on the dating app Tinder and with whom he agreed to engage in sexual acts, was a man, prosecutors said, citing police statements.. Ismemen David Etute, who appeared in Montgomery County District Court in Virginia on . His mother had testified that someone is always at their home and that the family includes three siblings, among them a younger sister with Down syndrome. EXCLUSIVE - Revealed: Carol Kirkwood's secret toyboy fianc - 13 years her junior - is a divorced police 'Digital antidepressants' to be rolled out on the NHS as health bosses give eight apps and web-based therapy Jerry Paul Smith - Regionalobituaries.com | Regionalobituaries.com, Blacksburg murder suspect released on bond; lawyer says victim lured suspect with fake Tinder profile, Court hearing reveals new details in case of suspended Virginia Tech player charged in Blacksburg mans death, Do not sell or share my personal information. Etute is charged with second-degree murder. UPDATE 11:47 a.m.: The second-degree-murder charge against suspended Virginia Tech football player Isimemen Etute was certified by a Montgomery County judge to a grand jury Thursday morning. BLACKSBURG, Va. (WDBJ) - Surveillance video shows three people leaving quickly from Jerry Smith's Blacksburg apartment May 31.. We've blurred their faces until police confirm their identities . Police found Smiths body in his apartment on June 1, and Etute was arrested and charged on June 2. CHRISTIANSBURG Former Virginia Tech football player Isimemen Etute was found not guilty Friday in the beating death of Jerry Paul Smith following a three-day trial in Montgomery County Circuit Court. The most recent instance he cited was in Norfolk in 2011, after 18-year-old Deandre Moore fatally stabbed Jacques Cowell, 20. Making the case for granting bond, Etutes attorney had the 18-year-old and his mother take the stand. The Virginia Tech linebacker (pictured) allegedly stomped a man to death during a Tinder date after he discovered his date had been posing as a woman named 'Angie', Etute's mother (pictured left) told the court her son is not a flight risk and had never been in any trouble before, Etute told court he has never been in trouble with the law and that he was a model student who graduated high school early to start at Virginia Tech in January. The second-degree murder case drew widespread attention last year because of the unusual circumstances: a college athlete who admitted fatally beating an openly gay man who had posed as a woman on Tinder to initiate a sexual encounter. Teave teie seadme ja internetihenduse (nagu teie IP-aadressi) kohta, Sirvimis- ja otsingutegevused Yahoo veebilehtedel ja rakendustes. Defense attorney Jimmy Turk leaves the courthouse with the Etute family in Christiansburg in June. Etute also told police that Smith did not fight back. According to the autopsy, all the bones in Blacksburg resident Jerry Paul Smith's face were broken, his teeth were missing and he had multiple cranial fractures. In 2019, Etute helped his Virginia Beach high school Frank W. Cox to a 6-5 record and a junior in a Virginia Class 5A first-round playoff appearance, according to 247sports. {{start_at_rate}} {{format_dollars}} {{start_price}} {{format_cents}} {{term}}, {{promotional_format_dollars}}{{promotional_price}}{{promotional_format_cents}} {{term}}, Nebraska cheerleader competes by herself at state competition, but crowd doesn't let her feel alone, Last of 13 Radford University 'frat brawl' defendants is sentenced, Richmond's John Marshall boys basketball reclaims No. 69-year-old suffers stroke in his N.C. home; Realtor showing house leaves him there. Judge Mike Fleenor sided with the defense on a pair of notable motions during jury instructions. Im truly sorry for my actions.. Ralph Northam signed legislation that will apply to the use of such defenses in Virginia on July 1. The 18-year-old linebacker heard bubbling and gurgling coming from Smith as he left the apartment, but didnt call the police, the Commonwealth Attorney added. Fleenor said the instruction would have applied in this case, but the law wasnt in place until July 1 and didnt apply retroactively. Mary Pettitt, the Montgomery County commonwealths attorney who is pursuing the second-degree murder charge, wrote in an email that Virginia law has a hate crime enhancement statute for assault and battery but not for murder. He was suspended from the squad last week. Defense attorney Turk also asked Brunson about a conversation he had with Etute on June 11, two days after his client was bonded out of jail. Gay panic refers to claiming, in court, that the reaction to finding out someone elses sexual orientation or gender identity justifies violent acts. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. The order prohibits Etute from going back to Montgomery County except for court proceedings or to consult with his attorney. 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