'People lie but data doesn't': Windsor murder trial nears conclusion

A Brampton man is on trial for a downtown shooting in 2018 that killed a Mississauga resident who was a student at the University of Windsor.

Kahli Johnson-Phillips, 27, has pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree murder and attempted murder for the shooting at University and Ouellette Avenues on Aug. 27, 2018.

"Jason Pantlitz-Solomon was targeted. He was murdered," assistant Crown attorney Bryan Pillon told the 14 jurors Wednesday.

Pillon started his closing statements by showing the jury the surveillance video — captured from inside a taxi cab — of the shooting itself.

It was an emotional moment for the Pantlitz-Solomon family members sitting in the gallery.

Pillon reminded the jury the victim suffered 14 separate gunshot wounds; some sustained “while he was down” on the sidewalk.

Pantlitz-Solomon’s girlfriend was also struck by a bullet but survived her injuries.

At the time of the shooting, the couple were at the intersection waiting to sell marijuana to a person Pantlitz-Solomon had never met.

THE KEY WITNESS

The key witness in the case is Keima Davis-Baynes, a former girlfriend of Johnson-Phillips, who the jury learned was in the car that drove from the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) to Windsor and back the night of the shooting.

In multiple interviews with police, Davis-Baynes told police the shooter was a man named ‘George.’

But after months of investigating, Davis-Baynes admitted in July 2019, the shooter was actually Johnson-Phillips.

THE DEFENCE LAWYER

At trial, Davis-Baynes said that was all a lie, fabricated on the advice of her lawyer, who she says promised she would go into ‘witness protection’ if she told the truth.

In an agreed statement of facts, the court learned the lawyer in fact instructed her to not talk to police at all.

"How could he (the Windsor lawyer) tell her what to say if he told her not to talk (to police) at all?" Pillon asked the jury to consider. "She blames her lawyers, she blames police, when in reality she's running from the truth."

THE CELLPHONE EVIDENCE

Pillon focused the other portion of his closing statements on cellphone data, reminding the jury about all of the evidence found in a cellphone they believe is owned and used by Johnson-Phillips.

"People lie but data doesn't," Pillon told the jury.

A phone was found by Peel Regional Police outside of the vehicle they say was used in the Windsor shooting.

Johnson-Phillips’ DNA was identified on the vehicle and on items found inside the car.

And on the cellphone, dozens of images and some videos the Crown alleges are Johnson-Phillips.

They also found the contact information for Pantlitz-Solomon was added the day before the shooting and ‘modified’ the day after the shooting.

“The evidence Johnson-Phillips used the phone, is overwhelming. The evidence that phone was in the hands of the killer is overwhelming. Evidence which confirms everything she said in this (police) statement is overwhelming,” Pillon told the jurors.

Pillon also showed the jurors a video from the phone, they say is Johnson-Phillips confessing to the murder, albeit while wearing a mask and using slang from the gang subculture.

“The evidence is telling you who did this. Listen to all of it. Examine it closely and when you do, you will hear only one thing: proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Guilty on both counts," Pillon concluded.

THE DEFENCE

Justice Pamela Hebner told the jury Wednesday afternoon the defence would not be able to start and finish their closing statements before the days end.

So, the jury was asked to return to Windsor’s Superior Court for 9:30 a.m. Thursday for lawyer Michael Moon’s closing statements.

The judge also told the jury she will then instruct them on the law, commonly referred to as ‘the charge to the jury.’

After that, two of the jurors will be randomly drawn and they will be excused, leaving 12 jurors to deliberate, as per the Criminal Code.

The jurors were asked to bring their overnight belongings with them to court Thursday as they will then be sequestered until they reach a unanimous verdict.