KNOXVILLE, Tenn — Testimony began Tuesday in the trial of three Knoxville teens accused of trying to kill two Austin-East High School students in January 2021 as they drove away from school.
The trial for Rashan Jordan, 17, Deondre Davis, 19, and Ahmad Gatlin, 19, likely will take all week in Knox County Criminal Court. Judge Steve Sword is presiding over the case.
The trio are accused of trying to kill Johnkelian Mathis, and girlfriend Azley Mills as they drove away from the school Jan. 14, 2021, in a black Infiniti. The shooting started near Jarnigan & Son Mortuary and continued as the gunmen chased the pair in a stolen Honda Pilot to the Exxon at Magnolia Avenue and Cherry Street, authorities allege.
Mathis fired back at the suspects with a .45-caliber pistol. The Pilot fled.
About 10 people called 911 that day to report hearing gunshots or seeing the vehicles in the midst of the shooting.
Mathis and Mills ran inside the gas station. Neither was hit by bullets.
Prosecutors say multiple guns were used in the shooting, including some that later turned up in connection later to other crimes. Casings and evidence of the ongoing shooting were found from near the school to the Exxon.
Four bullets, in fact, appeared to hit a house on Woodbine Avenue, down the street from the gas station, testimony showed Tuesday.
Photos depicting the suspects showing off weapons and smoking what appeared to be marijuana were found on their phones. Some of the weapons appeared similar to those used in the shooting.
The prosecution told jurors Tuesday that Mills saw who was shooting at her and identified Gatlin, Jordan and Davis as being involved.
The defense, however, cautioned the panel that Mills would prove to be an unreliable witness once she takes the stand.
The prosecution is asking Sword to bar the media from filming Mills when she takes the stand, arguing her safety is at stake. WBIR has asked the court to allow it to proceed with a camera when she testifies.
The judge hasn't ruled yet on the state's request.
In August 2021, Johnkelian Mathis was shot and killed in Lonsdale. The killing remains unsolved. Davis and Jordan were in custody at the time.
A month after the January 2021 attack, Davis and Jordan shot and killed 16-year-old student Stanley Freeman Jr. as he was leaving Austin-East to get ready for his after-school job. A jury convicted them this spring in the murder. They're serving life sentences.