Judge Won't Dismiss Murder Charge in Bar Brawl Trial
Harassment, groping preceded the fatal fight, woman says.
June 6, 2014— -- The woman at the center of a 2012 bar brawl death says a stranger harassed and groped her before he was killed in a fight with her now-husband.
Elizabeth Wicker Gay took the stand Thursday, telling the court that Kenan Gay, then her boyfriend, was simply protecting her from Robert Kingston’s advances in a Charlotte, North Carolina, bar. Kingston tried to kiss her, she said.
“The hairs on the back of my neck just stood straight up,” she said of Kingston’s actions.
Gay – a former University of North Carolina football player – stepped in, throwing Kingston out of the bar.
Kingston landed in front of a car, with the car striking and killing him.
Wicker Gay broke down several times recounting the events that night. Prosecutors argued that the tears were due to fear for her husband’s freedom.
“You’re crying because your husband’s on trial for murder, aren’t you?” said Anna Greene, Mecklenburg County Prosecutor.
Gay faces a charge of second-degree murder. His defense team tried to have the charge thrown out, but judge Don Bridges denied that request Thursday.
According to police reports, Kingston’s blood-alcohol level was nearly four times the legal limit. Witnesses say Gay – a former law student – seemed stunned after he pushed Kingston into an oncoming car, but he also fled the scene and had to be chased down.
The jury must now decide whether it was all a mistake, or murder.
