Prosecutors tie killing of Scott Brooks to double homicide; defense says cases not connected

CHARLOTTE — Testimony continued Wednesday in the trial of Terry Conner and Steven Staples, who are accused of robbing and killing Scott Brooks outside his restaurant in NoDa on Dec. 9, 2019.

Prosecutors are attempting to connect Conner and Staples to another crime, a double homicide that occurred on Atando Avenue on Jan. 11, 2020. They allege that both crimes were committed to obtain quick cash and that the victims were killed to prevent identification.

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Defense attorneys argue that there is no connection between the slaying of Scott Brooks and the subsequent double homicide that happened 32 days later on Atando Avenue. The two victims, Asa Shannon and Siojvon Joseph, were shot in the head, bound by duct tape and left in the backseat of a car.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Det. Brandon Sinnott led that investigation and was in court to testify.

The victims’ home was found in disarray.

“The house was ransacked, meaning everything was tipped over, chairs, drawers were pulled out, personal items thrown. It was a mess,” the detective said.

Photos of the scene were shown in court. The evidence was the work of a robbery, prosecutors said.

Sinnott said a suspect, Everett Connor, was initially identified, and when his cellphone records were pulled, police found he’d been talking to his brother, Conner, and Staples.

Data indicated their phones pinged on a tower near the double homicide at the time it happened.

All three were charged with murder in that case.

Conner’s defense team noted his client hasn’t had his day in court for that case.

That case is still pending, according to court records.

Neither defense team wanted the separate double homicide case entered as evidence in the Brooks homicide.

However, prosecutors and the judge agreed that the two cases were similar regarding their motives, intent, and how they were conducted.

The trial continues Thursday.

Gun at courthouse

A woman who has been going to the Brooks murder trial was arrested Wednesday morning because she had a gun and tried to get through a security checkpoint on the first floor of the Mecklenburg County Courthouse, officials said.

VIDEO: Scott Brooks shot at suspects before being killed, video shows

Scott Brooks shot at suspects before being killed, video shows