Prosecution rests in Springfield, Vt., man’s murder trial

The prosecution rested on Wednesday in the trial of Gregory Smith after calling two final witnesses to the stand, including the Vermont man who harbored Smith in the days after he shot Wesley Wing in April 2015.


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Prosecution Rests in Springfield, Vt., Man’s Murder Trial By Jordan Cuddemi Valley News Staff Writer Wednesday, February 07, 2018 Print Springfield VT White River Junction — The prosecution rested on Wednesday in the trial of Gregory Smith after calling two final witnesses to the stand, including the Vermont man who harbored Smith in the days after he shot Wesley Wing in April 2015. Darrell Barror said his sister, Wendy Morris, who is Smith’s girlfriend, contacted him after the shooting, and Barror agreed to pick Smith up near Magic Mountain Ski Area and take him to Barror’s remote campsite in South Londonderry, Vt. Barror testified that he knew Smith had been involved in a shooting. The 32-year-old Smith told Barror he went to confront Wing on April 18, 2015, and Wing “punched him through the window of his car a couple of times,” according to Barror’s testimony. “(Smith) said he had his gun on him and he pulled it out and blacked out,” Barror said, adding that he was childhood friends with Wing and that Smith apologized to him for having done what he did. Barror testified he didn’t see any marks on Smith’s face when he picked him up after the shooting, but public defender Jordana Levine said Barror only testified to seeing Smith during the nighttime hours. Smith told Barror he disassembled the firearm he used and threw it out the window of his car after the incident, Barror testified. Police located Smith and Morris at the campsite on April 23, five days after the shooting. Wednesday was the third day of Smith’s trial on a charge of second-degree murder. He has pleaded not guilty. Authorities say he shot and killed Wing, a father of four, at an intersection in Springfield, Vt., after Wing and Morris got into an argument over drug activities in the neighborhood, according to an affidavit in the case. Attorneys for Smith say he acted in self-defense when he fired five shots at Wing, who they say attacked him. Smith drove by Wing a few times on South Street on the day in question as Wing walked to Jake’s Market, according to testimony. The two exchanged words before Smith pulled in front of him near the intersection of South Street and Cheryl Lane. Security footage at Jake’s Market shows Wing moments later stumbling toward the convenience store, where he collapsed just inside the door. The other witness on Wednesday was State Police Lt. Lance Burnham, the commander of the Crime Scene Search Team. Burnham examined the vehicle Smith was in when he shot Wing and testified that the interior of the vehicle was “extremely clean” and was “covered” in the cleaning agent Armor All. There was so much that it “coated” an investigators rubber gloves, he said. An Armor All container also was found in the trunk of the vehicle, he testified. After the state rested on Wednesday morning, Levine made a motion for a judgment of acquittal, arguing the state hadn’t proven its case. But Windsor Superior Court Judge Timothy Tomasi denied that motion. The trial is set to resume this morning at 9 a.m. in the White River Junction courthouse. Jordan Cuddemi can be reached at jcud demi@vnews.com or 603-727-3248.