Murder trial for ex-Balch Springs officer enters second day

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DALLAS - The jury was seated again Friday for the murder trial of a former Balch Springs police officer who fatally shot a teenager.

Witnesses inside the car with Jordan Edwards were emotional as they told jurors about the moment they saw their friend from high school shot and killed.

It was difficult for twin brothers Maxwell and Maximus Everett to maintain their composure as they testified about the moment their friend, Jordan, was shot and killed by former Balch Springs Officer Roy Oliver.

“Last second looked up, I see someone aiming at the car. Looked like someone dressed in all black, bald head,” Maxwell recalled. “Only thing I could do was duck to protect myself.”

Jordan was shot five times. The others in the car did not realize right away how badly he was bleeding.

“I thought he'd spilled his drink,” Maxwell said. “I thought that for real.”

Eric Knight witnessed the shooting. He described his reaction to Oliver's initial account of why he opened fire.

“He made a statement that said something to effect of a car was speeding backwards trying to hit a police officer,” Knight recalled. “At that exact moment, I knew that was wrong.”

“He was driving very slow,” Maxwell said.

Maxwell testified about the party that led to noise complaints and neighbors calling police. He says he went outside because it was too hot inside. Then, he heard shots.

“It sounded like gunshots,” he said. “Like a cab gun. A very weak gun.”

Witnesses testified gang members fired shots into the air at a nearby nursing home.

Body camera videos from Oliver and his partner, Tyler Gross, show the chaotic scene with teenagers scattering from the party. The Everett twins and Jordan piled into the car.

Jordan Patterson witnessed the shooting and went to mesquite high school with Edwards. She testified that losing her friend hurts deeply.

“He was sweet and kind,” she said. “Laughed even when we called him Peanut."