Attorney Wants Ahern’s Criminal Past Introduced

— The attorney representing a former Bella Vista police officer wants the court to allow him to introduce the criminal record of the man his client is accused of killing.

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Cpl. Coleman "Duke" Brackney

Coleman Brackney, 27, of Sulphur Springs is charged with manslaughter, a Class C felony punishable with a prison sentence ranging from three to 10 years.

Brackney is charged in connection with the Jan. 20 fatal shooting of James Ahern, who was shot about 8 p.m. after a high-speed chase.

Jury selection is scheduled to begin Dec. 7.

Brackney pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Benton County Prosecuting Attorney Van Stone filed a motion last week asking the court to exclude Ahern’s criminal record from being used as evidence.

Drew Miller, a Rogers attorney who represents Brackney, filed a response Monday. He wants to be able to use evidence concerning Ahern’s arrests and convictions dating to June 1994 and an arrest which occurred days before his death. A 2000 arrest of Ahern involved aggravated assault on a police officer. There are also previous arrests for driving under the influence.

Miller claims the prior acts need to be examined because some may not be admissible, but he believes the ones involving multiple assaults, fleeing and resisting arrest are important in relation to Ahern’s actions in January.

According to the response, Ahern was intoxicated and battered his girlfriend and had been arrested for driving while intoxicated. The incidents are not only relative to the case, but also give rise to motive to explain Ahern’s conduct, Miller said.

Stone stated in his motion Arkansas law is clear when justification or self-defense is asserted as a defense, evidence of a victim’s prior conduct should be excluded from trial unless the victim’s prior conduct was directed at the accused or was within the accused’s knowledge.

Miller has said he will argue Brackney acted in self-defense.

Brackney admitted to investigators he did not know Ahern was driving the vehicle he was pursuing, according to Stone’s motion. Brackney also told investigators when he made the decision to use deadly force, he did not know the person was Ahern, according to court documents.

Miller also wants the court to allow toxicology reports showing Ahern was under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Miller previously said marijuana was found in Ahern’s vehicle days after the shooting.

Millers states in the motion Brackney will be asked what was going through his mind as he pursued Ahern and why he had to use deadly force. The motion states Ahern’s intoxication will be the answer to those questions.

Miller’s response states Ahern’s intoxication will also be the response if prosecutors try to indicate Brackney did not have a reason to pursue Ahern.

Stone’s motion states Brackney was not aware of Ahern’s marijuana possession and level of intoxication at the time of the pursuit. As a result, he cannot reasonably claim the marijuana possession and intoxication level factored into his decision or justified his decision to use deadly force.

A hearing on the issue is scheduled Wednesday before Circuit Judge Robin Green.

An Arkansas State Police investigation determined Ahern was shot six times. Investigators said the sixth shot came after Ahern appeared to be surrendering and would not have had use of his right arm because of an earlier round fired by Brackney, according to court documents.

The chase started on Cooper Road in Bella Vista while Brackney was questioning individuals about a series of car break-ins, according to court documents.

Brackney said he feared Ahern was trying to kill him with his vehicle, but an affidavit of probable cause states Ahern’s car was never pointed at Brackney’s car. Brackney said he fired at Ahern as the vehicle moved past and away from him. The trajectories of the bullets indicate Brackney fired from the direction of the rear passenger side, through the right side of the car’s convertible top and toward the driver’s seat, according to court documents.

Brackney told investigators he fired the final shot because the reverse lights on Ahern’s vehicle came on as he was behind Ahern’s vehicle and he feared for his life, according to the affidavit.

It appears from the dash camera video the illumination of the rear lights on Ahern’s vehicle did not change from the time the vehicle stopped until the final shot was fired.

A pre-trial hearing is also scheduled for Dec. 6.

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The Arrests

Brushes With The Law

James Ahern had several brushes with the law. The following is a record of misdemeanor arrests since 2007.

Offense - Date Arrested - Arresting Agency

DWI - Jan. 18, 2010 - Benton County Sheriff's Office

Battery 3rd Degree - April 30, 2009 - Bella Vista Police

Driving left of center - Jan. 14, 2009 - Arkansas State Police

Refusal to submit to test - Jan. 14, 2009 - Arkansas State Police

DWI - Jan. 14, 2009 - Arkansas State Police

Failure to report accident - Dec. 29, 2008 - Bella Vista Police

Leaving the scene of property damage accident - Dec. 29, 2008 - Bella Vista Police

Drinking in Public - Dec. 28, 2008 - Bella Vista Police

Public Intoxication - Aug. 7, 2008 - Rogers Police

Speeding - July 16, 2008 - Bella Vista Police

Reckless Driving - July 16, 2008 - Bella Vista Police

Disorderly Conduct - July 16, 2008 - Bella Vista Police

Fleeing - July 16, 2008 - Bella Vista Police

Resisting Arrest - Feb. 2, 2007 - Bentonville Police

Public Intoxication - Feb. 2, 2007 - Bentonville Police

Possession of drug paraphernalia - Feb. 2, 2007 - Bentonville Police

Possession of marijuana - Feb. 2, 2007 - Bentonville Police

Assault - Feb. 2, 2007 - Bentonville Police

Source: Benton County Jail And Bentonville District Court

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The Shots

Medical Examiner’s Report

According to the State Medical Examiner’s Office, the six shots hitting Bella Vista resident James Ahern were:

• Left thigh: One bullet struck Ahern in the anterior surface of his left thigh in a downward trajectory. The bullet separated prior to entry into the left thigh causing two wounds. The bullet jacket and bullet were recovered in Ahern’s left thigh.

• Right thigh: One bullet struck Ahern in the back right thigh causing a superficial graze wound. The bullet did not penetrate into the thigh muscle.

• Back by armpit: One bullet struck Ahern in the right upper back near the armpit in an upward, back to front trajectory. The bullet separated prior to entry into the right upper back causing two wounds. The bullet fractured the humerus and was recovered in Ahern’s right arm. The bullet jacket was recovered in the skin underlying the wound.

• Right arm: Two bullets struck Ahern in the back of the right arm above the right elbow in a downward direction. One bullet fractured the right ulnar and right radius and was recovered in the right arm. The other bullet fractured the right radius and exited the right arm.

• Upper right back: The final bullet fired struck Ahern in the upper right back and exited through his upper right chest. The trajectory is back to front and slightly downward. No bullet or fragment was recovered.

Source: Staff Report

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AT A GLANCE

Brackney Arrest

Coleman Brackney was arrested April 20, the same day he was fired from the Bella Vista Police Department. He was released on citation following his arrest.

Source: Staff Report

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