Memory hazy, abductee testifies at hearing

But certain of parole absconder’s involvement in LR slaying, he says

Darrell Dennis is shown in this file photo.
Darrell Dennis is shown in this file photo.

The last man known to have seen Forrest Abrams alive said Tuesday that he does not clearly remember everything that happened on the May 2013 night when he and the 18-year-old Abrams were abducted, testifying that he had been drinking alcohol and using drugs for hours beforehand.

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But Tyler Hodges, 23, told Pulaski County Circuit Judge Chris Piazza that he was "100 percent" certain 48-year-old Darrell Dennis was the man who had commandeered Abrams' red Chevrolet Tracker at gunpoint from a Little Rock convenience store parking lot.

Abrams was found shot dead at the intersection of West 11th and South Woodrow streets, about a half-mile from where Hodges had last seen Abrams with three armed men, one of whom was Dennis, Hodges testified Tuesday, delivering his first public account of the events leading up to Abrams' slaying.

The last thing Hodges heard from Dennis before escaping was a warning that Abrams would be killed if Hodges tried anything, Hodges testified.

"He said he was holding Forrest as collateral, no funny business [or] 'I'll kill your friend,' Hodges told the judge.

Dennis was arrested three weeks after the killing. That arrest sparked an effort by the Legislature to overhaul Arkansas' parole system after state lawmakers learned Dennis had been released from jail 32 hours before Abrams' killing and that he was an eight-time parole absconder who had picked up 10 new felony drug charges since his release but had never been returned to prison. He's since been sentenced to 60 years in prison for those drug offenses.

Hodges testified at an evidentiary hearing Tuesday ahead of Dennis' trial next month on capital murder, kidnapping and aggravated robbery charges. Prosecutor John Johnson and Marianne Satterfield are seeking a life sentence.

Dennis did not testify.

Also at the hearing, the judge denied Dennis' request to defend himself at trial. In particular, Piazza noted that Dennis wouldn't be able to interview witnesses because he's in prison. The judge said letting Dennis go to trial without legal counsel would be a "disaster."

After hearing testimony Tuesday, Piazza said the proceeding demonstrated the complex nature of the case and confirmed his decision not to let Dennis proceed without legal counsel.

Dennis appeared ambivalent Tuesday about getting rid of defense attorney Bill James, although at times during the litigation Dennis has been critical of James' efforts. They appeared to be getting along amicably on Tuesday, with Dennis taking notes and James consulting him during cross-examination.

Also testifying Tuesday was detective Tommy Hudson, who said an informant directed police to Dennis after photos of a potential suspect were released to the media.

Hudson also testified that one witness said he saw Dennis, a longtime acquaintance, talking to two men who were sitting inside a Chevrolet Tracker at the Golden Foods convenience store where Hodges said he and Abrams were abducted.

A second witness reported that Dennis, whom he knew only as "Red," had taken his Chevrolet Prism that same night but returned it a few hours later, the detective said. Surveillance video shows Dennis driving a Prism at a bank where Hodges' ATM card was used the night of the killing, Hudson testified.

The detective said Hodges, when shown a six-man photographic lineup that included Dennis, had immediately selected Dennis' picture as the man who had abducted him and Abrams.

But on cross-examination, Hudson acknowledged that Hodges' recollection had been "sketchy" in initial police interviews, although the detective said Hodges has been able to better recall events as time has passed.

"He's gotten better over time with his memory," Hudson told the judge.

The detective said police have been able to confirm Hodges' recollections with other evidence they've collected in their investigation.

Hudson also acknowledged that Hodges' account of being abducted at gunpoint in the Golden Foods parking lot is not captured on store surveillance video, although prosecutors countered that the "jumpy" video does not show everything that happened on the lot at 12th and Woodrow street.

In Hodges' 68 minutes of testimony, he said he had consumed five shots of tequila and four beers over a 2½ hour span at Cajun's Wharf with family and friends the night of the killing.

He next went to a friend's home where he met Abrams for the first time, testifying that he bought from Abrams and consumed "two bars of Xanax" and four hits of liquid LSD.

He said the hallucinogen didn't affect him, so he doesn't think it was real. The Xanax, an anti-anxiety medication, made him sleepy, so he wanted to go home, Hodges told the judge.

He and Abrams left to go to Hodges' home. Hodges said he was living with his cousin and that Abrams was going with him because the younger man needed a place to stay.

With Abrams driving the Tracker, the men stopped at the Golden Foods, a former EZ Mart, for Hodges to buy cigarettes, he told the judge. Leaving the store, Hodges said, he was approached by the man he later identified as Dennis, who asked him for $5.

"I just waved him off and got in the car," Hodges said.

Concerned, Hodges got into the back passenger side of the Tracker, telling the judge it was the fastest way to get into the vehicle. He said he could hear Abrams talking to Dennis, and Abrams let Dennis in the front passenger seat.

"He [Dennis] had drugs, and he was talking to Forrest about them," Hodges testified, saying he couldn't remember the conversation clearly. "Forrest lets him in the car. He pulls the gun and points it at Forrest."

"He made Forrest get out and get in the passenger seat," he told the judge.

Dennis drove them to an unknown location where two other armed men were waiting, Hodges said. At that stop, which other testimony indicated could be the 1900 block of Abigail Street, Hodges said he was forced to give up his wallet and bank card while he and Abrams were ordered at gunpoint to get into another car.

Hodges at first said he didn't know where in the car he was made to sit, although he later said the backseat when pressed on cross-examination.

In that second vehicle, Dennis drove all of them to a bank where Dennis tried to withdraw money from Hodges' account, he told the judge. The transaction didn't work because the account had been closed for a year, Hodges testified. He said he doesn't know what bank the four of them went to, acknowledging that he first directed police to the wrong bank.

He said he was pressed between the other two gunmen but never got a good look at either of them. Hodges said, driven by "overwhelming fear," he watched Dennis closely because Dennis appeared to be the leader.

"I was paying attention to him the whole time because he was in complete control," Hodges said. "I didn't get that good a look at them."

Hodges said he was able to get away when he talked the men into taking him to his cousin's with the promise of being able to get money there. He said at least one of the men got out of the car with him and poked a gun into his back.

Hodges did not describe Tuesday how he got away, but police said he was able to get inside the home where another relative called police.

Information for this article was contributed by Gavin Lesnick of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

A section on 08/13/2014

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