Jury acquits defendant of robbing cabbie at gunpoint

A twice-convicted robber was cleared Thursday of charges that he held up a Little Rock cabdriver at gunpoint and forced the man to drive to Jacksonville last year.

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The accusations against Antonio Terell Smith were an effort by his accuser to frame the defendant because of a dispute over drugs, defense attorney Lou Marczuk told jurors.

The eight men and four women on the jury deliberated about three hours before acquitting the 35-year-old Smith of aggravated robbery, kidnapping and theft after a two-day trial before Pulaski County Circuit Judge Leon Johnson.

The charges carried a potential life sentence.

The jurors also cleared Smith of marijuana possession and theft by receiving charges over the drugs and a stolen pistol that police found on him when he was arrested on July 7, 2014, at the Rally's restaurant at 2211 N. First St. in Jacksonville.

Smith, a Helena-West Helena native convicted of robbery in Phillips County in 1996 and 2001, still faces a charge of felon in possession of a firearm, for which he could serve up to 30 years in prison if convicted.

The charge stems from the gun he had when arrested -- a pistol stolen from Jonathan Rowell of Jonesboro in September 2012.

Smith also faces trial over accusations that he was caught with methamphetamine and drug-smoking pipes during a July 1, 2014, arrest by Little Rock police. Officers were investigating a trespassing complaint at the Motel 6 at 10524 W. Markham St.

Those charges carry a potential 30-year prison sentence for a repeat offender like Smith, who was on parole at the time.

Because Smith didn't testify in this week's trial, jurors were not told about his criminal history.

His attorney told jurors that they might dislike his client, but that a trial is not a popularity contest.

"You're not going to like Antonio Smith," Marczuk said. "But we're not here for a pageant for you to like someone. This is not a whodunit. It's a what-did-he-do, and more importantly, what did he not do."

Marczuk, assisted by attorney Erin Lewis, asked jurors to consider how accuser 46-year-old Paul Matthew Barrow of Little Rock acted the night he said he was robbed at gunpoint.

Barrow didn't stick around to talk to Jacksonville investigators after reporting that he had been robbed because he said he had to pick up a fare to take to the airport.

Barrow also told police that $200 was taken from him, but that he had talked the robber into giving him back $20 so he could buy gasoline to return to Little Rock.

The supposed robber also gave Barrow back his cellphone and did not take his cab, Marczuk noted.

And Barrow didn't tell authorities until a week before trial that he had actually met Smith before the supposed robbery, the lawyer reminded jurors.

Barrow testified that he'd picked up Smith as a fare and taken him to a west Little Rock motel two nights earlier.

Along the way, Barrow said, he'd bought some Xanax pills from Smith and sold Smith some powder cocaine, testifying that he had not told police about that previous encounter because it was none of their business.

Marczuk suggested that the men had a long-standing criminal enterprise related to facilitating prostitution and questioned whether Barrow had framed Smith for robbery because Barrow believed Smith had cheated him on a drug deal.

Barrow also didn't use the cab's panic button to alert the Yellow Cab dispatchers, the attorney said.

In closing arguments, Marczuk asked jurors to think about how much they would trust Barrow.

"Who here is going to get in the cab driven by Paul Matthew Barrow? If you wouldn't get in the cab with Paul Matthew Barrow, how can you convict?" he said. "Are you going to get in the cab ... and find this man guilty?"

Barrow testified that he had only met Smith twice in his life, although he had attempted to buy drugs from Smith more than once.

Barrow said he was a drug addict and acknowledged pleading guilty to felony charges of possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia on Monday, for which he was sentenced to probation.

Barrow grew emotional when he described for jurors how he had begged for his life when Smith had put a gun to the back of his neck during what Barrow said was supposed to be a trip from west Little Rock to Jacksonville.

He told jurors he had talked Smith into getting out of his cab at the restaurant with the promise that he wouldn't call police.

Prosecutors acknowledged that Barrow is a flawed human being but said the mistakes he's made in life do not mean he cannot be a victim.

"Do not let Mr. Barrow's character flaws obscure what the defendant did," deputy prosecutor Robbie Jones told jurors, reminding them how Jacksonville police caught Smith hiding in a drainage ditch.

"If you believe enough bad things about Mr. Barrow, that means he can't be robbed? Just because he uses drugs, that means you can't believe a word he says? That's what Mr. Smith and Mr. Marczuk want you to think."

Metro on 09/26/2015

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