A man who has been on the run from authorities since a fatal 2013 church parking lot murder says he doesn’t understand why he’s being charged.
20-year-old Antonio Walters made the claim in an Elkhart County courtroom Thursday, according to the Elkhart Truth.
Walters is charged in the Dec. 23, 2013 murder of 18-year-old Devonte Patrick, who was shot during an attempted marijuana sale. Walters had been on the run from officers since then and was believed to be living under an alias, but was caught in September in Minneapolis, Minn. and was recently transported to Elkhart County once his identity was confirmed.
The judge told him that the question of why he was being charged wasn’t up for discussion. The question was if Walters understood that he was being charged in the first place, which Walters admitted he did, according to the Elkhart Truth.
Walters and 22-year-old Thomas Harper arranged to buy marijuana from Patrick at the Prairie Street Mennonite Church. Guns were pointed and Parker was shot while trying to back away.
Harper is serving a 60-year prison term, with his earliest possible parole date in Nov. 2043.
Walters is facing a similar term in prison if convicted. His trial date has been set for May 15.
