02x03 - Marlin Barnes

[bunniefuu]

[Taylar] Miami in the '90s,

this is the time
of Hurricanes' football.

He told me he was going
to go to UM

and he was
going to play football.

Saturday morning, April 13th,

I started paging him
and I just kept paging him

and he never called me.

He had to survive a lot to get
to UM.

For that to happen to him
on campus, it was like,

that can't be true.

[college girl] Everybody's
scared. Nobody knows

how it happened,
why it happened.

The death of Marlin Barnes
really rocked this program.

This was not a robbery.

Somebody meant
to k*ll the person.

[Taylar] He has been
brutally beaten.

He's almost unrecognizable.

[Charlie] I just couldn't
put it together.

He was not
that kind of person...

where he would make someone
want to hurt him.

[woman] Who committed
this bloody double m*rder?

♪ I don't know the destination ♪

♪ And on foot's my mode
of transportation ♪

♪ So if I'm not striding
toward better ♪

♪ Then tell me
what the purpose is ♪

♪ I feel a breakthrough
come in ♪

♪ Or is that nervousness ♪

♪ I need Pepto
as I take chances ♪

♪ Klepto finder of the past ♪
And the future at present ♪

♪ But never step back
Unless I'm rocking retros ♪

♪ 'Cause second chances
You don't always get those ♪

♪ 'Cause second chances
You don't always get those ♪♪

[Charlie] When I was 16,
I got pregnant with Marlin.

I got my GED

because I had a second child

while I was in high school

and a couple events happened.

Marlin was two years old
at the time,

Gary was 10 months...

when their dad was m*rder*d.

Marlin's dad got into a fight

and his friend pulled out a g*n

and he shot him
in the chest twice.

This is our Liberty City area
right here.

It's not easy
raising your children

in government housing projects
to keep my kids safe.

I usually encourage them
to have their friends

come to our house.

Marlin was a happy child.

He had a lot of friends.

The kids, they felt safe,
I think,

you know, being in my home.

Marlin's house was another
atmosphere for us,

you know what I'm saying,
but the volume was higher.

[Charlie] One morning,
I made breakfast

and I called out to the kids
to come down to eat

and I had about 15 kids
come down.

After that, I would
check the rooms

and I would make enough food
so that everybody could eat.

[Thed] It was just amazing to me

because she was a single parent

but you never could see
if she was struggling.

Charlie always kept
a positive attitude,

always told us about
doing the right thing.

Marlin was every
bit of Charlie,

you know,
he was every bit of her.

Marlin used to come to my house
and lead the prayer.

Like, it was like,
he read the Bible,

volunteer, he was different.

[Thed] No matter what,
he always had a good heart,

you know,
far as helping people.

When Marlin was a little boy,
he loved football.

He would play football
on the streets,

like, with the other kids.

As a child, Marlin
always wanted to go to college.

[Thed] I met him when we were
probably at the age of 11 or 12.

He was already talking
about the University of Miami.

[Charlie] And he told me that
he was gonna go to UM

and he was gonna play football.

[Thed] He loved
the University of Miami.

We both loved
the University of Miami.

We watched football together.

[Taylar] Miami in the '90s,
this is the time

of Hurricanes football.

They had a legacy
ongoing since the '80s

of being just one of the top
programs in the nation.

In Miami, football was like
the b*llet we know we had,

the aim like this
to get us out of here.

He was determined
to get out the hood, man,

and when I seen that,
I had so much respect for him.

I had to actually end up working

a second full-time job
to save the money,

because I did not want to stay

in government housing
with my children.

I wanted better for them,
and they deserved better.

I gave it my all.

Marlin was probably 17
when we bought our house,

and we moved to Miami Garden.

You know, the neighborhoods
that we came from,

they were
dangerous neighborhoods,

but we survived them.

We came through them,
and my kids, they thrived.

Towards the ending
of high school,

he never went
on any other school visits,

just the University of Miami,
so he was just that confident.

When he started
taking the exams,

the ACT's,

he actually took that exam

maybe about
seven or eight times.

He couldn't get the scores
that he needed

to get into
the University of Miami,

and so one of his coaches
from North Miami Senior High

suggested that he go
to a military school

so that he can learn to study
and get his grades up,

and Marlin went to
Hargrave Military Academy,

which is in Chatham, Virginia.

[Nate] Marlin was
military-minded, man.

That didn't faze him.
That just added to his arsenal.

He got his grades.

He got the score
when he took the exam.

Because of his athletic ability,

he was offered the scholarship

to play at
the University of Miami.

Marlin was the first child
in our family,

period, to go to college.

You know, everybody was proud,

and he was the happiest kid
on Earth.

Marlin grew up with Earl Little.

They met, I think,
when they were like,

maybe in second grade,

and they were best friends.

They were, like, inseparable.

The plan was that
Earl and Marlin

were gonna go
to University of Miami together.

That was like a dream come true
when Earl and Marlin

went to UM, and I came
at the same time.

UM used to be
referred to as Suntan U.

We're the Hurricanes,
but we just call ourselves

the Canes for short.

UM is always in the public eye

because of the money
and the lifestyle

and the year-round summer,

especially now with social media

and TikTok stars,
like Alix Earle.

[upbeat music playing]

We do this for the U,

and it's very, very specific
that you have to go like this.

You are going to see
every single Cane

at a football game,

and a lot of times these,
once underprivileged kids,

will find themselves
becoming public figures

and almost superstars
to a degree at UM.

UM actually plays
at the Hard Rock Stadium,

which is very much well-known
for being the home

of the Miami Dolphins,
an NFL team.

It is a tradition to schlep up
over to the Hard Rock Stadium,

and everybody is decked out
in Cane gear

in orange and green.

♪ Cold as ice
found in the ever glades ♪

♪ Ice cold, you know the stuff
that flows through my veins ♪

♪ I spit it how I live it
they put me in a cage ♪

♪The steel
the brick and mortar ♪

♪ Couldn't capture my rage ♪

Marlin Barnes was
a very well-known linebacker.

[commentator] And that soft knee
by Marlin Barnes.

[commentator 2] Miami pursuit
recovers till a gain

of about five... before Davis
and Lewis converge.

Marlin met Ray Lewis

when he came to play
at the University of Miami

in his third year.

Marlin, Earl, Ray Lewis
and another young man

lived in one
of the housing complexes

on the UM campus.

Marlin was working towards

getting his liberal arts
and science degree.

I would go over to
the University of Miami

to watch him practice,

and then after practice
we would, you know,

spend a little time together
and talk.

[birds chirping]

[Charlie] Saturday morning,
April 13th,

I got a phone call
from one of Marlin's

ex-girlfriends' mother.

She asked me about Marlin,

and I told her, I said,
well, Marlin's at school.

[telephone ringing]

And then the next phone call
that I got

was from Nate Brooks' mother.

She asked
me where Marlin was,

and I said, Marlin's at school,

and it was like she wanted
to tell me something,

but she didn't.

And I started, you know,
having these weird feelings

and I started
paging him, and I just

kept paging him,

and he never called me.

♪ I felt the darkness inside ♪

♪ Black crow
and the dress of white ♪

♪ Blood flows
and the angels cry ♪

[female reporter] Saturday
morning, students

at this on-campus
apartment building

awoke to
find the area cordoned off.

[man] The Metro-Dade Police
Department is investigating

a double homicide
that occurred here today.

[female reporter] At this hour,
there are more

questions than answers.

[male student] Basically, what
we want to know is how somebody

can come up
on a campus like this

with security and get m*rder*d
like that.

[Flora] The morning of April

the police and Carl Gables
received a call from

one of the University
of Miami's students

by the name of Earl Little.

Earl Little lived
with Marlin Barnes.

[Taylar] Earl Little comes home,

and it's about

But he cannot get in. There's
something blocking the door.

When he finally gets in,

he sees what's blocking
the door,

and it's Marlin.

He has been brutally beaten.
He's almost unrecognizable.

Police officers arrive on
the scene around 7:30 to 7:35.

So, one of the officers
goes through the apartment

clearing the rooms,
and in one of the bedrooms,

he comes across
a second victim...

a woman.

She is partially
underneath the bed

as if she had been drug out

from underneath it,
before being attacked.

Just like Marlin,
she had been brutally beaten.

[Flora] Marlin is declared dead
at the scene.

When fire and rescue
go into the room

where the female is,
she's still breathing.

They call air rescue to take her
to the closest hospital.

They were able to identify her,
however, at that time,

as Timwanika Lumpkins.

In Miami-Dade County,

the Miami-Dade Police Department
homicide unit

handles all homicides.

Sergeant Tom Romagni
was on call,

and he took it from there.

When you went inside,
it was clear

that this has been
a brutal, brutal homicide.

The blood had spattered
up to the ceiling, to the walls.

There's wood splinters that
appear to come from something

that whoever it was,
hit Marlin over the head with.

And also, there was
an unshot shotgun shell

that was on the ground
near the body.

In Marlin's pocket,
they found cash,

and he still had on his chain
around his neck.

It appeared to the police,
based on their experience,

this was not a robbery.

Somebody meant
to k*ll the person.

Earl Little was questioned,
and he tells them that

he had lent Marlin the car,
his truck,

the night before, there was
some party in Miami Beach,

and he was coming
to get his keys.

And when he walked through
the parking lot,

he saw his truck, which was
sort of leaning on its side.

[Taylar] Outside,
they searched Earl's car,

where they found
puncture marks in the tires,

as if they had deliberately
been slashed.

[Charlie] Once we got over
to the UM campus,

I saw
Marlin's linebacker coach,

Randy Shannon, and I asked him

if it was true, what I heard.

And he said, yes,

and then I just lost it.

I was just... baffled.
I was sitting there

thinking who would
want to hurt him,

because he was not
that kind of person where...

you know, he would
make someone want to...

hurt him,
let alone take his life.

[Thed] I heard it
from my mother.

To be honest...

I didn't even hear
what my mother said

when I asked her how.

I remember hanging up the phone,

it was just...
and I remember later asking

what happened, and she said,

"Thed, I told you already."

♪ Brace yourself
yeah you made it ♪

♪ Off in the hood, I mean
you just get faded ♪

♪ 'Cause I been through it all
and I ain't fed up ♪

♪ It's best you start from
the bottom before you head up ♪

[Nate] Hearing it, it was like,
damn, man, like he had,

you know, survived a lot.

You know what I'm saying,
to get to UM.

For that to happen to him
on campus,

it was like, damn,
that can't be true.

Coming from the projects

is like a blessing in a curse.

We know a lot of people
going to die,

a lot of people going
to go to prison,

and some of us going to make it,

but when Marlin got m*rder*d,

everything just was...

f***ed up...

[Caroline] UM is a virtually
pretty safe campus.

The incident brought
a lot of panic to students.

[reporter 2] A packed room
at the Student Union tonight

filled with shaken students
and their concerns.

A terrible crime has
happened on this campus

and we can't deny that.

Everybody's scared, nobody knows

how it happened,
why it happened.

[Caroline] There was a lot of
heartache and a lot of confusion

as to why something this violent

would happen to two people.

The case was, like,
all over the place.

I mean, TV, radio,

they were talking
about the case.

[reporter 3] The woman
found bludgeoned

inside this campus apartment

died on her way

to Jackson Memorial Hospital.

Her name is Timwanika Lumpkins.

[Caroline] Timwanika Lumpkins,

she was a long-time friend
of Marlin's.

She was not somebody
who went to school at UM.

They had known each
other when they were kids.

They were good friends
in high school.

They played basketball
a lot together,

and they continued
that friendship

through till the 1990s.

[Charlie] Timwanika attended
North Miami Senior High School,

where Marlin went.

They were friends.

Once I came home from work,

and Timwanika
was there with him,

but she was pregnant,

and when I saw her,

I thought that
she was pregnant from Marlin,

and I kind of panicked.

At that time,
we called her T for short,

and I asked him,
"Is T your girlfriend?"

And he said, "No."

He said, he didn't
have a girlfriend,

and it was not his baby.

[Caroline] She was beautiful.
She was smart, intelligent.

At the time of her death,
she was a single mother.

She had a daughter.

[female reporter] Police
notified her grandmother

this afternoon.

I wanna say, you all got
the wrong person.

I say now, that's not Li'l B.

I hope they find who did this,
and I hope they do.

I hope justice prevails.

[Taylar] Investigators really
needed to piece together

what happened that night
and which one of them

was being targeted.

[Flora] The first thing
that was suggested

was that they call
all of the players

and bring them in and explain
what had happened,

and see if they knew anything.

[cheerful music playing]

[Taylar] Through meeting
with Marlin's teammates,

they found out that on the night
of Friday, April 12th, 1996,

Marlin was invited to attend
a VIP party

at Salvation Club, being hosted
by a Dolphin's football player.

And he invited
Timwanika Lumpkins to join him.

They went to the club alone,
driving Earl Little's car

that Marlin had asked to borrow.

Also at the party, they linked
up with Chewbacca,

who was a teammate of Marlin's.

And then they all left together.

But when they got outside,
they found that the tires

of Earl's car had been slashed.

Chewbacca got a ride home
with a friend,

and Marlin and Timwanika waited

for a tow truck to come
and pick them up.

[Flora] One of the things that
came up when talking to the team

was that Timwanika

had been the girlfriend

of somebody by the name
of Labrant Dennis.

[Taylar] Labrant and Timwanika

had actually
been living together

up until about a week prior

to the crime taking place.

[Flora] That gave a direction
to this case.

So, Detective Romagni
was at the school,

and then somebody told him

that Labrant Dennis,
whose name had come up

when they met
with the football players,

had showed up at his office.

The fact that Labrant Dennis
showed up on his own accord

to be interviewed by police
was very interesting.

It's something that
you typically don't see.

Detective Romagni had
a court reporter come in,

and he took a statement
from Labrant Dennis,

asking him, did he know anything
about the deaths

of these two people.

He basically said, I didn't have
anything to do with it.

I lived with her. I loved her.

We have a baby together.

Labrant told investigators
that Labrant and Timwanika

had been on and off
for five years,

but they had a three-year-old
daughter together.

[phones ringing]

[Taylar] That a week prior
to the crime taking place,

Timwanika had moved out

because she had come home late

after what he believed

was hanging out
with Marlin Barnes.

And a fight broke out,

so she moved out,
taking her daughter

to her grandmother's house.

Labrant was extremely
cooperative

with the investigators

and willing to get still photos

of his arms and his face

to prove
that he had no injuries.

He was even willing
to give them any information

that they needed
in regards to his car

and where he was that night.

[party music playing]

He said that first he went
to a bachelor party

at, like, 11:30 at night.

Later on, he went down
to the same party

where Marlin and Timwanika were.

He doesn't see them there.

He stays there a while,

and then he comes home
and goes to sleep.

[Charlie] I actually worked
with Labrant Dennis

at Doral Golf Resort and Spa.

Shared an interest,
as far as UM football,

and sometimes we would sit

at the same table
in the cafeteria.

I knew that Labrant
and Timwanika were a couple,

and I knew that Marlin
and Timwanika were friends,

but I never thought...

of... it being any issues

between any of them whatsoever.

[Taylar] Labrant was
a person of interest

because of the relationship

that he had with Timwanika,

and they shared a daughter.

But he was very open
with investigators,

and he was able to
have his alibi confirmed

by not only his friends,
but his roommate.

So, Detective Romagni really had

no legal basis to keep him

based on what he knew.

It became important

to go around the area
at Club Salvation

and see if there were
anybody working

that may have seen any of them
there at that time.

[Taylar] After canvassing
the surrounding area,

investigators met
with a gas station attendant

at an AMOCO that was just

blocks away from Club Salvation.

In the early morning hours
of April 13th,

the gas station attendant
saw a gray Nissan

in the parking lot
of her gas station

with a man inside of it.

[Flora] He was just sitting
in the car for hours.

He was covering his face

so you couldn't see his face.

She did notice there was no tag
on the back of the car.

And she told him
he had to leave.

He did not leave,
so she called the police,

and they showed up,
and he took off.

And then the police left,
and he came back again.

At some point,
he started walking away,

and she saw him go towards
the Ford Explorer.

When Marlin and Timwanika
got into the tow truck

and they loaded the car,

she noticed that the guy
in the gray Nissan,

at the same time, left the area.

[Taylar] According to the
tow truck driver,

he dropped them off
at Marlin's apartment

between 5:30 and 6:30 a.m.

[Flora] It became clear
that the cars

were an issue in this case

and maybe would lead us
to who was the person

who had k*lled Marlin
and Timwanika.

[Taylar] There were
no defined suspects.

However, the only person
that kept coming up

was Labrant Dennis.

The gas station attendant
in this case

was a very helpful witness.

The detectives showed her

a picture
of Labrant Dennis' car,

and she said, no, that's
not the car that was there.

This gray Nissan was something

that was important to the case.

But this was going to prove
to be a very challenging lead

to see through.

[Charlie] There was a lot
of media coverage

surrounding the deaths
of Marlin and Timwanika.

We have suffered an unspeakable
tragedy on this campus.

Enormous sadness
for this university family.

[reporter 4] They all showed up,
eager to take their first look

at the UM campus, but what
these visiting freshmen,

parents and transfers
didn't bargain for

was a visit to a campus

where just yesterday

two people were beaten
to death.

Next year, I'm moving into
the apartment area,

and my mother's
really concerned about

whether something like this
can happen to me.

♪ Tell all your friends ♪

♪ There's blood on the streets ♪

[Charlie] Word had gotten around
very quickly,

and I just couldn't talk
to anybody.

I just...
I couldn't deal at that point.

When the detectives
came to my home,

they wanted to know, like,
if Marlin had any enemies,

if he had gotten to any fights

or arguments that I know of,

and the answer was no.

There was nothing
I could tell them

because Marlin was...
he was a great kid.

Marlin was a positive guy
in the community.

He ain't stand for the violence.

He wasn't for violence.

[Charlie] I couldn't think of
anyone that would have wanted

to bring him
any harm whatsoever.

[Taylar] Investigators did
as much legwork

as they possibly could

when it came
to finding their suspect

and this gray Nissan.

A friend of Marlin's
from Scott's Project

explained to investigators

something that
they had not heard before,

and it was the fact
that Marlin was involved

in the Right Track Foundation.

The purpose of the Right Track
was to inspire children

from low-income areas,
such as Scott's Project,

where Marlin grew up,

to leave the gangs behind

and not break down in fear
giving into these gangs

that were recruiting them.

When Marlin and Earl
and these kids,

when they were in college,

they came back to the community

and they got these kids that,

you know, they took
under their wings

to take them
off the streets, to,

you know, keep them from getting
in trouble and stuff like that.

[Nate] The Right Track Program
had thousands of kids.

They was joining them from
Lincoln Field to other projects.

It was real popular.

[Taylar] Investigators started
questioning if this could have

possibly pissed a lot
of the gangs in the area off,

because this was
their recruiting grounds.

Was anyone angry about the fact
that Marlin was there?

Many of the gangs in the area

actually had it
as an initiation protocol

that you would have to
beat someone

into a closed casket funeral.

I told Ms Charlie,
how the gangs think, you know,

one of their superior mobs
would be a closed casket.

[Taylar] Whoever had done this
was willing to get up close

and personal with their victims,

and brutally attack them
at a very close range.

So, investigators
had to find a way to prove

if this motive was true.

Was there a g*ng member
that had targeted Marlin

and wanted him gone?

[waves crashing softly]

[reporter 5] Marlin Barnes
was a linebacker

for the University of Miami,

beaten to death a week ago.

He was only 22.

The death of Marlin Barnes
really rocked this program.

Everything had changed.

We didn't know, as a team,
what was going to happen.

[muffled cheering and clapping]

[man 2] For every other guy
we've seen drafted today,

it really is a joyous day.

And it is for Ray Lewis,
but he really has been robbed

of the opportunity
to enjoy that.

Today, at 1 o'clock Eastern time
in North Miami,

Ray attended the funeral

of one of his former roommates,

his close friend, Marlin Barnes.

♪ Oh, freedom ♪

♪ Oh, freedom ♪

[woman 3]
In an outpouring of love,

community members joined hands

and came together
to remember a son,

a teammate and a friend.

Earl Little: Every time that I
was down...

Earl Little: ...he was always
there to pick me up...

Earl Little: ...my teammates and
everyone else that knew him.

[female reporter 2] More than
a thousand family members

and friends turned out today
to show what kind of impact

Marlin Barnes made
on his community.

[female reporter 2] Someone who
will also be missed by many

is 22-year-old
Timwanika Lumpkins,

who was with Barnes
when she was beaten to death.

I don't know why in the world
she was hurt like that.

And for those students
who have lingering questions

about the campus murders,

UM has set up
a rumor control hotline.

For, you know, a few weeks,
no one was arrested,

you know, for their murders.

And at that point, I'm still
trying to figure out, like,

why, why have I lost my kid?

[somber music playing]

As the investigation continued,

the police learned that

somebody had set
a gray Nissan on fire.

That was the same description

as the gas station attendant
had given them.

[Taylar] Investigators took
a photograph of the car...

and took it back
to the gas station attendant

who confirmed that
this was the car she saw

in the early morning hours
of April 13th.

It turned out that it's
registered to Watisha Wallace.

Investigators were able
to track down Watisha Wallace,

and they brought her in
for an interview.

So, Watisha Wallace,
who's had her car burned,

she turned out to be
a girlfriend of Labrant Dennis.

Police became aware
that Watisha

had burned the car on purpose.

At this point, investigators
had a positive ID on the car

and a connection
to Labrant with this car.

And though they had
somewhat of an alibi...

it was confirmed
by his roommate,

which was actually
his cousin, Caroline.

But it was not enough
to take to trial.

They needed
some sort of forensic evidence

that could tie Labrant Dennis

to Marlin Barnes' apartment.

The police have a line
that people can call in

if they want to report something
about any sort of crime.

[female news anchor]
1-800-22703...

[Flora] There was a person
who reported to the tip line

that Labrant Dennis
was responsible

for the murders
of Timwanika and Marlin.

And she'd said that we should be
talking to Joseph Stewart.

Joseph Stewart
knew Labrant Dennis.

[Charlie] Joseph worked with me
at Doral.

And Labrant Dennis also worked

at the Doral Golf Resort
and Spa.

[Flora] When they went to speak
to Joseph Stewart,

he said that he did not do
anything to k*ll

either one of those people.

But he did give
Labrant a shotgun

that belonged to his mother.

April 7th was when
he gave it to Labrant.

It wasn't until April 13th

that Joseph
heard from Labrant again.

[phone ringing]

[Taylar] Joseph receives a call
from Labrant telling him

that he had returned the shotgun
to his mother's house

in the bushes
outside of the home.

When Joseph picks up the bag,
it is much heavier

than it was,
when he gave it to Labrant.

He opens it up...

and inside he finds...

a black hoodie,
black sweatpants, black boots...

a knife...

and the shotgun
that is now extremely damaged.

Joseph tells Labrant
that he wants nothing to do

with whatever he has done.

According to Joseph,
Labrant responds saying,

don't worry, they would
never think to come here.

I just had to do
what I had to do,

and I didn't even drive
my own car.

[Talar] Investigators bring
Joseph in

to be interviewed on April 29th.

In this interview with Joseph,

investigators asked him where
he had dumped the shotgun

and the knife
that he gave to Labrant.

[Flora] He was able to show them
where he threw

them down in the sewers.

So when the police got
their divers to go down there,

they found the g*n
and the duffel bag.

That was huge in terms
of moving forward

with this investigation.

There were large chunks
of wood missing.

The trigger guard was gone.

[Flora] One of the most
important pieces

of evidence they found

was an unshot shotgun shell

that was on the ground
near the body.

They discovered
large splinters of wood

and another piece of metal
lying nearby.

In addition to this,
there was what looked to be

a shotgun trigger guard.

The police felt like
they had enough

to arrest Labrant Dennis.

[Taylar] The very next day,

after recovering
the m*rder weapon,

investigators arrested
Labrant Dennis

for the murders
of Timwanika Lumpkins

and Marlin Barnes.

Dennis, listen.

Listen to me a moment.
The public defendant...

[Charlie] When
Detective Romagni called me

and told me
that it was Labrant Dennis,

I was... surprised.

I worked with this guy.

I used to talk to him
about my son.

I... I... I just couldn't...

put it together.

It was... it was hard.

[Taylar] Through interviews
with people that knew them,

investigators were able to
piece together a timeline

of the weeks and days
leading up to the m*rder.

It started with Timwanika.

Came home late the day
of Marlin's birthday.

That was April 6th.

And Labrant got angry with her
and lost his temper,

and then she moved out.

She wasn't going to put up
with his anger

and how he treated her.

And when she left, Marlin got
all the boxes and stuff

and was taking them
to the grandmother,

'cause the grandmother was
taking care of the little one.

Labrant believed that Timwanika

had gone to stay with Marlin.

It's Marlin, Marlin, Marlin, and
he's lost control of himself.

He went to Salvation
for that party.

I think he waited
for Marlin to come out.

He just couldn't
control himself.

He slashed the tires.

He followed the tow truck
and he sees the car,

sees the building they get into.

So, he brought that shotgun.

He knew
they were on the third floor.

[Taylar] When Labrant
got inside,

when the shotgun did not work,

he was so committed to ending

both Timwanika
and Marlin's lives

that night that
he brutally beat their faces in

with the butt of the shotgun
so badly that he broke it.

[Charlie] For my son or
my children to help other people

in an a*usive relationship,
that was like, it was the norm.

For them to do that,
because that's how they grew up.

When I was told
that he moved her

to get her out
of the a*usive relationship,

I was not surprised

because I had done
the same thing

for someone years before.

In the media coverage,

it was portrayed as though

Marlin and Timwanika
were a couple

behind Labrant's back.

They were friends, and
he was lending a helping hand

to someone
that asked him for help.

He did exactly
what I would have done.

And with that being said,
he lost his life for it.

[Taylar] On May 8th,
Labrant Dennis was indicted

for two counts
of first-degree m*rder,

one count of burglary,
as*ault and battery while armed

and criminal mischief.

The district attorney determined

that the m*rder of Marlin Barnes
and Timwanika Lumpkins

was absolutely premeditated.

Labrant Dennis contacted Joseph

about retrieving a g*n
on April 7th,

which was days prior
to the m*rder taking place.

[Charlie] That was a very,
very painful time

for my family and me.

[Flora] When I did meet
with Charlie,

she was very, very upset.

I told her, you know, we were
going to have the best lawyers,

the best witnesses,

but no matter
what happens to him,

Marlin is still gone.

Labrant Dennis took
a lot from me.

Not only did he take my son,

but he took the life out of me

for a very long time.

And Labrant Dennis
needs to pay for that.

The trial started.
I was there every single day.

My family was there every day.

One thing about Charlie,

she doesn't miss a court date.

[Charlie] The trial was hard.

I didn't look at
any of the pictures.

I didn't want to see them.

You know, I listened,

you know, to the testimony
that everybody gave.

His defence was...

that Joseph
could have been the one

that committed the murders

because it was his shotgun.

I mean, it was...

you know, heart-wrenching
to hear that.

I think the trial lasted
five or six weeks,

and then the jurors
went out to deliberate.

♪ I've blood on my... ♪

[Flora] On October 28, 1998,

the jury came back with a vote
of guilty on all charges.

Because this was a homicide case

where the state was seeking
the death penalty,

there was a second phase
called a penalty phase.

And the jury recommended

the death penalty
in 11 to one vote.

♪ Judgment, judgment
judgment... ♪

The courtroom exploded.

♪ Judgment day ♪

♪ Is rolling round ♪

He jumped up. He was furious.
He was screaming.

The corrections officers
grabbed him.

The verdict and
the sentencing was justified.

He got exactly what he deserved.

♪ ...is rolling round ♪

♪ Judgment, judgment
judgment... ♪

♪ Judgment for how I long ago ♪

[Charlie] The Supreme Court
overturned the sentencing

in all death penalty cases

where the outcome is not 12-0.

I felt like, okay,
we're being m*rder*d again.

Labrant chose... to k*ll my kid.

He nearly k*lled my family,

but we survived it.

We're going back to court

to have the death penalty
reinstated.

That's what we're fighting
for now.

I don't want people
to just dwell

on the way my son passed

because I do enough of that
for everybody.

I try to remember
the person that he was,

the happy person that he was.

Each time that these guys
even consider giving up,

they have to think about
Marlin Barnes.

The guy was just voted
most improved football player

on our team a couple weeks
before he was m*rder*d.

Marlin was like a firecracker.

[commentator 3] And no room
that time.

That stop made
by Marlin Barnes.

He's a hard worker, and that's
what we've been doing,

working hard, and it's for him.

Put something down
in history that says

this was dedicated
to Marlin Barnes.

♪ A new star's at last
straight from God ♪

♪ I know times are hard
But only you can save you ♪

♪ So what you gonna do
with the life God gave you? ♪

[hip-hop music plays]

[Thed] He wanted to go
to the NFL.

I'm sure he would have went.

[Nate] First round pick,
New York Jets Select,

Marlin Barnes.
You know what I'm saying?

Everybody going,
"Yeah, boy, yeah!"

Know what I'm saying.

The world never
get to see Marlin.

What I would like to say
to the parents out there,

teach your kids the right way.

I don't regret the fact that,
you know,

I taught my kids to care
about other people.

And it may have cost
Marlin his life,

but that was a choice
that his k*ller made.

♪ Girls jump in when I want her
and roll a double dutch ♪

♪ Break down beats
from James Digger ♪

♪ And now you doubled
you can feel the rhymes ♪

♪ Like I feel a bubble butt ♪

♪ Girls flow thunderous ♪

♪ Flip-style tortuous ♪

♪ The kids don't care ♪