Accused shooter's case 'bound over'

HUNTSVILLE — A Morgan County man accused of shooting a Robbins mother will have his case presented to a grand jury next month.

The case against Jerry W. Walker, 24, was bound over to the grand jury by General Sessions Judge James L. (Jamie) Cotton, Jr., at the conclusion of a short preliminary hearing here Wednesday, Sept. 9.

The Deer Lodge man is charged with attempted first degree murder and is charged with shooting Robbins resident Jade Sexton, 25, with a .22-cal. handgun on Aug. 14. He remains in custody at the Scott County Justice Center.

During the relatively brief preliminary hearing, the state offered one witness — the victim herself — while Walker’s attorney did not offer any witnesses in defense.

In 45 minutes of poised testimony, Sexton painted a picture of a former boyfriend lying in wait outside her Rugby Highway home and shooting her in the face as she attempted to retreat.

Sexton, an expectant mother, testified that she had ended her relationship with Walker five days before the shooting occurred, saying she discovered some things “he was looking at on the Internet” that she did not want in her home, around her six-year-old daughter.

After leaving repeated telephone and e-mail messages over the span of five days, Walker allegedly drove to Sexton’s home on the evening of Aug. 14, then drove his car back to a location along the highway and parked it, according to court documents filed by investigators.

Sexton testified that she was returning home from her parents’ home next door around 10 p.m. when she encountered Walker outside her residence.

“I was almost to the steps and I saw him walking or running at me through the dark,” she said. “He said he just wanted to talk, and crouched down beside the tire of my car.”

Sexton testified that Walker approached the steps, stopping within three feet of her. As she attempted to activate the panic alarm on her car to alert her parents in their nearby residence, she said Walker pulled up a handgun and fired two shots, striking her in the mouth.

Sexton was transported by Lifestar to UT Medical Center in Knoxville, where she underwent surgery for her injuries. To avoid more extensive surgery, she said, doctors left fragments of the bullet, one of which is lodged against the back of her skull and another near a carotid artery against her spine.

She testified that Walker had threatened to harm or kill her friends while they were dating.

Walker, who appeared in court shackled and wearing a pink jump suit, showed no visible emotions during Sexton’s testimony.

At the conclusion of Wednesday’s hearing, Judge Cotton ordered that Walker’s handgun carry permit — enabling him to legally carry a handgun in accordance with state law — be revoked. Cotton further ordered that Walker’s bail remain unchanged at $1 million.