"A former Wilmington police officer denied
Wednesday he threatened a teenager in 1988 with the death penalty to get
him to testify against then-15-year-old Johnny Small in a murder case
for which Small was ultimately convicted. Retired Wilmington
Police Department lieutenant James JJ Lightner was called by Small's
defense team in the third day of a motion hearing before Superior Court
Judge W. Douglas Parsons in New Hanover County Court. The hearing is
aimed at getting Small's 1989 conviction in the killing of Pamela Dreher
vacated or retried. Dreher was found dead in her Wrightsville Avenue tropical fish store
on the evening of July 13, 1988. Small's friend David Bollinger
testified for the state in the murder trial, saying he drove Small to
the store to use the phone there. He said, Small emerged after a few
minutes and later that evening confessed he'd robbed Dreher and killed
her Then in 2012, after Small had already served more than two
decades of a life sentence in prison, Bollinger contacted the NC Center
on Actual Innocence to say he'd been forced to lie by Lightner.
Testimony recanted: During
his testimony Monday and Tuesday, Bollinger said Lightner threatened to
charge him with the crime if the then-18-year-old didn't write a
statement naming Small as the killer. Police were led to Small and
Bollinger by a tip to a reward hotline two months after the killing.
Bollinger's classmate at New Hanover High School, Nina Raiford, told
police she saw Small leaving the shop around the time of the killing and
getting into a brown car driven by Bollinger. On Monday,
Bollinger said that despite his denials of involvement, Lightner told
him what to write in his statement to police and, during several
meetings, Lightner coached him on his testimony before the jury. Little
else linked Small to the crime besides Bollinger's testimony. There was
no physical evidence found at the scene and the gun prosecutors allege
Small used in the killing was never recovered by Wilmington police. In
court this week Bollinger recanted his entire testimony and said he
wasn't even with Small on the afternoon of the killing Along with
Bollinger's recantation, Small's attorneys Christine Mumma, head of the
NC Center on Actual Innocence, and Cheryl Sullivan, also with the
center, called five other friends of Small who testified against him in
the 1989 murder trial. Most said Lightner lied to them to get their
cooperation or he coached or influenced their testimony.
Few details remembered; For two hours Wednesday, Lightner answered questions from Mumma about
his investigation into the Dreher killing. Mumma pointed out that many
of the handwritten notes found in the WPD's file were favorable to Small
were not found in the district attorney's file. They also were never
given to Small's defense attorney at trial. Mumma questioned
Lightner on whether he investigated any other suspects in the case --
specifically referring to three witnesses who reported seeing a pickup
truck leaving the area at the time of the killing and a man who lived
nearby that police knew had committed a crime with a handgun the same
caliber as the one used in the Dreher killing. Lightner told Mumma he remembered few details about the investigation and had to refer to the trial transcripts. Mumma
also noted at least two interviews Lightner conducted with Small's
friends which he didn't memorialize on paper. Lightner admitted
Wednesday he didn't take notes on interviews he conducted with Jennifer
Long and Anna Florentis. Both women testified for Small during Tuesday's
hearing, each saying Lightner lied to them about aspects of the case.........
The missing gun: Lightner denied
remembering if a ballistics expert analyzed bullets in the case. That
information was also never given to the defense or brought up by the
prosecution at trial. The only record of the analyses was found in the
WPD file received by Mumma, according to the motion. For many of Mumma's questions, Lightner said he didn't remember or,
when asked to review files, he pointed out he didn't write the report or
that someone else was responsible At one point, Mumma asked
Lightner about a typed report in the WPD file that stated Charlotte
police found the gun prosecutors said was used in the killing. She
directed Lightner to a note he'd written at the bottom. The report never
made it to the DA's file. "I don't ever recall hearing 'the gun' was recovered by anybody," Lightner said, using air quotes. "But your handwriting is on this note," Mumma said.........
Potential consequences: About interviewing Bollinger, Lightner said he only spoke to him once. "Would you ever mention the death penalty during an interrogation as a potential consequence for an act?" Mumma asked." "To
me that would have been a good reason to have the defendant end the
interview," Lightner said. "If you start threatening like that, I would
think chances are they would say, 'I'm not talking to the cops, lets
talk to a lawyer.'" "So you never...," Mumma began. "I don't remember ever threatening anybody for anything in an interview," Lightner said. He is expected to retake the stand when the hearing resumes Thursday morning."