Robert Bartley, who admitted to a 2013 killing, said his alleged co-conspirator saw the gun he used shortly before the shooting
TRENTON - Raheem Currie was not completely in the dark the day his cousin, Robert Bartley, pulled out a gun and shot another man to death three years ago, Bartley testified Thursday.
Robert S. Bartley, left, and Raheem Currie, right (file photo) In fact, Currie saw the gun as the two men drove to carry out the fatal shooting, Bartley said.
Bartley was the last person to take the stand in the opening week of Currie's murder trial Thursday.
Currie is accused of conspiring with Bartley to kill James Austin, son of retired Trenton police officer Luddie Austin, after an argument on Feb. 26, 2013.
Mercer County prosecutors have said that after the argument, Currie called on his cousin Bartley and rode with him to a house on East State Street, where Bartley shot Austin to death while Currie stayed in the car.
Bartley has since admitted to the crime and pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
Currie has always maintained his innocence in the crime.
But Thursday, at the end of the first week of Currie's trial, Bartley testified as part of his plea deal and claimed Currie knew more than he was letting on.
Currie and Austin got into an argument in the street earlier that day, prosecutors have said. After the argument, Currie picked up Bartley and the two men, along with a friend and Currie's girlfriend, drove to the house on East State Street on Feb. 26, 2013.
Girlfriend testifies at accused killer's trial
Bartley said Thursday that he showed the gun to Currie while they were stopped at a gas station before the shooting.
Once parked at the house on East State Street - where Austin's girlfriend lived - Bartley said he got out of the car and knocked on the door.
"I asked (Austin) what his problem was," Bartley said. He added that Austin walked closer to him and, "I pulled out and shot."
When he got back in the car, Bartley ordered the three other witnesses to not say anything as they fled the scene. Bartley said he went to a friend's house and hid the gun "in the usual spot" - in a bag in his friend's basement.
Bartley was the final witness to testify in the first week of the trial, which also saw several other friends of Currie's take the stand.
In testimony Wednesday, Currie's longtime girlfriend, Endia Kaver, described the fight before the shooting when she said her boyfriend and Austin got into a heated argument in the street.
She said the argument ended with both men breaking the other's car windshield. It prompted Currie to call Bartley and together, the men drove to the East State Street home.
In other testimony this week, Gary Britton, a retired Trenton police detective, who was one of the first people at the scene following the slaying, testified that he found Austin, with no pulse or signs of life, lying on the floor behind the door to the East State Street home.
When he lifted up Austin's shirt, he found a hole just below his chin, but no signs of blood in the area, Britton testified.
The trial will continue on Tuesday morning with Currie's attorneys cross-examining Bartley.
Anna Merriman may be reached at amerriman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @anna_merriman Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.