PANAMA CITY — Jury selection is scheduled to begin Monday in the trial of a man accused of killing his neighbor and stealing his things.
Deputies found Terry Brazil dead in his home on Dec. 27 last year. He had been shot, stabbed and beaten, and his car, several guns and collectable coin sets were missing.
According to court records, those items were found when deputies with a warrant searched the Fountain home of Philip Brock, 57, who was later arrested and charged with burglary and first-degree murder. Investigators found a role of tape of the kind used to bind Brazil’s wrists near a bedpost in a wooded area near Brazil’s house with Brock’s DNA. The bedpost had Brazil’s DNA.
Prosecutor Larry Basford will not seek the death penalty if Brock is convicted, leaving life in prison as the only possible sentence. Basford doesn’t comment on pending cases.
In pretrial motions, defense attorney Kim Dowgul argued that Judge Brantley Clark should suppress evidence because of problems with the investigation, which she described as sloppy. She also argued Brock’s statements should be suppressed because investigators coerced Brock and violated his Miranda rights.
Clark sided with the state, finding Brock’s statements were “wholly voluntary and spontaneous,” and evidence was collected lawfully. His ruling was celebrated by investigators, who took offense to Dowgul’s arguments.
Dowgul declined to comment.
Basford and Dowgul will begin this morning selecting 12 jurors to decide Brock’s fate. The trial could take several days. Dowgul and Basford have filed the names of more than 100 witnesses who could potentially be called to testify.