Curtis Shuler's story is a really sad one. He had a ton of witnesses saying he was working on his car at his home when the murder occurred. The shooting happened at about 9:30pm. Curtis was never identified as the shooter or even identified as someone who was there by anyone other than Lester and Streeter - the other two involved in the shooting. Streeter had seventeen prior felony convictions before he testified at Curtis's hearing where he actually recanted prior claims that Curtis was the shooter and that Curtis was even with the guys. He said he had an "attack of conscience" and named Lester as the shooter. Realistically it is more likely Streeter was the shooter because his prints were found on the outside of the vehicle, on the door I believe it was...but that's a whole other story. Put it this way...no fingerprints, DNA, or other physical evidence was EVER presented suggesting that Curtis was even there, let alone that he shot a man.
On the day of the murder he went to church. Witnesses remembered this because there was an appreciation day at the church and Curtis went to both the church event and the later dinner. He was seen at his home by a number of people throughout the entire evening. People even reported talking to him. One neighbor said that at 8 p.m. or 9 p.m. she asked Curtis to turn his music down, which he had on while he worked on the car. She said she reported him to the landlord the next day for playing his music too loud. Curtis's mother checked on him regularly and reported he came into the house at 1 a.m. Before that, a bunch of people said they saw and/or talked to him.
I personally do not believe Curtis was even with Lester and Streeter when the shooting occurred. IF there was a third person it was likely Lester's brother, Adrian Moore. I say this because the two were described as close AND Moore was with Lester and Streeter when they went on the shooting spree following the murder of Mr. Tyler. Seven people were shot and two people died (a young woman and a child). Moore and Lester were there, but they were not charged with anything. Streeter was though and he was convicted for it.
Streeter said the plan was to pin it on Curtis after he and Lester learned that Mr. Tyler died. Though Streeter told a lot of lies and a lot of stories, he told this story when he had nothing to gain from it. He said Curtis wasn't there and he wasn't the shooter.
So we have this man who was 16 when he was arrested for this crime. He waited FIVE years to go to trial and was a man when he sat before the jury. He was 21. Can you imagine? I mean they had no concept that this man had already lost his childhood.
The jury said they did not believe Curtis committed the murder. They acquitted him of that. They found him guilty of burglary, based on ZERO evidence except the prior word of Lester and Streeter. So because the burglary was committed during the commission of a murder felony murder applies and bumps it up to 1st degree murder, without having to prove premeditation or even that he did the crime.
He's got life without parole for this and honestly, it's obscene if you ask me.
