Witness testimony in the trial of Issiah Ross for the alleged 2022 murders of Lyric Woods and Devin Clark is expected to continue in Orange County Superior Court on Tuesday.
After four days of action last week — with court unexpectedly in recess on Friday after a family emergency pulled the main defense attorney away for the day — the jury will resume hearing from people brought by the local district attorney’s office to share their recollections and evidence around the two teenagers’ deaths on Sep. 17, 2022 and why law enforcement eventually charged Ross. The 21-year-old who lived in Mebane at the time of the shooting faces first-degree murder charges and could face life in prison if found guilty.
While the opening day of testimony was largely used by the prosecution to establish the evidence and environment around the crime scene — as well as a chance to hear from the deceased teenagers’ parents on the last time they saw their children — Thursday featured a wider range of people called to the stand. Here are some of the details:
Witness Details Hearing Groupings of Gunshots
Part of local law enforcement’s investigation process was checking with nearby residents to see if they might have heard something overnight on Sep. 17. James Rogers, who lives a few hundred yards away on Yarborough Road, says he did. Before waking up to take a trip down to Myrtle Beach, Rogers testified to being woken up around 2 a.m. by two bursts of gunfire. While he said he initially through the first group of shots sounded like fireworks, Rogers said the second group made his realize it was gunfire and he got up to look outside his house.
“It was a loud four shots,” the Yarborough Road resident told the jury. “Everything was completely quiet… there weren’t any cars going up and down the road or anything. And it was just, ‘Pow, pow, pow, pow.’ That’s what got me up [out of bed].”
Trees partially block Rogers’ view of the utility easement and he said he did not see anything out in front of his home, so he went back to bed. He clarified during cross examination that he would not have been able to hear conversation or likely see any headlights near the utility easement. Rogers ultimately traveled to South Carolina, but cut his trip short to return home and talk with law enforcement after hearing about the teenagers’ bodies being found.
Autopsy Details Shared by Medical Examiner
On Thursday, Assistant DA Anna Orr called Dr. Lauren Scott of the North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to testify about her autopsy of Clark and Woods’ bodies. Scott confirmed the causes of death for both teenagers were gunshot wounds, with Woods suffering seven different gunshot wounds and Clark suffering six. The worst for each, she said, were a bullet that struck Woods’ back on her left side and exited through her right abdomen, damaging her heart and liver — and a bullet that struck Clark’s right upper back and went into his neck, hitting the jugular and carotid artery. Woods also suffered two gunshot wounds to her neck, which were also severe, as well as one to her arm and another to her thumb. Scott also testified that some stippling on the 14-year-old’s skin near one wound on her neck could be from the firearm being shot from a close range, which was the only wound of its kind to have that feature.
“These red marks,” the medical examiner said, pointing to an autopsy photo shown just to the jury, “are made by burned and unburned gunpowder particles striking the skin’s surface and leaving tiny scrapes or abrasions. We term this ‘stippling.’
“This indicates,” she continued, “that the gunshot wound was close enough for those burned and unburned flecks of gunpowder to reach the skin surface. The exact determination of distance needs to be determined by test fires in the lab – but when I’ve seen this stippling, it means the gun was usually held within a few feet of the victim.”
Clark, meanwhile, also had entry wounds on his back, right buttock, ankle and back of the head.
Through Scott’s testimony, Orr held up photos from the autopsy to show jurors the extent of the injuries. Scott stood beside her to describe details of the photos and mimic the likely paths of the bullets through the bodies. After Judge Stephanie Reese had asked family members of Woods and Clark’s families to remove themselves to prevent any overwhelming emotions from affecting the jurors, relatives and friends of the teenagers sat silently crying and holding each others’ hands as the autopsies were discussed.
Scott also confirmed she did the typical toxicology report on both bodies as well, checking solely for alcohol because law enforcement did not request any additional drug or substance tests. She said decomposition in each made it impossible to tell whether the nominal alcohol levels found in each were from drinking prior to death or from their bodies fermenting while outside. Scott also conducted a sexual assault kit on both Woods and Clark — but the results of those kits were not discussed, as they were sent to the state crime lab for examination.
What Did Ross Do in the Aftermath?
Antwan Bryant, a Mebane resident who had a prior relationship with Issiah Ross’ mother and is an extended family member’s of Devin Clark, also took the stand on Thursday. The following morning after Clark and Woods’ deaths, Ross’ mother asked Bryant to let the 17-year-old stay with him after Ross returned home having damaged his mother’s car when sneaking out overnight. Bryant said he remembered looking at the damage on the car and its underbelly, but did not testify as to seeing any blood or anything suspicious. Without knowing about the missing teenagers, Bryant let Ross stay with him and then took him to a bus station so Ross could travel to Delaware and stay with extended family.
Bryant detailed that timeline, which included learning from relatives on Sunday, Sep. 18 about Clark’s body being found. He said he did not remember discussing the incident with Ross, but that the teenager may have been in the room when Bryant was on the phone and Ross did not have much of a reaction. Bryant also said he remembers Ross staying outside of the house with some of his belongings for a while on Saturday and Sunday, consolidating clothes and items he thought the teenager had grabbed with the intention of taking to Delaware.
A couple of days later after law enforcement began investigating Ross’ involvement, sheriff’s deputies showed up to Bryant’s house to see if Ross was there and to question Bryant. The Mebane man said after investigators initially grabbed his own 14-year-old son, he got upset and asked why there were there. It was then he learned about Ross’ suspected involvement in Clark’s death.
“I said,” Bryant testified, “‘You mean to tell me this person probably killed my cousin and they were just here at my house? I just fed them, I just gave them a ride, I was looking out for them? No, no…’ [The sheriff’s deputies] sat with me for probably about 20-30 minutes.”
Ross was ultimately arrested in Delaware more than two weeks after the incident before being brought back to North Carolina. Since then, he has been held in the Orange County Detention Center. The vehicle he drove, as has been detailed by law enforcement in court, was impounded and processed by investigators for additional evidence.
When asked by the defense attorney on how he would describe Ross’ demeanor, Bryant said he knew Issiah to be a quiet person who did not have a lot of friends after moving to Mebane from Delaware earlier in 2022. But the Mebane resident did say Ross had met Devin Clark at least twice when he and Ross’ mother were living at Bryant’s house months prior. Beyond “cordial” interactions and going to the same school, Bryant said, he was unaware of Ross and Clark being particularly close.
Several Expert Witnesses, High School Peer Still Upcoming
Before breaking for the day on Thursday, the prosecution team said it is about two-thirds of the way through its witness list. Still to come on the stand are expert witnesses from the state crime lab, a ballistics expert, an FBI special agent, and a forensics computer examiner. The News & Observer also confirmed that the high school peer who first shared Ross’ name with law enforcement is expected to testify, which is expected to shed more light on the prosecution’s argument of guilt.
Once the prosecution finishes its witness list, the defense will begin to make its case. During each sides’ opening statements on Jan. 14, defense attorney Jonathan Ross indicated he will be arguing to the jury that Ross acted in self-defense — claiming the then-17-year-old shot and killed Clark after Clark had already shot and killed Woods.
Featured photo via the courthouse media pool.
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