By Erica Thomas, managing editor
TRUSSVILLE — The capital murder trial of a man accused of shooting another man in the parking lot of the Trussville Cracker Barrel is set for Monday, June 28, 2021. The trial date has been moved back several times due to witness unavailability and COVID-19.
Bryan Hancock, 23, is charged with capital murder in the March 28, 2019, death of Randy Dewayne Young. The trial was supposed to begin on Monday, April 19, but it was rescheduled Monday morning.
Young was shot in the head in the parking lot of the restaurant after a dispute over parking, according to both parties. Young died after being on life support for two days.
Hancock’s attorneys claim the shooting was in self-defense. Attorney Richard S. Jaffe, with Jaffe, Hanle, Whisonant & Knight, P.C., said his client had no intention of harming anyone.
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“As is often the case, once a full and fair hearing occurs, another side emerges as it did in this case,” Jaffe said. “As I said even before the release of the video, Bryan acted in self-defense. While sitting in the passenger seat of his friend’s truck, the deceased began to strike him in the face, and this is supported by eye witness testimony.”
There is a surveillance video from the restaurant showing the moment the shooting happened. Although the video shows the victim and the suspect, the video is of poor quality.
Hancock was indicted by a grand jury on Oct. 11, 2019. According to court documents, the grand jury charged that Hancock intentionally caused the death of Young by shooting him with a pistol from a vehicle.
A Jefferson County judge denied Hancock immunity under the state’s Stand Your Ground Law after a hearing on Wednesday, March 3, 2021. Circuit Judge Clyde Jones said Bryan Hancock was not justified under that law to shoot and kill Randy Young.
Over the past couple of weeks, subpoenas have been served for trial and jury instructions are now being reviewed. The trial is set to begin at 9 a.m. at the Jefferson County Courthouse in Birmingham.
Hancock is currently awaiting trial in the Jefferson County Jail. He is considered innocent until proven guilty.