Trials set as Mardis shooting defendants plead not guilty

MARKSVILLE — The two defendants in the Jeremy Mardis fatal shooting case both pleaded not guilty on Tuesday, and separate trials were tentatively scheduled for later this year.

Both Norris Greenhouse Jr. and Derrick Stafford were indicted in early December on charges of second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder. The pair, former Marksville Ward 2 deputy marshals, were arrested on the same charges on Nov. 6, three days after the fatal shooting of 6-year-old Jeremy Mardis and the wounding of his father, Chris Few.

Two other law enforcement officers, another deputy marshal and a Marksville Police Department officer, were involved in the chase but did not fire their weapons as the pursuit of Few ended on the night of Nov. 3 at the intersection of Martin Luther King Drive and Taensas Street in Marksville. No more criminal charges are expected to be filed in the case.

AG's office: No more criminal indictments expected in Mardis case

On Tuesday, Stafford and then Greenhouse Jr. stood before 12th Judicial District Judge William Bennett and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Stafford's defense attorney, Jonathon Goins, also asked Bennett to reconsider his decision from last month not to reduce his client's $1 million bond. Bennett told Goins to refile a motion and that he would consider it "immediately" and would issue a written decision.

Stafford's trial was set for Sept. 26. Greenhouse, who was released from jail in late November after his family offered properties to satisfy his $1 million bond, had his trial scheduled for Nov. 28.

Hearings to hear motions in both cases were set for March 9-10 and again, if needed, on May 17-18.

Outside the courtroom, Goins said he expected to know whether Stafford could bond out of jail within the next few days. He and Alexandria attorney Christopher LaCour, who enrolled Tuesday as Stafford's co-counsel, huddled and talked with members of Stafford's family.

After that, family members — including Stafford's wife, Brittany Stafford; his mother, Diane Stafford; and his aunt, Bertha Andrews — waited near the Avoyelles Parish Sheriff's Office unit that would carry him back to jail in Alexandria. As Stafford climbed into the sport-utility vehicle's back seat, his family members shouted out messages of encouragement to him.

"Momma loves you," said Diane Stafford, who had been praying as her son was brought out under guard and wearing a bulletproof vest.

The case is being prosecuted by the Louisiana Attorney General's Office. John Sinquefield, senior counsel for the AG's office, said the state is very pleased with the progression of the cases so far. When asked if the state would consider a plea agreement in either case, Sinquefield was adamant that would not happen.

Sinquefield also said there's been no discussion about moving the trial out of Avoyelles Parish.

Greenhouse Jr.'s defense attorney, George Higgins III, said he wanted the trial to be held in Marksville.

"I think it's a great place to have the trial," said Higgins after the hearings. "This is not my home parish, but I've always liked this parish, thought they had good jurors here, attentive jurors. I think that we can find 12 fair-minded people to hear this case right here in Avoyelles Parish. I've always believed that from the very get-go."