INVESTIGATOR: Okay and did it have any effect at all?
WYANT: No. I want to know what drug he was on because he didn't even flinch.
INVESTIGATOR: Ok.
WYANT: Just boom, I saw it hit him and he didn't….
INVESTIGATOR: What did he do? If he didn't flinch what did he do?
WYANT: He just screamed louder and then came at me. I managed to kick him away and then...(head hidden in hands)…I hate death.
Prior testimony at trial indicated that Schoen visited an Irondequoit smoke shop earlier that day where he purchased and later used synthetic drugs commonly known as bath salts.
In a later exchange Investigator Liberatore attempts to determine why the victim was shot in the back:
INVESTIGATOR: "Well if the shot hit him in the back that would indicate that his back was to you which is not a big deal I'm just trying to...
WYANT: He screamed something along the lines of I'm going to (expletive) kill you or something. Something along those lines. He doesn't stop, he believes he belongs there. He believes he's Jesus or something.
A source close to the Schoen family tells 13WHAM News that Wyant’s characterization of C.J. Schoen could not be more wrong.
On Wednesday the prosecution called a firearms expert to the stand who testified that the fatal shot was delivered between one and nine feet away from the victim. He clarified that his best estimate would be somewhere near three feet away.
The prosecution rested its case following testimony from the medical examiner. The defense is expected to call one witness on Thursday morning and introduce some additional evidence before resting its case.
The jury could begin deliberations as soon as Thursday afternoon. If Wyant is convicted of 2nd Degree Murder he faces a maximum sentence of 25 years-to-life in prison.
Assistant District Attorney Michael Harrigan and Wyant’s lawyer James Nobles both tell 13WHAM News that they expect the jury will be given instructions that will allow them to consider lesser charges including; Manslaughter 1st Degree, Manslaughter 2nd Degree, and Criminally Negligent Homicide.
