Martha Childress Testifies in Shooting Trial

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Columbia, S.C. (WOLO)– Motionless from the waist down, Martha Childress testified Tuesday in the trial of the man accused of shooting her. Michael Juan Smith once again sat in a Richland County courtroom, mere feet away Martha Childress recounted what happened the night she lost the use of her legs. Overwhelmed with emotion…Martha Childress recalled the night of October 13th 2013. “All the sudden i heard a loud noise and fell to the ground.” Childress told jurors she was waiting for a taxi by the fountain in Five Points with her childhood friend Elision…when the next thing she knew she was lying on the pavement. “I wasn‘t sure why I’d fallen, I thought I’d tripped over something and immediately I couldn‘t feel my legs at all…and I just said Ellison i can‘t feel my legs” “She said she couldn‘t feel her legs and she was really scared.” Elision Dew says she heard 4 or 5 gunshots but didn‘t see who fired the gun. “I stood there with her and held her hand until the ambulance got there” Several other witnesses also took the stand…including Captain Anthony Thornton…who is a criminal investigator with the Columbia Police Department…he shows the jury video off cameras in Five Points that allegedly show suspect Michael Juan Smith firing the gun. “They‘ve said something turns around and then you see the shot where Miss Childress falls.”