Opening statements begin on Tuesday for Tex McIver, a former prominent lawyer accused of shooting and killing his wife in 2016. Although the defendant doesn’t dispute he shot his spouse, he’s maintained all along it was a terrible accident.
The prosecution and defense are expected to make opening statements starting at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday morning, in the case of McIver, a once high-profile lawyer who the prosecution says shot and killed his wife, Diane, intentionally, while he roder in the backseat of an SUV. The 12-person jury has been seated in a Fulton County courtroom after a week of an arduous jury selection process.
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the jury is diverse, consisting of a Lyft driver, several people who’ve never shot a firearm, a woman who attended a Black Lives Matter protest, and a nursing assistant, among others. All of the jurors said that they’ve never formed an opinion regarding the high-profile case. Currently, they all know little or nothing at all about the incident.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, McIver admitted he shot Diane in the back of the head while he rode in the back of an SUV as she sat in the passenger seat. He said, however, that the gun accidentally discharged and that he never meant to harm her.
The incident occurred in September 2016, while the couple’s friend, Patricia Carter, also know known as Dani Jo, drove the vehicle, a Ford Expedition. The initial story was that McIver became alarmed as they drove past Piedmont Park in Atlanta, and grabbed a gun stored in the vehicle’s center console as they passed a “Black Lives Matter” protest.
McIver claimed that while holding the gun for protection, it discharged and struck Diane in the back. She died a few hours later during surgery. Prior to surgery, the victim reportedly told a physician that she didn’t want to see her husband.
“When I went to intubate her I said, um, ‘You want me to intubate?’ or ‘I’m going to put this tube down your throat.’ And she said, ‘Yes, please,” Dr. Suzanne Hardy of Emory Hospital said. “So then I asked, ‘Do you want to see your husband?’ I don’t know why that just came to me. And she said, ‘No.’”
One of McIver’s lawyers, Don Samuel, said that Diane McIver declining to see her husband didn’t mean he shot her intentionally. The attorney said the victim said the shooting was an accident several times without being prompted.
Prosecution said that the case could take around a month to complete, given the lengthy details and hundreds of witnesses expected to be called in.
McIver is facing charges of felony murder, malice murder, and influencing witnesses.
[Feature Photo: Tex McIver, Diane McIver/Fulton County DA]
