On trial: Man accused of putting 8-year-old in headlock, killing her
The death penalty trial is underway for a man who is accused of putting an 8-year-old girl in a headlock and shooting her four times, killing her.
Ricky Lee Blackwell, 55, is charged with kidnapping and murder.
Deputies said on July 15, 2009, Blackwell's estranged wife, Angela, and Heather Brooke Center, the daughter of Angela's new boyfriend, went to an apartment complex on Ridings Road to take the child swimming. The complex is where the Blackwells used to live and where their adult daughter and Ricky Blackwell still lived.
Deputies said when the child, who went by Brooke, planned to swim and play with friends at the complex. Witnesses said, when Brooke got out of the car, Blackwell grabbed the child and put her in a headlock.
Spartanburg County Coroner Rusty Clevenger said Blackwell then shot Brooke in the head, and then three more times as she was falling to the ground, and perhaps while she was on the ground.
"He said something to the effect of, 'Maybe you'll hurt like I'm hurting,' and shot the girl four times," said Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright.
Three other children and a teenager witnessed the shooting, police said.
Investigators said Blackwell ran a short distance from the scene and into some woods. Moments later, deputies approached him with guns drawn, as he came out of the woods and stood behind his home on Ridings Road.
The sheriff's office said deputies told him to drop his weapon, but Blackwell shot himself once in the side.
In February, after testimony from several psychologists, a judge decided that Blackwell's IQ is high enough for the state to seek the death penalty against him.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2002 it is unconstitutional to seek the death penalty against someone with an intellectual disability.
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