Trial for Steele's Dive beating death set for November
Sep. 29—TUPELO — The murder trial of a Saltillo man accused of beating another man to death outside a Tupelo night spot is scheduled to start in November.
Timothy Albert Turner, 38, of Birmingham Ridge Road, Saltillo, was charged with first degree murder in the April 16 death of Leonard "K.C." Cooper, 31, of Fulton. He was arrested later the same day. During his initial court appearance two days later, he was ordered held without bond.
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The case was presented to a Lee County Grand Jury in June. An indictment formally charging him with first degree murder was recorded in Lee County Circuit Court June 30.
The trial has been placed on the docket for Nov. 1, but it will likely be continued to a later date as both the defense and prosecution prepare their cases. As a rule of thumb, it takes about a year from the date of the crime before a criminal trial starts.
According to testimony presented during Turner's initial appearance, the incident occurred in the West Main Street parking lot of Steele's Dive around 1:30 a.m. on April 16. The establishment's security cameras recorded Turner knocking Cooper to the ground and then punching him in the head more than 40 times, as well as slamming his head on the concrete and stomping on his face.
Turner had been told by bar security to leave earlier in the night but returned, hitting Cooper and knocking him to the ground. Tupelo police detective Brittney Williams testified that Turner struck Cooper three dozen times in the face and slammed his head into the concrete another eight times. The video reportedly shows Turner getting in his car and driving away.
Authorities say Turner returned a short time later and stomped on Cooper's face about a half-dozen times, and then punched him in the face about the same number of times. The detective said Cooper did not appear to move after the initial assault and his hands showed no defensive wounds.
Defense attorney Tony Farese of Ashland has said Turner was scared of Cooper, citing a previous altercation about nine months before where Cooper allegedly assaulted Turner at Woody's, leaving Turner with a broken nose and a broken wrist.
The Tupelo Police Department report of that incident said Cooper punched Turner, who then fell back and injured his wrist as he tried to break his fall.
In denying bond, Tupelo Municipal Judge Willie Allen cited the fact that Turner left but decided to "come back for some more, which may have resulted in the death of the victim."
In addition to the criminal charge, the incident has spawned a civil wrongful death lawsuit. Cooper's parents, Kirk Cooper and Madonna Steele (no relation to Steele's Dive owner Jason Steele), hired their own attorneys and filed separate lawsuits in Lee County Circuit Court. The cases were later consolidated. Since attorney Casey Lott filed the mother's lawsuit first, he is the lead attorney on the combined case.
The lawsuit argues that Steele's Dive and its security staff knew or should have known there was bad blood between Turner and Cooper and did not do enough to protect Cooper. The lawsuit seeks unspecified actual and compensatory damages, including: pain and suffering, funeral and burial expenses, lost future earnings and loss of companionship.
Once the criminal case is resolved, the civil case can go before a judge. But attorneys are already working on the civil case. Lott hopes to start taking depositions before the end of the year.
