by Hunter Dawkins, Owner/Publisher – editor@thegazebogazette.com or hdawkins@supertalk.fm
BILOXI (GG) — On Monday, August 3, Julius Taylor, Jr. of Biloxi, was convicted last week of First-Degree Murder for the May 30, 2024 killing of Rodney Dabney. After hearing two days of testimony, the jury deliberated for a little over two hours before returning a guilty verdict on the charge of First-Degree Murder.
Immediately prior to the trial beginning, Taylor pled guilty to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. Following the plea and jury conviction, Circuit Judge Brad Touchstone sentenced Taylor to Life in prison on the charge of First Degree Murder, and 10 years to run consecutively on a charge of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon.
During the trial, the jury heard from three (3) eye witnesses who testified that the Defendant and Dabney were next door neighbors at Fernwood Place Apartments in west Biloxi. On the afternoon of May 30, 2024, the Defendant and a cousin of Dabney’s, Jerome Overton, were playing dominoes on the front porch of the Defendant’s apartment. Overton won approximately $15 from the Defendant, who then began accusing Overton of cheating.
“That is when the Defendant went inside his apartment, retrieved a pistol, and came back outside with that pistol threatening Overton,” said ADA Ian Baker who prosecuted the case on behalf of the State, along with ADA Mara Joffe. Dabney then stepped between Overton and the Defendant, and was able to disarm the Defendant while pushing him to the ground. “The Defendant then got up, went back inside his apartment, retrieved a second handgun, came back outside and shot Rodney Dabney in the chest,” said Assistant District Attorney Ian Baker.
The witness testimony further established that after being shot, Dabney was able to take that second gun from the Defendant, and return fire, striking the Defendant once in the abdomen and once through the knee.
The Jury was also provided video from the apartment complex, which was able to capture portions of the crime. The Jury heard testimony from the State Medical Examiner, Dr. Staci Turner, who performed the autopsy on Dabney; Toniann Rebick, from the Mississippi Forensic Laboratory, who performed a firearms comparison analysis on the firearms; and Lt. Candice Young of the Biloxi Police Department, who performed the crime scene investigation. Their testimony established that both Dabney and the Defendant were shot with the second gun and there was no evidence that the first gun was ever fired.
Taylor took the stand in his own defense and claimed he had been shot three times by Dabney with the first gun, then retrieved the second gun and shot Dabney. Upon cross examination, the Defendant admitted that the story he told the Jury was not the same story he told the police and medical personnel at the time of the shooting. After being confronted with this inconsistency, Taylor became visibly agitated, and stated “Yeah I killed him, he shot me first, so (expletive) him, and y’all just go ahead and find me guilty.”
Taylor was prosecuted as a habitual offender due to having prior felony convictions. In pronouncing sentence, Judge Touchstone stated, “Mr. Taylor, you unnecessarily took the life of a man over a dominoes game, blood was shed for something so silly and miniscule, and you have to be held accountable.”
Due to Taylor’s habitual sentence, his sentences will be served day-for-day without the possibility of parole or early release.
District Attorney Crosby Parker stated, “I want to commend the Biloxi Police Department for their thorough investigation and the witnesses who had the courage to come forward and testify. Human life is precious, and tragically, this Defendant took a life over $15. When he took the stand and attempted to mislead the jury, ADA Ian Baker’s cross-examination exposed his lies and ensured the jury heard the truth. Given the senseless nature of this crime and this Defendant’s criminal history, a life sentence is both appropriate and just.”
