Use of rare ammo to play part in trial of mid-Missouri homicide suspect

The man accused of killing two men in northeast Columbia back in 2015 spent hours in the courtroom for the first day of his trial.

Jury selection for 26-year-old Darious Lucas began Tuesday morning at the Boone County Courthouse in Columbia and witness testimony continued until 6 p.m.

He is charged with two felony counts of first-degree murder and two felony counts of armed criminal action.

Asphalt workers discovered the bodies of James Richardson, 41, of Columbia, and Kenneth B. Long, 42, of Mexico, Missouri, off Mexico Gravel Road on Sept. 19, 2015.

Assistant prosecuting attorney Stephanie Morrell said in her opening statement Tuesday afternoon that Lucas planned to kill Richardson after the victim allegedly lied to him.

A few weeks before the slayings, Lucas’s girlfriend, Adrienne Carpenter, bought the same brand of ammunition that was used to kill Richardson and Long.

Expert witnesses, including an employee of the gun store where Carpenter bought the ammunition, said the type of bullets are called radically invasive projectiles, or RIP. Known to fragment upon impact and cause extensive damage, they are expensive and rarely used.

According to law enforcement officials on the stand Tuesday, there was only one gun store in Columbia that sells them. That same gun store no longer carries them because they were rarely bought.

Lucas’ defense attorney, David Wallis, said Monday there was no evidence that the bullets purchased by Carpenter were the same ones used to kill Richardson and Long.

In his opening statement, Wallis said he will prove this week that the evidence tying Lucas to the crimes is circumstantial, and that some of the state’s witnesses are not credible.

Morrell said the three were involved in drug activity. Long’s fiancee took the stand and confirmed he sold a type of synthetic drug called “ice,” similar to methamphetamine. Long and Richardson were apparently old friends from high school and ran track.

Law enforcement officers also testified about the scene and the investigation the day both bodies were found.

Boone County deputies also linked Lucas to the deaths using cellphone records.

If convicted, Lucas could face a life sentence without parole.