Suspect denies deadly shooting of Columbia teen in hotel room
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The teen suspect in a deadly Columbia hotel-room shooting allegedly told police under interrogation that an unknown person shot the 18-year-old woman Wednesday.
Terrell A. Fields, 19, of Columbia, was charged Wednesday with second-degree murder, armed criminal action, unlawful use of a weapon and tampering with evidence, all felonies. He is accused of shooting a handgun at Kaidynce Payne in a Super 8 hotel room on Clark Lane, causing her death.
Fields appeared via video from the Boone County Jail Thursday afternoon for his initial court appearance. He is being held at the jail without bond. Judge Kayla Jackson-Williams ordered a bond hearing for 1 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27 and a preliminary hearing for Mar. 28.
A probable cause statement says Fields, Payne and two minors were in the room late Tuesday when Fields pointed the gun at Payne and fired. He was standing over Payne on the hotel bed when the gun fired.
Payne was pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators saw Fields on video running from the room. Police later found tracks with toe prints and a stolen pistol with a laser sight buried in the snow outside the hotel, the statement says. Video shows him return to the room just before 1 a.m. Wednesday, according to the statement.
The gun matched the witnesses' description of the weapon used in the killing, police say.
Fields told police that he was in the bathroom when the two witnesses -- who had been invited over -- came into the hotel room, according to the statement. He said he was watching TV when the shooting took place, the statement says. He allegedly said Payne "suddenly had a hole in [her] shoulder, and Terrell could hear liquid in [her] voice," according to the redacted statement.
Fields said he did not see who shot Payne despite being in the same room, the statement says. He told police that he did not shoot a gun and ran to seek help after the shooting.
One witness told police that Fields was "playing" with the gun when he fired.
Boone County Prosecutor Roger Johnson says Fields faces up to life in prison, if convicted.
Fields was also charged with stealing a vehicle and running from police after a Valentine's Day chase that police say got up to 60 mph on Raleigh Drive. He was charged with tampering with a motor vehicle and resisting arrest.
Johnson said Fields was arrested and bonded out for that case in the same day due to a bond schedule.
"It looks like he bonded on the bond scheduled. the way that bond works here a person does have a right to have a bond set by a judge but we have a preset bond schedule to people an elect to post bond according to that schedule and waive a hearing by the judge," Johnson said.
According to online court documents, Fields posted a $7,000 cash surety bond for the Valentine's Day chase.
