MIAMI – A man on trial for murder in connection with a deadly shooting at a North Miami motel chose not to take the stand in his own defense on Wednesday.
Prosecutors then rested their case against Anthawn Ragan. His attorneys quickly rested their case without calling any of their own witnesses to the stand. Their motions to get the case thrown out were denied.
Ragan, now 30, is accused of shooting and killing 21-year-old Luis Miguel Perez at a Motel Seven in November 2013. Surveillance cameras captured the killing.
Closing arguments began shortly after attorneys rested their cases.
Prosecutors argued that Ragan had a plan and urged jurors to convict him of first-degree murder.
“Premeditation is the difference between first and second degree murder,” prosecutor Arvind Singh said.
But Ragan’s attorneys said he never had a plan to kill.
“What the video shows is a second-degree murder in Florida,” defense attorney Adam Goodman said. “There is no evidence that they decided to do this beforehand. We don’t even know if Mr. Perez did anything to instigate this because we don’t have that evidence. That’s why we have second-degree as an option.”
If convicted, Ragan could face a life sentence or the death penalty.