More Testimony Heard Tuesday in John Brooke Jury Trial

John Brooke

The trial of John Brooke continued into its second day, and, at the request of the Prosecution, the jury heard statements from James Reed. Reed is one of the men involved in the Bass Lake shootout and who was sentenced to ten years in prison for Conspiracy to Commit Armed Robbery. Special Agent Katherine Newby of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms also testified.

Reed claimed that the plans to commit bank robbery were just foolish talk and said they had no merit, and also stated that the Molotov cocktails found in the residence were only used to burn garbage in the backyard of the house. Reed said he was not aware they were possibly for use in a planned robbery or the attack on police that took place at the residence when officers arrived to serve an arrest warrant for Michael Drogosz.

The Prosecution then called Special Agent Newby to the stand. Newby was called onto the scene at the Bass Lake residence because a machine gun was believed to be involved in an officer-involved shooting that took place in February 2010. Newby played two recorded interviews between herself, John Brooke, and another agent. Newby stated that there were two separate interviews because after interviewing Brooke, she proceeded to interview Drogosz and Hitchens, who gave vastly conflicting answers. Therefore, she interviewed Brooke again to try to get the facts situated. Newby then identified photos of explosive devices found at the residence, which she described as an “M-Series Device,” which usually consists of a hobby fuse, cardboard tube, and explosive powder.

The case will continue this morning at 9:00 a.m. in Starke Circuit Court and is expected to continue for the rest of the week.