Bakersfield.com: Kern County news, events, classifieds, shopping, & search

Witness: Brothers near home

This story originally appeared June 3, 2005

By JESSICA LOGAN, Californian staff writer
e-mail: jlogan@bakersfield.com | Friday, Feb 16 2007 9:39 AM

Last Updated: Friday, Feb 16 2007 9:39 AM

A witness testified Thursday that he saw Vincent Brothers near the house where he is alleged to have killed five family members around the time of the homicides.

But the witness only told investigators about what he saw several months following the killings -- when he was in jail on criminal charges. And, he admitted, he was hoping providing information on the case would be a 'get out of jail free' card.

This testimony came on the second day of Brothers' preliminary hearing. He is charged with five counts of murder.

Jasper Robinson said he heard gunshots while sitting on his porch drinking beer with his brothers on July 6, 2003, and later saw Vincent Brothers behind the house where Brothers' slain family members were found.

Robinson was living behind the house where Brothers' wife, Joanie Harper; their three children, Marques, Lyndsey and Marshall; and his mother-in-law Earnestine Harper were shot to death in July 2003.

Robinson testified that about 20 minutes after he heard the shots he went to the back of the house to relieve himself on the back wall of his garage and then lifted up on his tiptoes to look over the fence leading to the Harper house.

Robinson said he noticed Brothers hosing down the patio and wall of the house.

Robinson said all of this while wearing a jail uniform. He is currently serving a prison term for possession of rock cocaine.

Robinson first learned about the killings when he said he heard a woman screaming outside the Harper house on July 8. He walked over to find out what was wrong.

He went into the house and saw the bodies, he said. Robinson discussed the discovery at length with investigators immediately after their bodies were discovered, he testified.

But, Robinson said he never mentioned seeing Brothers or hearing gunshots two days before.

Only after he was locked up did he get in contact, in March 2004, with the investigators on the Harper killings to tell the rest of this story, he testified.

He said he had been reading about it in the paper and noticed they weren't able to make any headway -- he wanted to help out.

Robinson testified he asked Deputy District Attorney Lisa Green if he could get a break on his case if he gave information on the Harper homicides, but Green said she couldn't make any promises.

Defense attorney Kevin Little asked Robinson, "At this point in time, basically you were asking for a get-out-of-jail card?"

"Free, yes sir," Robinson testified Thursday.

But he said he was never given a break on any case.

He also said that he drank as many as five King Cobra malt liquor beers in the hour before he said he saw Brothers behind the Harper house.

To demonstrate just how much liquor this is, defense attorney Kevin Little placed five cans of the beer on a podium.

Before Robinson took the stand, tempers flared in court during a discussion of the gag order on the case.

When defense attorney Anthony Bryan attempted to respond to remarks from the prosecution, the judge told him to put it in writing.

Bryan continued to argue with the judge even after he was told repeatedly to be quiet and sit down. One of the bailiffs put his hands on Bryan's shoulders to force him into his seat.

"Will you tell this bailiff to take his hands off me?" Bryan demanded.

The judge threatened Bryan with contempt and took a break.

During the afternoon session of the preliminary hearing, Green started to develop a timeline surrounding the homicides with the help of Sgt. Donald Krueger. He is the second detective from the case to testify.

Krueger testified a close friend of the Harpers spent the early part of the day with them on Sunday, July 6, 2003.

They went to church in the morning and out to lunch in the afternoon. She didn't see the Harpers again after they left the restaurant at about 1:30 p.m., Krueger said.

The friend said Vincent Brothers and Earnestine Harper had a strained relationship. He was living at the Harpers' house up until April and Earnestine Harper would frequently complain that Brothers didn't pick up after himself, Krueger said.

Other squabbles with Earnestine Harper prompted Brothers to move into an apartment.

But under cross examination, Krueger said Brothers was building a house and was planning a room for Earnestine Harper.

The family friend expected the Harpers to return for an evening service of church that Sunday, but they did not, the sergeant testified.

She tried to contact the Harpers the next day, but she couldn't get into the doors even though she had a key because the doors were blocked.

Joanie Harper didn't answer her cell phone.

Krueger said the Harper family friend returned early on July 8, and went to the back and found the sliding glass door unlocked.

She stumbled on the grisly scene and became hysterical, witnesses testified.

The prosecution will continue to present witnesses today.