On Tuesday, June 17, the first day of testimony in the trial of 19-year-old Orlando May, accused of killing Southern Miss football player Marcus “MJ” Daniels, witnesses from Hattiesburg Police Department testified about what they saw and did at the scene.
Daniels was shot and killed while sitting in his car, which was parked in front of his apartment in Hattiesburg on June 11, 2024. He was 21 years old and entering his senior season as a defensive back for the Golden Eagles.
May, one of four suspects charged in Daniels’ killing, is charged with capital murder, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, taking possession of a motor vehicle, possession of a stolen firearm and felony eluding law enforcement.
Allen Marcus Gardner and Shamir Green pleaded guilty in February to first-degree murder. Gardner also pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit armed robbery.
Gardner, 18, and Green, 17, represent the second and third suspects to plead guilty to murder charges in connection with Daniels’ death. Nytavion Shaw, 17, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in October.
Orlando May looks at the witness stand during his trial for the murder of MJ Daniels, a USM football player shot to death in his car outside his apartment building.
Hattiesburg Police officers arrived soon after a call came in about a shooting at the Ivy Row, a gated apartment complex near the University of Southern Mississippi.
Hattiesburg Police Detective Thomas Reid said he helped another officer get the door to Daniels’ car unlocked so they could determine what had happened to him. AAA paramedics at the scene checked Daniels for a heartbeat but there was none, Reid said.
Daniels had what looked like two gunshot wounds toward the back of his head, Reid said.
HPD Crime Scene Investigator Jeff Byrd said the department found a weapon and some ammunition in Daniels’ vehicle. It was a .45-calibre weapon. One of the wounds had a projectile protruding from it, which was recovered at the scene and put into a sealed envelope to be used for evidence.
The projectile was 9mm, so could not have come from the weapon in Daniels’ car, Byrd said.
Hattiesburg Police Crime Scene Investigator Jeff Byrd looks at a projectile during Orlando May’s trial for the murder of MJ Daniels, a USM football player shot to death in his car outside his apartment building.
Byrd checked for fingerprints ans palm prints on Daniels’ car, a black Challenger, and collected other potential evidence at the scene, including nearby cigarette butts.
One of the prints was identified as belonging to Samir Green, one of three co-defendants who pleaded guilty to his role in Daniels’ death.
Expert witness Dr. Staci Turner from the state medical examiner’s office, said stippling was found on Daniels’ body, meaning he was shot from between 1 foot to 3 feet away.
She said Daniels had two bullet wounds on the right side, toward the back of his head. There were no exit wounds.
Photos from Daniels’ autopsy were shown to the jury, with Turner explaining what was in each photo.
During the viewing, May glanced up toward the photos but quickly lowered his head to avoid seeing them and other photos and video that would be shown later in the day.
While on the witness stand, Turner was asked to draw the wounds on a Styrofoam mannequin head. After she drew the marks where the wounds were located, she showed it to the jury.
Many of Daniels’ family members attended the trial, with most looking at the evidence presented and some shielding their eyes during some of the more graphic images.
Two Hattiesburg police officers with the Special Operations Unit described to the jury how they had to chase down May and Green after Lt. Tammy Hoadley attempted to make a traffic stop on a suspected stolen vehicle.
Hoadley chased the vehicle after the driver failed to stop. Officer Davion White joined the chase and pursued the two men on foot. They were taken into custody after the incident.
Dashcam and body cam footage of the incident were shown in court.
At first, White did not recognize May in the courtroom, but later identified him as one of the men arrested that day.
The trial will resume Wednesday morning at the Forrest County Courthouse in Hattiesburg.
Lici Beveridge is a reporter for the Hattiesburg American and Clarion Ledger. Contact her at lbeveridge@gannett.com. Follow her on X @licibev or Facebook at facebook.com/licibeveridge.
This article originally appeared on Hattiesburg American: Hattiesburg jury hears testimony in death of USM player MJ Daniels