Jealous Gulfport husband says he didn’t mean to kill his rival. Will a jury believe him?

Robert Walters lay groaning on his bed, a bullet in his torso.

Still, he managed to tell Gulfport police that he was shot by Stephen Redmond, a 36-year-old separated from his wife and jealous of her budding relationship with Robert Walters, testimony showed.

Walters, 48, died at a hospital about an hour after the shooting, on April 4, 2017. Redmond is standing trial in Gulfport on a first-degree murder charge.

His attorney, Theressia A. Lyons, does not deny that Redmond had a gun that afternoon. But she told the jury Tuesday in Harrison County Circuit Court that the gun fired accidentally while the two struggled over it.

At most, she said, Redmond should be convicted of manslaughter, which would mean a sentence of up to 20 years in prison versus life for first-degree murder.

Assistant District Attorney Patti Simpson argued Redmond intended to kill Walters.

Walters, who had a home in Gulfport’s Hidden Oaks subdivision, had given the homeless Redmond a place to stay for a few nights.

The night before the murder, Walters, Redmond and Redmond’s wife partied with a third man, Christopher Weaver. Weaver testified that they smoked pot, used methamphetamine and drank.

Weaver expected to celebrate his birthday the next day in New Orleans with Redmond. Instead, Walters decided to take Redmond’s wife to Stone County to visit her children. Before he left, Walters’ .22-caliber Ruger was stolen from his truck, Weaver said.

Weaver sacked out on the couch. When he woke up, he looked out the back and saw Redmond laying on his stomach on the ground, the stolen rifle pointed at the door. “Don’t shoot me,” Weaver told Redmond. Redmond replied that he had no beef with Weaver.

With Weaver’s testimony, prosecutors hoped to show Redmond intended to kill.

Redmond entered the house after his wife and Walters returned a short time later. The two men argued and wrestled over the gun, which went off, Weaver said. Weaver could not say how or why the gun fired.

Walters ran to his bedroom, followed by Redmond’s wife. Redmond disappeared. Weaver said he wanted no part of what was happening and left. Gulfport police found Walters bleeding in bed after a 911 call.

Gulfport police officer Kurwin Smith, then a patrolman, said he stood watch over the crime scene until late that evening, when detectives and evidence technicians wrapped up their work.

As he drove away, Smith spotted Redmond on the corner only a few houses from the crime scene. Smith recognized the suspect from a law enforcement alert and said he arrested Redmond without a fight.

The case is expected to go to the jury Wednesday.

This story was originally published September 19, 2018 at 5:00 AM.