Defendant maintains stabbing started in kitchen, contradicting state's evidence

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Nike Haynie's account to police about stabbing and killing Marc Sherwood so far doesn't match the evidence presented to jurors on the first day of his murder trail.

In a video of a detective's interview with Haynie, the officer questions Haynie's statement that he first stabbed Sherwood in the kitchen. The detective pressed Haynie on his recollection because there was no blood found in there.

"I stabbed him in the kitchen," Haynie asserts on the video. "I'm telling you how it happened front to back. I know what happened. I was there."

Evidence presented Tuesday morning indicated that Sherwood was stabbed to death while lying naked in his bed inside his house in the 1100 block of Rochelle Drive. The walls of the room had blood spatter, indicating that blood was flung off from the knife blade and onto the walls, according to testimony Tuesday morning from former Lafayette police crime scene tech Chandler Cahoon.

Cahoon described the inside of Sherwood's house as clean and organized, and if the fight and stabbing started in the kitchen, as Haynie claimed, Cahoon said there would be signs of blood and signs of a struggle in the kitchen.

Instead, there appeared to be a small smudge of blood on a kitchen light switch by the door and a small smudge on the door molding between the kitchen and the living room, he testified.

Another smudge of apparent blood was found in the hallway.

Haynie left Sherwood's house after the killing and tried to flag down someone to call police, even going so far as to knock on neighbors' doors, according to police statements at the time of the homicide.

Cahoon testified Tuesday morning about documenting the scene inside Sherwood's bedroom.

While Sherwood's body was covered in blood, there was no blood on his feet.

That was significant, Cahoon testified. The absence of blood on Sherwood's feet indicated that he was in his bed and at least partially under the covers when he was attacked.

Haynie claimed that Sherwood's eye would twitch before he exploded with anger, according to prosecutor's examination of witnesses after jurors watched Haynie's interrogation with police.

None of Sherwood's friends or family ever recalled seeing an eye twitch when he became angry. In fact, Sherwood's former lover and roommate, who had a five-year relationship with him, said he didn't get angry.

"He was a kind, gentle person," Sherwood's former lover said, noting she never saw a twitch in his eye when he got angry.

Charles Sherwood, Marc's father, testified, "Marc was a very pacifist person. He was a very calm, laidback person and tried to help people."

Asked about the eye twitch when Marc became angry, Charles Sherwood said, "I've never seen that."

All of the character witnesses — Marc Sherwood's former lover, his family members and co-workers — said they never saw him angry, let alone noticed a twitch in his eye.

"He was a very gentle soul," testified Steve Sherwood, Marc's older brother, who noted he never saw Marc angry.

In all of their lives, Steve Sherwood said he'd only seen Marc frustrated, and Marc would walk away rather than confront the source of the frustration.

The state rested its case Tuesday afternoon after one day of witnesses.

Haynie's defense begins Wednesday afternoon.

Haynie claims self defense because of Marc Sherwood's repeated battery on him.

Self defense is an affirmative defense that requires the person using that claim to testify in order to persuade the jurors of the threat to the defendant's life.

It is not yet clear if Haynie will testify on Wednesday.

This is the first trial during which the news media may video and audio record the proceedings with the judge's permission.

Opening statements and closing statements are fair game, Tippecanoe Circuit Judge Sean Persin said when he set the boundaries.

However, publishing video recordings of witness testimony is embargoed until the jury has the case. Additionally, some witness testimony is barred from being published, and some of Haynie's testimony — if he takes the stand — might be barred from publication.

Reporters may, however, write about the entire testimony of any witness, as they always have been permitted to do.

Reach Ron Wilkins at rwilkins@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @RonWilkins2.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Defendant says stabbing started in kitchen, contradicting evidence