BATON ROUGE — Jurors began hearing testimony Wednesday in the trial of a man accused of killing three people in a Memorial Day shooting at an apartment complex swimming pool three years ago.

Ladarius Coleman was 15 at the time of the triple homicide; he's 18 now. Prosecutors say Coleman and his brother David Williams were at the pool on May 31, 2021, and ran into two people with whom they had a feud. A 1-year-old girl was caught in the crossfire and also died.

Shameka Murray the mother of Dewayne Dunn Jr., one of the three victims. Murray says three years ago she lost her only son, and she's doing whatever she can to keep his memory alive.

"That's something I'm going to have to deal with until I meet my baby again," Murray said. 

Coleman and Williams each face second-degree murder charges. The two had been set to be tried together, Williams' case was separated from Coleman's on Monday and moved to next March. Their mother, LaToya Coleman, was arrested as an accessory to the crime after she allegedly helped the brothers flee to Texas after the crimes. Her trial is set for December.

"It's almost no doubt I will get justice for the three," Murray said. "You know my baby wasn't the only life that was taken. All three were innocent."

In brief opening arguments Wednesday, defense lawyer Jarvis Claiborne reminded jurors that prosecutors must prove his client guilty. He suggested that the state's witnesses might not be credible and that the prosecutors have a "heavy burden."

The prosecution said Coleman and Williams discovered that Reginald Thomas Jr., 20, and Dunn, 16, were at the pool. Coleman and Williams allegedly ambushed the pair and put everyone at the pool in danger.

In testimony, patrol officer Willie Brown said the killings were his first homicide case and that he inadvertently picked up evidence before it had been cataloged. He said he later realized that he knew Dunn and that he was removed from the case. 

A crime scene investigator also detailed obtaining video evidence from five cameras at the apartment complex.

During the trial, prosecutors played security video from each angle of the shooting at the pool. The courtroom was packed with victims' family and friends, and as the video played the audience gasped, cried out loud and hugged each other. Some even had to leave the room. 

"It almost feels as if at the end of the trial when we get justice, I'll get my baby back. I know that's not the case, but I'm pushing forward, day by day, one step at a time."

Dunn's two sisters, Roseshira and Dayshira, say they want justice for their brother and the two others shot and killed.