BROOKHAVEN — D’Monterrio Gibson is frustrated and disappointed with the news his case was dismissed with prejudice by Judge David Strong. In his order, Strong stated the court found the Brookhaven Police Department’s failure to turn over evidence denied Brandon and Gregory Case their right to a speedy and fair trial and they were denied due process. 

The order to dismiss the case with prejudice means the case could not be refiled although the District Attorney’s Office could appeal the ruling. Gibson said he feels the ruling wasn’t fair to him.

“I’m devastated but I’ve said from the beginning that all of this was planned from the beginning,” Gibson said. “They had people within the police department who destroyed the case.”

He said the case was not a black vs. white thing but was about right vs. wrong. Gibson was frustrated because he felt if it had been the son of Brandon or Gregory Case who was shot at they would have been “pissed.”

“The justice system once again failed the victim. With the Brookhaven Police Department, I just don’t understand how this was done purposely,” Gibson said. “Those men still get to walk. They could do it to someone else. Kenny Collins to say he was scared to arrest them but he always wanted to antagonize me and the protestors. It says a lot about Brookhaven.”

Gibson said he did everything right, he called the police and took the case to court. “What else can I do,” he said. 

The men were indicted by a Lincoln County Grand Jury on charges of attempted murder, conspiracy and shooting into a motor vehicle following a shooting involving Gibson in January 2022. 

The shooting

At the time, Gibson was delivering for FedEx in a rental van when he alleged the men fired upon him. He had driven the route encompassing Brookhaven and Bogue Chitto for six months. 

Gibson said he would deliver business packages first before taking care of residential packages. He would travel a lot between Brookhaven and Bogue Chitto. 

On the day of the shooting, Gibson said FedEx was testing a new system for packages. Usually, the driver would scan the package and add the address, but with the new system he had to type it into his phone. 

After delivering to all of his businesses he started delivering to residential addresses. It was a nightmare, he said. Around 7:20 p.m., he entered Junior Trail, a narrow road, and attempted to locate the residence he was delivering the package to. 

“It took no time to hop out, place the package and hop back in the truck. I saw a pickup approaching me. I thought they were trying to get out,” Gibson said. “As I’m trying to leave, the father in the white vehicle ends up running over trash cans trying to block me in. At that point, my instincts kicked in and I just kept driving. I went down three or four houses and the son was standing in the road pointing his gun at the vehicle. I swerved around him and he shot at me.”

Gibsons stated bullets struck packages inside the van. Mississippi Free Press published pictures of bullet damage to the delivery vehicle and packages. He said he called his manager as he was trying to leave the street and she could hear shots fired in the background.

Gibson fled the scene as previously reported by The Daily Leader and shown in security footage displayed in court during the initial trial. The pickup truck followed him to the Interstate. En route to Jackson, where he is a resident, he called 911 and had to be transferred from different dispatchers to Brookhaven Police Department. The incident occurred before a centralized Lincoln County dispatch. 

It was in talking with the Brookhaven Police Department dispatcher that Gibson found out there was a suspicious person call on Junior Trail around the same time. Gibson said he told the dispatcher he had been shot at and the dispatcher asked him to come the next day. 

Gibson wrote a statement the next day and had pictures of the damage to the vehicle. He and his manager went to the Brookhaven Police Department and spoke with three different officers — former Assistant Chief Chris Case, Clint Earls and finally Vincent Fernando. 

Fernando took Gibson’s statement and asked him questions about what happened. The interview was the key piece of evidence left out of the case by Fernando. Gibson said the two went to the crime scene and then to the Honda Pro dealership where Brandon worked. 

Strong ruled the first trial was a mistrial following Detective Fernando presenting surprise evidence to the District Attorney’s Office and Defense Attorneys at the trial. 

The detective was fired by the Brookhaven Board of Aldermen Tuesday. 

Gibson was set to tell his story in court and never got the chance. He had looked forward to sharing his story in the retrial which never came. 

“People are still attacking me and my character. It doesn’t seem fair to me,” Gibson said. “I feel disgusted with Brookhaven. I was doing my job. I wasn’t doing anything wrong. They tell us to go to school, do a good job but we are still messed over by the system. I didn’t steal a package. I wasn’t in an unmarked vehicle.”

Some people had questioned why he was delivering packages so late in the day. Gibson explained it was normal to deliver packages late into the evening. He was a part of the “late leavers,” who would have the most packages to deliver. 

Gibson said it wasn’t uncommon to work six 12-hour days in a week. Take into consideration the timing of the incident was January in the weeks following Christmas which is still peak package season. 

“It is a time when delivery has the most mail. We had anywhere from 150 to 200 stops a day,” Gibson said. “We were so backed up. That is why it was so late. Something people don’t pay attention to, as well, is these companies let you know when a package is on the way. They should have known a package was coming.”

He explained that before the shooting he had never met the Cases before and had never exchanged words before the incident. 

His manager tried to put him back on the same route but he couldn’t do it. The shooting was too traumatizing. It was the first time he had been shot at while delivering. A dog or two had bitten him and some people had cursed him out for turning around in their driveway, but he had never been shot at before. 

“I could see Brandon bright as day. It is something I can’t ever not see,” Gibsons said. He explained he takes medicine and goes to therapy to help with the traumatic experience. 

After the case was dismissed, Gibson’s attorney Carlos Moore dropped him as a client. Gibson found out the news in a text. Moore’s office told The Daily Leader he was no longer representing Gibson and would not be commenting on the case.

“I have to figure out my next steps. I’m not giving up on anything,” Gibson said. “I know my truth. I have to find a new lawyer now. It is a messed up situation all around.”

The Daily Leader left messages with defense attorneys Terrell Stubbs and Dan Kitchens for comment with no response.