Closing arguments in progress in Harlan Drake murder trial
SHIAWASSEE COUNTY, Michigan – The Defense has rested and closing arguments are now underway as of this writing in the murder case of Harlan Drake, the man accused of gunning down pro-life activist Jim Pouillon, gravel pit owner Mike Fuoss, and planning the murder of a third man.
Drake took the stand in his own defense and told how he felt no remorse for the killings, yet believed that he deserved to die or be locked away for what he did.
Drake said that he targeted Pouillon because he and his mother disliked Pouillon's graphic sign that he used while protesting abortion. He planned the night before to kill Pouillon if he found him protesting at Owosso High School the following day.
After shooting Pouillon several times, Drake said he pulled up and make the final shot up through the rib cage into the heart, because he saw that Pouillon was still moving.
Drake then told the court how he decided that since he had already killed one man, he might as well kill the other men that he believed needed to be shot that day. Police arrested Drake after he killed Fuoss, and before he could kill his final victim.
While in jail, Drake asked to view the autopsy photos. "I asked to see the autopsy reports so I could see what my aim was like," Drake told the court.
Drake discussed how he had been involved in a fatal traffic accident in 2004, where two teens died. He blamed himself for their deaths even though the accident was not his fault. After shooting Pouillon and Fuoss, he considered killing himself, but did not want to make a mess in his wife's pickup truck. Drake later attempted to slash his wrists while in police custody.
Prosecution rebuttal witnesses included a forensic psychologist who testified that Drake's actions indicated that he had an understanding of the "the nature, the quality and the wrongfulness" of his actions, therefore did not meet the threshold of criminal insanity.
Drake's attorneys have argued that Drake was insane at the time of the murders.
Pouillon's daughter, Mary Jo, indicated that she was "struck" by Drake's lack of remorse and his comments that he did not want to hurt anyone who had not wronged him.
"He didn't want to hurt anyone that hadn't hurt him or his family, well that was unsuccessful because I am very hurt by it," she said.
Since Michigan has no death penalty, Drake would face life in prison if convicted.
