Man accused of killing his cousin in northwest Fresno hears from witnesses

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- In a red jumpsuit, Gerrick Franklin sat in a Fresno County courtroom Tuesday listening to witnesses.

Franklin is accused of shooting and killing his own cousin, 33-year-old Tyler Hamon, last November in northwest Fresno.

"He came over to our house, they went out and hung together frequently," one witness said.

Action News could not show the faces or share the names of witnesses as they recalled that day at the Windscape Apartments on Nees and Poplar Avenues.

"I did hear a loud noise and when I looked through the peep hole, I saw a black-hooded figure running off," witness two said.

The witness could not identify the person any further.

Another witness says she was Hamon's girlfriend and at the apartment with him when someone started banging and yelling at their door.

"Does Tyler get up?" the prosecution asked her.

"Yes," she responded.

"What does he do?" the prosecution asked her.

"He gets up and tries to walk to the front door to yell something at Gerrick," she explained.

Police say five shots rang out around midnight that night, going through the door of the apartment.

"What did you do when you heard those bullets?" the prosecution asked Hamon's girlfriend.

"I was just lying there. I didn't know anything had happened until Tyler said that one had hit him," she explained.

Franklin's attorney questions that witness.

"Did you ever see Gerrick shoot any firearms?" his defense attorney, Eric Castellon, asked her.

"No," she said.

When officers arrived, they found Hamon in his bedroom, shot in the back.

Franklin was arrested two days later.

He previously pleaded not guilty to the murder.

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