Arrest warrant reveals new details in May 2021 murder, suspect pleaded not guilty

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The man accused of shooting and killing another man and then going on the run for more than a year was arraigned on murder charge on Tuesday.

Tywain Robinson was arrested in Oregon in December.

He's accused of shooting and killing 24-year-old Isaac Jackson in May of 2021.

Robinson stood silently as his defense attorney Scott Bailey entered a not guilty plea on his behalf Tuesday morning.

The judge directed Action News not to show Robinson's face at the request of his attorney who cited potential identification issues in the case.

Robinson has been charged with murder in the shooting death of Jackson.

Friends and family say prior to his death, Jackson had big dreams of becoming a recording artist.

"He was always writing something up. I'm going to miss him," Jackson's niece Patience Porter previously told Action News.

According to a newly obtained arrest warrant for Robinson, on the day of the murder, he and the mother of his children were arguing at an apartment near Inyo and Maple.

The mother of his children called her family and asked them to call police.

Isaac Jackson, the woman's uncle, along with the woman's God uncle went to the apartment together to check on her.

The two walked up to the door, and that's when shots were fired from inside the apartment to where they were standing.

The two ran back to their car.

Jackson's friend told police shots were still being fired as they drove away.

Jackson was hit and died on the Divisadero off-ramp from Highway 41 as his friend was trying to rush him to the hospital.

Detectives found surveillance video near where the shooting happened that backs up their story.

The mother of Robinson's children, who lived inside the apartment, says Robinson told her he was going to leave, and then she got in the shower.

That's when she heard gunfire.

She identified Robinson's car to police, which was seen on surveillance video leaving the area after the shooting.

Action News Legal Analyst Tony Capozzi says based on the arrest warrant, there will be challenges for the prosecution to prove Robinson was the one who pulled the trigger.

"This looks like it's purely a circumstantial case. There's no eyewitness to someone seeing the shooting," Capozzi said.

Capozzi says the surveillance video and the woman's statement about Robinson being at the apartment just before she heard gunshots will be important in their case.

"I think the female in the house puts him in the house and so it's going to be very difficult for him to show he wasn't there and that he wasn't the one shooting the gun," Capozzi said.

From the defense's standpoint, Capzozzi says he wants to know if the woman in the apartment was checked for gunshot residue?

If not, how can they prove she wasn't the shooter?

He also says if Robinson confirms he was there, Robinson knew she called a family member for help and he may say he thought someone was trying to come and harm him.

"I think the defense, in this case, may be, one, it wasn't me. And the other point is if the identification is strong that he was there, then he did it in self-defense. He thought his life was in danger," Capozzi said.

Robinson is expected to have another hearing on March 14th.

If convicted, he faces 50 years to life in prison.

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