Confessional letters admitted as evidence in Pagan’s murder trial in Marion County Circuit Court
Esteban Fernandez, Times West Virginian, Fairmont
Fri, January 24, 2025 at 9:48 AM EST
Jan. 24—FAIRMONT — Defense Attorney Kevin Tipton drilled into the state’s witnesses Thursday morning in the Austin Mullins murder trial in Marion County Circuit Court.
Tipton worked to disarm Marion County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Sean Murphy’s grand unifying theory of Henry Silver’s murder. But around 4 p.m., Murphy cut Tipton off from the illusion of hope when he introduced three letters Mullins wrote in which he admits the Sept. 2022 murder that took place at Carolina Arbors Apartments in Carolina.
I was watching the jury’s face during the testimony,” one courtroom observer said. “Their faces went from not guilty to guilty.
The state accuses Mullins of playing a role in the murder of Henry Silver. The trial is one of six trials seeking accountability for Silver’s killing. The state alleges Silver’s murder is a Pagan’s Motorcycle Club sanctioned hit that stemmed from infidelity between Silver and one of the club member’s girlfriends.
The state’s strategy in pursuing accountability for the murder has been to craft one grand unifying theory of why and how the murder took place, and then connect each of the six men to the greater narrative. However, the strategy has the downside of elevating the principles behind the crime, namely John Wolfe — who was convicted of Silver’s murder last year — while obscuring the other men the state accuses of participating in the murder.
That strategy leaves plenty of openings for a determined defense, which paid off in a previous trial for one of the co-defendants. Tipton hoped to deploy the same tactic while he searched inconsistencies and plot holes in testimony delivered by the prosecution’s witnesses.
Mullins himself was barely mentioned by the prosecution during day two of the trial, his most prominent mention being when Murphy asked a witness if Mullins had been at a meeting in which the state alleges the murder was planned by the motorcycle club.
Tipton’s strategy focused on damaging the credibility of the state’s witnesses. The strategy was especially punishing on one of the state’s witnesses, Wolfe’s ex-girlfriend. Tipton’s questioning reduced the woman to yes or no answers. Tipton asked questions about Silver’s drug use, and where and from whom he got the drugs. He also drew contrast between Wolfe and Silver.
Tipton framed Wolfe as calm and collected during his initial encounter with Silver on the night of the murder, while Silver was the violent, intoxicated individual the night of the murder.
An important element to the state’s case is Pagan’s customs and traditions, especially in how they treat their romantic partners. Murphy had two witnesses, Wolfe’s ex-girlfriend and a federal Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agent who specializes in motorcycle gangs, explain to the jury how women are considered property by members of the motorcycle club, and how anyone who interferes with said property will face violence from the club.
However, Tipton used the ex-girlfriend’s history of infidelity, not just with Silver but with others, against the prosecution’s case. He pointed out none of the other lovers the ex-girlfriend had were targeted for killing, attempting to cast doubt on the state’s assertion that this case had anything to do with the Pagan’s Motorcycle Club. When it came to the ATF witness, Tipton pointed out the expert had no information about the Pagan’s specific to the Fairmont chapter, only to the group as a national entity.
Tipton did whatever he could to put daylight between Mullins and any association with the Pagan’s, pointing out the state didn’t have Mullins’ club vest, only Wolfe’s. All of the physical evidence Murphy had shown the jury was connected to Wolfe.
What could have been most damaging to the prosecution’s case was cross-examination of Wolfe’s son. The son’s testimony was an, if not the most, important element of the prosecution’s case, because he could establish motive and was a witness to the act itself. The son testified he had overheard a meeting of Club members in Pleasant Valley where they agreed to “take care” of Silver.
He also saw two men flee from the parking lot outside the apartment he peered out during the crime, and saw Silver’s dead body on the pavement. Those men met with his father prior to shooting Silver.
However, testimony from the son’s cousin, Shane Arnold, cast doubt on whether the son had been able to overhear the club members’ conversation at all. The conversation took place in a garage with an apartment overhead. The son testified he overheard the conversation while in an upstairs bathroom upstairs that had poor insulation.
Arnold testified that not only were two televisions in the room with sound coming out of one, but that the son had been playing the game Fortnite with his headphones around his neck. The son was using the mic on the headphones to coordinate with his friends in the game. It’s not clear how the son was doing so if the headphones were broken like Arnold claimed.
Another ding to the son’s testimony was that he spent time playing outside while the meeting took place. Both of these elements cast doubt on whether the son actually heard what happened. Tipton also asked if the son had prepped his testimony before coming in, and the son replied that he had with the help of the prosecutor’s office. Tipton interrogated the child’s chain of events, finding enough inconsistencies to cast doubt on how clear a view the boy had of the shooting.
However, it was all for naught. Even Tipton knew it, telling the judge at an admissibility hearing earlier this week that if the letters come in, it’s over for his client. Murphy brought out Eric Swihart, Lane’s cellmate and messenger boy, to testify. Swihart delivered the letters Mullins wrote to Lane, and even discussed their contents with Mullins’ co-defendant.
Swihart was a reluctant witness, but said one sentence in particular stood out in the letters.
“They know who did it,” Swihart said, mumbling his recollection of what Mullins wrote. “They know I am the shooter.”
Tipton chose not to cross examine. If the case gets appealed to the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, Tipton has a better chance of not getting overruled on something he argued during the trial if he stays silent.
Tipton chose a novel strategy for the defense portion of the trial, reserving his opening statement until after the prosecution rests their case. It’s not likely Mullins will have any witnesses to testify on his behalf, leading to closing arguments after Tipton delivers his opening. The strategy will then place Tipton with the most speaking time in front of the jury before they depart for deliberations.
The trial is scheduled to continue Friday.
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