Trial to begin for man accused of slaying his nephew

July 07, 2008 11:09 pm

— Jury selection will resume at 9 a.m. today in the first-degree murder trial of a Muskogee man charged in the August 2005 shooting death of his nephew.
Alfred Grant Fennell, 48, is charged in Muskogee County District Court in the death of Bryant K. Allen, 40.
Alfred Fennell also is on trial for assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, a felony, for allegedly hitting Bryant Allen’s brother, Derrick Allen, with a rifle.
Fennell and Derek Allen got into an argument when Bryant Allen went to break it up, Elroy Fennell, Alfred Fennell’s father, told law enforcement.
As the Allens were walking to the car in the street, Alfred Fennell came out with a .22-caliber rifle and began shooting, his father said.
Bryant Allen was hit once in the back of his head, witnesses said.
Fennell was given a life sentence in 2006 after pleading guilty to first-degree manslaughter but won a new trial when a judge said Fennell was not told the details of his sentencing that required him to serve 85 percent.