Actions

Prosecution rests and insanity defense begins in Stanley Majors trial

Posted at
and last updated

TULSA, Okla. -- The prosecution rested after a disturbing day of evidence in the Stanley Majors trial on Thursday.

Attorneys played phone calls from the jail between Majors and his late husband Steven Schmauss. At times the defendant showed remorse, but on multiple occasions he spoke of why he shot Khalid Jabara.

In many phone calls Majors said he shot Jabara in self defense, and was fearful the victim was going to kill him. Majors made comments saying "He tried to strangle me. He put a choke hold on me. We were on the ground fighting."

One of the defendant's most shocking remarks came during a phone call after the arrest for hitting Jabara's mother with his care. Majors said during this call "If it's the last thing I do I'm going to F him up."

During testimony earlier in the week Tulsa Police spoke on Majors and his husband getting into a fight the day of the murder, which led Jabara to call officers to the neighborhood. In many phone calls Majors repeatedly told his husband not to release this information to attorneys, and said Khalid was a bad neighbor for calling the cops on him.

When reflecting on the shooting, the defendant said "If you want to kill someone you hit them good." He told his husband he did shoot at Jabara two or three times, but he would have aimed for the victim's head if he was trying to kill him.

Majors' attorneys said he is not guilty by insanity and that he suffers from schizophrenia. A psychiatrist at the Tulsa County Jail was the first witness to take the stand Thursday.

The doctor said Majors was diagnosed with psychosis upon entering the jail, which is a broad diagnosis covering a range of illnesses including schizophrenia as well as manic bipolar disorder. The psychiatrist said it can also cover episodes caused by substance abuse.

The doctor said last year there were complaints in the jail of Majors suffering from hallucinations, and they began prescribing a dosage of anti-psychotics 20 times larger than the original prescription.

The defense will continue testimony on Monday and the trial is expected to wrap up early on next week.

Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.

Download our free app for Apple and Android and Kindle devices.

Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox. Select from these options: Breaking News, Severe Weather, School Closings, Daily Headlines and Daily Forecasts.

Follow us on Twitter

Like us on Facebook