Jury selection got under way in Raleigh on Monday morning in the murder trial of Nicholas Dardar, who is charged with aggravated assault, shooting into a dwelling and the murder of his stepson, Daniel Davis on July 11, 2008.

At approximately 1:45 pm, eight women and five men were seated in the jury box.

On July 11, 2008, Nick Dardar made a 911 call to the Smith County Sheriff’s Department at approximately 12:55 am, stating that a shooting had taken place at his residence which is located at 7439 Hwy. 35 S in Mize, MS. When deputies arrived on the scene, they found Quinteena Dardar and her son Daniel Davis lying on the front porch of the residence.

Security was tight with every door and stairwell manned by law enforcement officers. No purses, bags, or cell phones were allowed. The public had to go through metal detectors each time they entered the courtroom.

District Attorney Eddie Bowen called his first and only witness of the day, Eric Johnson, special agent with the MBI.

Johnson testified that he was called to the scene at about 2:45 on the morning of July 11, 2008. Upon arrival at the home of Nick and Quinteena Dardar, Johnson stated that he observed a man lying on the front porch of the mobile home. The victim was Daniel Davis, the nineteen year old son of Quinteena Davis Dardar, who was living in the mobile home, along with his fiance and baby.

Jurors heard an audio confession Johnson obtained from Nick Dardar at the Smith County Jail in the early morning hours of July 11. In the taped interview, Dardar stated that there had been a history of domestic violence between he and his wife of three years.

Court resumed at 8:45 on Tuesday morning with Bowen calling his first witness, Undersheriff Marty Patterson to the stand. Patterson identified evidence that had been taken from the scene which included a pistol, rifle and the front door of the mobile home.

The next witness called to the stand was Quinteena Dardar.

Mrs. Dardar testified that her husband had come into the house from work just before midnight, got into bed and told her he wanted her out. “He told me he was tired of me and Daniel breathing free air, using free electric, free water and that I had ruined his life,” stated Mrs. Dardar.

According to Mrs. Dardar’s testimony, her husband left the house and came back with a 44 Magnum pistol and attempted to come through the door. When she tried to close the door on him, he shot through the front door, shooting her in the left shoulder. After being shot, she proceeded to run down a hall toward a bedroom, at which time she was shot again in the right forearm. Her son Daniel Davis and his fiance, Bethany Brown were sleeping in that bedroom with their three week old baby. Her testimony was that Dardar and Davis got into an altercation in the bedroom resulting in Davis being shot three times and killed.

Cross examination by attorney Thomas Brame, led Mrs. Dardar to reveal that she and Nick had been arguing before the shooting began.

The next witness called by Eddie Bowen was Dr. Terry Pitts who treated Mrs. Dardar for the two gunshot wounds. The defense did not cross examine this witness.

Next on the witness stand was Greg Nester, a crime scene investigator with the MBI. He testified that he had been called to the scene around 4:50 am on July 11 at the request of investigator Eric Johnson.

Testimony will resume on Wednesday morning.

Dardar is being represented by Thomas Brame, Tom Royals, and Tom Mayfield.