PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A jury is deliberating whether a Philadelphia man strangled a beloved art student and dumped her body in Cobbs Creek more than four years ago.
During an animated closing argument, 26-year-old David Grier loudly told jurors, “this is the criminal justice system at its absolute worst,” and tried trying to poke holes in the state’s timeline, adding that witnesses were “factually incorrect.”
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Prosecutors went through their evidence: Grier’s DNA under victim Kierra Johnson’s fingernails, even after she lay in the creek for hours; scratches on Grier’s hands; and surveillance video showing the two walking together close to where the 21-year-old was found, face down in Cobbs Creek in November 2017.
Prosecutors say Grier strangled Johnson with her own backpack as she clawed for life. In the hours before her death, Johnson is seen on video along South Street with a plastic bag, backpack, glasses and phone — all of which were missing from the crime scene. And, they say Grier turned off his phone when they allege the killing happened, then deleted his Facebook account immediately after Johnson went missing.
Former friends of the two testified to Grier’s strange behavior in the days and weeks that followed, saying he hadn’t seen or spoken to Johnson in weeks. They say he was “stoic and emotionless” at her funeral.
Grier, however, called it all “gossip” and said the state’s case was circumstantial, with “modified facts.” He told the jury he voluntarily went to the police to be interviewed after Johnson’s death and said he wasn’t nearby when she was killed.
The trial lasted a week, with family from both sides watching from a separate room, floors above.