STATE ATTORNEY DAVIS RUARK SENDS POWERFUL MESSAGE TO CRIMINALS IN PIRKLE CASE

I attended the three day murder trial of Brianna Brinkley, one of three suspects accused of participating in the Jan 22 2009 murder of Anitra Pirkle, the 25 year old young woman who was carjacked and brutally stabbed and left in a field in Delmar to later die. I had been following this case closely so I knew state attorney Davis Ruark along with his assistant attorney Jamie Dykes would be the prosecuting attorneys. The trial was to be held on the same floor, in the same courtroom as the trial of Kenneth Alvira, one of the other convicted murderers in this case and who is now awaiting sentencing. As I entered the courtroom I made my way over to the seat by the window that I had previously occupied in the Alvira trial .It seemed to provide a sense of warmth and comfort to an otherwise cold and uncomfortable situation. Quite a few people by now had filled the courtroom including family members from both sides, news media, community members, and reporters who had been following this case closely as well.

State attorney Davis Ruark and attorney Jamie Dykes were already seated at there appointed desks in the courtroom. They were ready for battle. They were both on time, prepared and dressed in matching colored suits that seemed to signal a united front line. They were going over notes and checking paper work and making sure every 't' was crossed and every ' i ' was dotted. There was no room for error in this case. Ruark knew this was probably going to be one of the hardest cases of his career he had to prosecute. The conviction of a young "female" murder suspect. The air was thick with anticipation awaiting the entrance of the defendant who had been accused of helping cause such devastating harm and death to Anitra Pirkle. There was an eerie silence in the room and as I stared out the window I could see the hustle and bustle of people going to and fro. Cars whizzing by, people living and enjoying life as Anitra once did and never thinking of any danger that they might encounter during the course of the day.My patience was beginning to wear thin. I wanted to see this "monster". I wanted to feel anger towards her. I wanted to size her up and watch her every move. I wanted to hate her. I wanted to bask in her fear and anguish of not knowing her pending fate.

The silence was suddenly broken by the sound of the opening of a side door in which the defendant used to enter into the courtroom. The room became a buzz with whispers " there she is!!!". Was that really her ? That couldn't possibly be her. Our facial expressions were that of confusion and disbelief. We were all looking for "the monster", "the killer" "the vicious animal" "the beast" who had helped kill Anitra but instead who stood before us was a calm gentle looking young woman who was nicely dressed and her hair neatly in place. She wore tiny glasses that softly framed her face. She walked slowly and quietly to her seat which was close beside her lawyer. I was frustrated. Why didn't she look like I had imagined? Where was my sense of rage and hatred towards her? We were all counting on Ruark to help us make sense of it all. We stood as the Honorable Judge Donald C Davis took his seat on the bench. The jurors filed into the courtroom one after the other looking straight ahead and purposely trying not to make eye contact with any one in the room. It was as if they were forewarned. This was a different judge and a different jury than in the case of Kenneth Alvira but I knew that there lives would never be the same

There was once again two days of seemingly endless testimony. Anitra's mother sobbed quietly as she rocked back and forth and held her arms while listening to the evidence that was presented directly linking Brianna to the crime and eye witness testimony putting her at the scene of the crime along with Kenneth Alvira and Brittany Barkley. The juror’s faces that were filled with curiosity over a box that Ruark was holding quickly turned to sheer and utter terror when he revealed the contents of the box which contained the murder weapon. The doctor who had worked frantically on Anitra to try to save her life fought back tears as he testified that he had never seen a knife quite like that in his life and Anitra's stabbing was the worst he had seen in his career as a doctor. The jurors held their faces and wept.

On the third and final day of the trial Brianna Brinkley was called to testify on her own behalf. She walked with her head held down as she took the seat on the witness stand. There was dead silence in the courtroom and the jurors were spellbound as she testified about the events of the night of Anitra's murder.It was as if they desparately wanted to hear her say "I wasnt there" It wasnt me" "they got the wrong girl". She tried to convince the jury that she was not a participant in the actual stabbing. The jurors weren't buying it. They seemed to just want to know "why"? Whey didnt you get help? Why didn't you have mercy on this young woman? Why didn't you just take the car at this point and let Anitra go? Davis Ruark stood to give his closing arguments.He knew Brianna Brinkley was the deadliest predator of all. She was the one you would least likely to suspect.He quoted the law which he knew so very well, The jurors watched him closely and listened without even blinking or swallowing. His piercing blue eyes looking out at them. His dramatization of the events of that fateful night were riveting. This case was not only about Anitra but about the safety of this community as a whole.Am I my brothers keeper? Yes I am.It is our responsiblity to look out for and care for one another.. It doesnt matter if you are black or white ,young or old, rich or poor. fat or skinny, male or female if you are a participant in a crime you will be caught, convicted and punished to the fullest extend of the law.The jury deliberated and found Brianna Brinkley guilty of all charges including first degree murder.As the jurors left the courtroom Ruark could tell that there hearts were heavy.This was not an easy case for him or them. Two families lives had been destroyed.Brianna's sentencing date is pending.

There are wolves that roam among the sheep and lambs of our community. We as adults are the sheep and our children are our lambs.Kenneth Alvira ,Brianna Brinkley and Brittany Barkley are the deadliest kind of wolves, the kind that roam around among us in sheeps clothing.Anitra Pirkle was the sacrificial lamb that was slaughtered by these wolves.Her death uncovered these preditors and hopefully helped to spare the life of another sheep or lamb in our community.State attorney Davis Ruark successfully utilized his knowledge of the law, along with overwhelming evidence and the skills and talents of Jamie Lynn Dykes , the police dept, the sheriffs dept , the forensic dept, state troopers ,detectives ,doctors and witnesses and crime solvers to bring another criminal who lived among us to justice.