By Shawn Day
The Virginian-Pilot
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A special grand jury has indicted one of two men charged in the killing of Virginia Beach police Detective Michael Phillips with capital murder.
Ted Vincent Carter, 24, was indicted on capital murder during the course of a robbery, robbery, and two counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, Virginia Beach Commonwealth’s Attorney Harvey Bryant said Thursday.
If convicted, Carter could face execution. Bryant declined to say whether he would seek the death penalty.
The second man charged in Phillips’ death, Marshall Demetrius Moyd, 27, was indicted on charges of robbery and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. Both men are from Virginia Beach.
The announcement came less than an hour after the conclusion of a preliminary hearing in Virginia Beach General District Court for Carter and Moyd.
During the hearing, Judge Bonnie Jones certified charges of first-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony against the pair. She declined to certify a charge of violation of the Drug Conspiracy Act. She said the prosecution had not provided enough evidence to support it.
“I think this was a robbery that went bad,” the judge said.
Phillips, 37, was gunned down late Aug. 7 as he sat in a pickup parked in the Green Run Square Shopping Center lot along Holland Road. The detective was undercover and trying to buy half a pound of marijuana.
Other undercover officers were in the parking lot that night to back up Phillips. Several testified Thursday about what they saw and what they heard over the transmitter that Phillips was wearing in the moments before the shooting.
According to testimony, a supervisor gave Phillips $675 to buy marijuana and directed him to park the pickup in the Green Run Square Shopping Center lot, on the side of the 7-Eleven. Phillips was armed.
Moyd approached the pickup, got in the passenger side and began talking with Phillips. Both denied being police officers. Moyd patted down Phillips, then said he didn’t have the marijuana but would get it, according to the officers. Moyd got out of the truck and walked a short distance away, where he met Carter.
Moyd walked back to Phillips’ pickup while Carter walked north into a neighborhood and got into a tan sport-utility vehicle. Other officers followed the SUV as it was driven to the shopping center lot and parked next to the driver’s side of the pickup. Phillips could be heard asking Moyd, “Is this your guy?”
No, Moyd replied.
The SUV driver stepped out and walked to the driver’s side of the pickup, where Phillips sat, and began shooting.
Moyd bailed out of the truck, jumped into the SUV and tried to speed away. Other officers swarming toward the detective’s pickup rammed the SUV, but Moyd managed to drive a short distance farther. He jumped out and began to run but was caught and arrested.
Phillips was found bleeding heavily from multiple gunshot wounds and lying on the pavement on the pickup’s passenger side. He died at the scene.
Carter was on the driver’s seat of the pickup, leaning over the floorboard, grabbing blood-streaked bills that Phillips had dropped as he tried to escape. Two handguns also lay on the floorboard, according to testimony.
Shawn Day, (757) 222-5131, shawn.day@pilotonline.com
Background
On Aug. 7, Beach Detective Michael Phillips, 37, was killed during an undercover attempt to buy drugs. preliminary trial
Ted Vincent Carter, right, was indicted on charges of capital murder during the course of a robbery, robbery, and two counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. Marshall Demetrius Moyd, left, was indicted on charges of robbery and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. Th e judge certified first-degree murder charges but not a charge of violation of the Drug Conspiracy Act. what’s next?
If convicted, Carter could face the death penalty.
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