How did 2 16-year-old girls get killed in Winchester? New details released in testimony.

Two witnesses identified three of four men involved in a Nov. 7 gunfight in which two 16-year-old girls were killed in the crossfire, a police detective testified Wednesday.

Denzel Hill, Darian Skinner and Ronnie Ellis are accused of exchanging fire with Matthew Carmen. Sgt. Detective Tom Beall said he believes he knows the cause of the gunfight, but he did not disclose that in his testimony.

Kayla Sue Holland was dead at the East Washington scene when police and emergency crews arrived, Beall said. Adrianna Castro was taken to Clark Regional Medical Center, where she died, Beall said.

Holland was shot in the back of the head, while Castro was wounded in the torso, Beall said.

The testimony came in separate hearings for Hill, 22, and Skinner, 24, who were each charged with two counts of complicity to murder. Clark District Judge Earl-Ray Neal found probable cause to send their cases to a grand jury, which is expected to review the charges before the end of the year.

The attorney for Mikaela Buford, 18, waived her hearing, but her case will also be forwarded to the grand jury. Ellis’ hearing was continued until Nov. 29. Buford, who drove the three men to the East Washington Street shooting, and Ellis each face two complicity to murder charges.

Beall said a fifth unidentified person who was in the car will not be charged in connection with the shootings.

When the car arrived at the two-story house divided into apartments, Ellis, Hill and Skinner got out, walked toward the house and began firing toward it, Beall said.

Carmen was firing toward the men from an upper story “deck,” Beall said.

Public defender Brian Hewlett, the attorney for Skinner, asked: “No one person can say ‘I saw this person shoot and saw this person go down’?”

“That’s correct, sir,” Beall answered.

Gun casings for two weapons, a .40-caliber and a 9 mm, were recovered from the scene, Beall said. He said one gun, which he believes belonged to Carmen, was recovered.

Police found Hill and Skinner at a house on Madison Avenue in Winchester at about 5:30 a.m. Nov. 8, the day after the shootings, Beall said.

Hill bolted out the back door and tried to climb over a fence but police were able catch him, Beall said. Hill dropped a cell phone that was recovered by police, Beall said.

Skinner was lying on the couch and did not attempt to run. Skinner told police he had not left the house all night and that he was house-sitting and taking care of a friend’s dog, Beall said.

Hearings for Carmen, 23, and Julia Richardson, 25, are scheduled for next week in Clark District Court. He is charged with two counts of complicity to murder and she is charged with tampering with evidence.

This story was originally published November 15, 2017 at 3:41 PM with the headline "How did 2 16-year-old girls get killed in Winchester? New details released in testimony.."