Ex-girlfriend of murder suspect testifies on suspect's alleged confession

The ex-girlfriend of Justin Edward Patterson, who's on trial for murder in a 2013 shooting death, testified Wednesday to an alleged confession he made to her just hours after the shooting, but one she didn't tell authorities for over three years.

Patterson, 28, is on trial for the second-degree murder of Mikki Jay Dauntain, who was allegedly shot to death in May 2013 in the area of Federal Avenue and Garber Street in Morgan City. Patterson also faces a charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in the case.

On the second day of Patterson's trial, Ashley Rudolph, Patterson's ex-girlfriend, testified for over two hours Wednesday morning about the events leading up to the shooting on May 20, 2013, and what happened after the shooting. The couple was still dating at that time.

Rudolph testified Wednesday to an alleged confession that Patterson made to her hours after the shooting that she didn't tell Morgan City police in her statements to them.

Rudolph said Wednesday that she had repeatedly questioned Patterson about what happened the night of the shooting.

Just before Rudolph and Patterson went to sleep a few hours after the shooting, Patterson told her that he didn't mean to shoot Dauntain and mistook Dauntain for Brandon Scott, whom Patterson and she believed was involved in robbing them in April 2013 in the city of Patterson, she said.

When Rudolph heard that news, she cried, and Patterson said he was sorry for what happened, Rudolph said.

The first time Rudolph told anyone about that conversation she had with Patterson early on May 21, 2013, was just before Patterson was set to go to trial in September 2016.

Rudolph said didn't think she needed to tell police all the details of what happened following the shooting, but knew that the conversation was important.

She also said she lied to Morgan City police when detectives interviewed her about the homicide investigation May 21, 2013. Rudolph then testified to "a lie" less than a month after the shooting because she "was just trying to protect everybody," she said Wednesday.

But the truth now "needed to be told," she said.

Rudolph was arrested in August 2013 and charged with accessory after the fact to second-degree murder and obstruction of justice involving second-degree murder for getting rid of the gun Patterson allegedly used to shoot Dauntain on May 20, 2013.

As part of a plea deal, Rudolph pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice involving a convicted felon in possession of a firearm in the case but has yet to be sentenced. She faces up to 20 years in prison at hard labor. She originally faced the charge of obstruction of justice involving second-degree murder, which carries up 40 years in prison.

In the plea, she agreed to testify truthfully at Patterson's trial about what happened.

Going back to April 2013, Rudolph said she and Patterson lived together at a home on Wise Street in city of Patterson until April 2013.

That month they moved to a house at the corner of Front and Franklin streets in Morgan City because the Wise Street home had been broken into twice, and the second time Patterson and Rudolph were robbed, she said.

Before moving, during April 2013, several men knocked on their door and then barged into the house, beating Patterson with a gun several times and dragging Rudolph down a hallway while looking for items to steal, Rudolph said. The suspects stole money and jewelry, she said.

Rudolph said she knew that Wanya Francis, Troy Richardson and Austin Ray were arrested in connection with the robbery. But there were four people involved in the robbery, she said.

The Daily Review reported in January 2014 that Richardson, Francis, Ray and Randolph Joseph had all been arrested in connection with the robbery of Patterson and Rudolph.

Patterson thought that Scott hadn't been held responsible for his alleged role in the crime, she said.

Patterson was "really upset" about the robbery and was still mad 6-1/2 weeks later, Rudolph said.

On May 20, 2013, Patterson went to work at Halimar Shipyard, but came home early to the Front Street home to wait for a Direct TV technician. Rudolph had gone to the home of her father, Patrick Madise, but left his home before the shooting occurred, she said.

Rudolph got back to the couple's Front Street home before the shooting, and Patterson was just leaving with his sister, Jessicah Johnson, Rudolph said.

Patterson was wearing jeans and a hoodie, either dark or camouflage, she said. When Rudolph asked where he was going, Patterson just said "be cool. Rudolph said Patterson and Johnson then left in Johnson's white car, heading in the direction of Big Phil's Barbershop, near where the shooting would occur.

Rudolph "had a bad feeling" and drove to her father's house again, which took about five minutes. Soon after arriving at Madise's home, she heard sirens and borrowed Madise's phone to call Patterson because she didn't have the phone she and Patterson shared, she said.

But Patterson didn't answer her call, so she drove in her gold pickup truck with Madise to see what was happening, Rudolph said.

Rudolph just saw police and an ambulance and didn't know what happened, she said.

Then Patterson called Madise's phone back, and Rudolph answered. Patterson stated he was a few blocks from Big Phil's Barbershop off of Federal Avenue and said to meet him there, Rudolph said.

Rudolph, who was driving, found Patterson dressed the same way she'd seen him earlier, she said. Patterson got in the truck, and Rudolph drove back to their Front Street home. Rudolph asked him what was going on, but he didn't answer, she said.

She kept trying to talk to Patterson, but "he was drunk or something," she said. Patterson was stumbling over and running into things, she said.

Rudolph was panicking because she knew the police were coming, and Patterson's clothes and a silver revolver, which she'd never seen before, were on the floor of their home, she said.

Patterson left their home with someone in a black car, but she didn't see who was driving, Rudolph said. Next, Rudolph went back to her father's house and called her friend, Lyndsey Guidry, to come get her to leave her father home.

Rudolph, Guidry, and Rudolph's sister, Tori Madise, drove to the La. 182 bridge in Morgan City. Rudolph said they needed to get rid of the gun. So Guidry picked up the gun and threw it off the bridge, Rudolph said.

Once Rudolph arrived back at her Front Street home, Patterson was there. He "wasn't himself" and "not in his right mind," Rudolph said.

Patterson was now wearing a white T-shirt, Rudolph said.

The next day, around 6 a.m. May 21, 2013, Rudolph awoke to find Patterson's mother, Cassandra Garrett, telling Patterson he needed to go to the Morgan City Police Department.

Patterson and Rudolph eventually went to the police department together. Rudolph gave police the phone that they shared.

Rudolph said she told police "a lie" and "made up some stuff" because she was trying to protect Patterson.

The night of the shooting, Rudolph left a bag of clothes at her father's home. Those clothes were Patterson's clothes she found on her floor the night of the shooting, she said. The bag stayed there until her mother, Linda Madise, found out about it a couple of days after the shooting. Several days later, Rudolph, Linda Madise and Guidry burned the clothes at the horse arena in Morgan City, she said.

On Wednesday afternoon, a forensic pathologist, Dr. Michael DeFatta, testified that he performed an autopsy on Dauntain's body May 22, 2013, and ruled the cause of death a gunshot wound to the head.

DeFatta classified the wound as a "distant gunshot wound" because there was no soot, stifling or searing on the wound that would have been present for a close-range shooting.

The bullet entered the right side of Dauntain's forehead and lodged in the back of his head, DeFatta said.

Jacob Carpino, who investigated the shooting as a Morgan City police detective, testified that he took pictures May 20, 2013, at the crime scene located at Federal Avenue and Garber Street.

Carpino also conducted a search warrant on the red car that Dauntain had been in right before he was shot. Carpino located blood at multiple places on the vehicle, found broken glass on the rear passenger window, an alcoholic beverage in the front passenger seat and pills without a prescription, he said.

Carpino tried to find footage of the actual shooting taking place from Johnny's Food Mart in Morgan City but didn't find any video of the crime scene, he said.

Additionally, Carpino collected an iPhone belonging to Patterson.

Master Trooper Joshua Van Etta, of the state police criminal investigation division, testified that he did a download of the iPhone and generated a 2,263-page report that showed the log of calls made and received along with a record of text messages on the phone.

The trial was set to enter its third day Thursday with witness testimony resuming at 9:30 a.m.