Witness says he saw suspect with assault rifle shortly before 7 people were slain in Ind.

Witness says suspect in Ind. slayings held rifle

INDIANAPOLIS — A witness says he saw a man accused of killing seven people holding an assault rifle on the front porch of their Indianapolis home minutes before the slayings.

Brandon Griffith also testified Thursday that defendant Desmond Turner had told him shortly before the slayings that he was going to “hit a lick” at the family’s house. The phrase is street slang for robbery.

Griffith says Turner had frequented the neighborhood for several weeks before the June 1, 2006, shootings of four adults and three children from the same family.

Turner is charged with seven counts of murder and faces life in prison without parole if convicted. Prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty in exchange for Turner waiving his right to a jury trial.